Growing a Franchise

Franchisee Voices: Matt Iwaszkiewicz Of Your Pie
Veteran franchisee gets in on the fast casual pizza segment just as the market is starting to boom

Growing a Franchise

Veteran franchisee gets in on the fast casual pizza segment just as the market is starting to boom

Tell us a little bit about your background.
I’ve lived in the Columbus area for 16 years, working in software sales. My wife, Katie, is a homemaker, but we used to own and operate a Sport Clips*, which she ran. We owned Sport Clips for five years and sold the business in 2010 looking to do something different. I will continue my full time job and we'll have a general manager to run the day-to-day operations of our Your Pie.
Why did you choose to become a franchisee with Your Pie?
We were looking into investing with a new franchise concept and I loved the fast casual pizza segment, which is booming right now. I am perpetually hungry and when I found out about Your Pie through an online search, I was impressed. It was a compelling concept and message, we liked the corporate team and loved that we were getting in just as the business is starting to explode, leaving room for growth.
What’s next for you and your business?
We do plan on expanding. This will be the anchor store and we would like to develop the Columbus market. Columbus has become a huge foodie town and the demographics of the community lends itself it to craft beer and pizza mindset. We’ll be opening the first location in the gentrified and popular Grandview neighborhood near downtown.
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About the Author
Nick Powills, CFE, founded No Limit Agency in 2008 and serves as Chief Brand Strategist for the Chicago-based firm. No Limit is a full-service communications agency that establishes and elevates brands by bridging Public Relations, Social Media, Marketing, Advertising, Digital, and a lot of creativity, to best strategize well-rounded and successful campaigns for 50+ global franchise brands. By presenting visionary ideas and building real relationships, No Limit is able to create effective media branding strategies to help companies grow. Nick currently leads a staff of writers, media strategists, designers, social media experts and digital producers in an office think-tank where brands are humanized for strong, compelling media stories. Prior to starting No Limit at the age of 27, Nick spent four years working at a franchise PR agency where he mastered the art of building rapport with media outlets and creating newsworthy pitches for earned media placements. He holds a Bachelor of Journalism from Drake University in Iowa.