Cicis Pizza

April 5, 2020

So good it makes
grown men cry.

In 1985, in Plano, Texas, two guys by the names of
Joe Croce and Mike Cole, founded Cicis Pizza.

By 2001, with 363 locations, it was time to remodel their restaurants and expand their buffet offerings. Four years later, Cicis was the fastest-growing pizza chain in the United States. Today, Cicis has 386 U.S. locations.

Croce retired from the business in 2003 and Craig Moore, who was a general manager in Dallas, became vice president of the company. Moore held the position for five years and was then named president.

Upon his retirement, Croce gave 20 percent of his proceeds to Gateway Church, where he was a member.

Moore oversaw the company’s operations and franchise growth until he retired in 2009, after 17 years with the company.

Pizza, yes. But, how about wings, salad and dessert! Yum!

Following in Moore’s footsteps as president of the company, was Michael Shumsky, previously CEO of La Madeleine Restaurant, Inc. He retired in 2013 and Darin Harris took over as CEO. Harris left the company in 2018 and passed the baton to Bill Mitchell.

Cicis has announced plans to expand into Canada and Mexico over the next 10 years.

Cicis has been named one of the top 25
performing brands by The Wall Street Journal. 

Cicis has much more to offer than just pizza.
In November 2015, the company changed its name to just Cicis, dropping the word “pizza.” They added a modifier, “Beyond Pizza,” and created a new logo and redesigned their website.

The Restaurants & Institutions “Consumers’ Choice in Chains,” contest, awarded Cicis Pizza third place from 2004 to 2009. In March 2009, Men’s Health presented Cicis with honours for providing healthy food choices.

Gloria Sauvé
Communications and Marketing

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