How This Former UPS Driver Reached His Work-Life Balance Goals and Became a First-Time Business Owner With California Tortilla

Wichita, Kansas native Mark Poling was working long hours as a UPS driver when an elbow injury suffered in 2016 left him unable to work for an extended period of time—and changed the course of his career.

“That was a turning point for me,” Poling said. “My second daughter was born not long after I got hurt, and as I got to spend time at home with the girls, I started to realize that in working from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. all the time, I was missing all of the important things in life. It helped change my viewpoint on what really mattered to me and what I wanted to do.”

Familiar with the franchise model from growing up in Wichita, home of Pizza Hut, Poling set out in search of an opportunity that would bring his city new flavors and also provided him the opportunity to spend more time with his young children.

“Wichita has historically been a fertile ground for restaurant franchises—Pizza Hut was founded here, and growing up here, I saw a lot of friends’ parents become quite financially successful through the franchise model,” Poling said. “I knew my wife, Christine, and I had the smarts, we just needed a system to match them and apply them to. I wanted something Wichita didn’t already have, so after two to three months of digging around the internet, I found California Tortilla.”

That was the summer of 2017. Now, the Polings are opening the first of at least three, but as many as five, California Tortilla locations as part of an area development agreement with the Mexican restaurant franchise that will introduce its bold flavor profiles to the state of Kansas for the first time.

Beyond the great people, awesome support system and the comprehensive training they’d be receiving, it was the food that really sealed the deal for them, Poling recounted. “Cal Tort is all about flavor,” he said. “The fresh ingredients in our recipes, the Wall of Flame—the flavors are endless in what you can create. We can also meet a lot of people’s needs under one roof; you can take chef-driven recipes as you need, or build your own thing yourself. The options are endless. Whether you want to take the spice out completely or make it so hot you’ll cry, you’ll feel good about what you’re eating.”

Cal Tort delivers exactly what the Polings were looking to bring to Wichita—namely, something people could feel comfortable feeding to their families. With a growing health consciousness among consumers becoming more prominent by the day, the Polings are well-positioned to meet the needs of their community in this regard for many years to come.

Healthy, feel-good food is only part of the Poling’s recipe for success with Cal Tort, though, with the other key aspect being deep-seated community connections Mark and Christine plan to elevate in their restaurants. The two plan to partner with a number of charitable organizations in the health and fitness space, along with the humane society and local food banks.

“Working with people who have less is important to us because we’ve been there before,” Poling said. “That’s also why I’m bringing a restaurant to Wichita—I found success here and I want to give that back and facilitate opportunity for others,” Poling said. “We’ve hired approximately 28 people for our first location, half of which are full-time. By our third store, that number could feasibly reach 90 jobs for the community.”

With local ties that run this deep, it’s clear Cal Tort has found a home in Kansas.

The investment range for a California Tortilla franchise ranges from $402,400 to $697,000, including a $40,000 initial franchise fee. For more information on the opportunities available across the U.S., please visit https://franchise.californiatortilla.com.