Cicis enters next phase of turnaround with saleCicis enters next phase of turnaround with sale

Darin Harris didn’t have an easy task when he took over as CEO of Cicis in 2013. 

Consumers had been turning away from Cicis for years, even though they could get all the pizza they wanted for just a few bucks.

Same-store sales had been falling for years. Cicis and its franchisees were closing restaurants. Today, the chain has 200 fewer units than in 2009, when it had 650 locations.

“Five years of negative comps and multiple store closures,” Harris said. “It was a revitalization story.”

Now, even after adding more than $100,000 to the average unit volume and encouraging franchisees to rebuild again, Harris is hardly ready to call Cicis’ turnaround complete. 

“We’re probably in the fourth or fifth inning of revitalization,” he said.

Still, Cici...