With firmly planted roots, Uno Chicago Grill is growing from the inside out. Clearly defined company values, an ability to strategically reinvent itself, and a close adherence to quality in product, staff, and procedure keep the company’s past, present, and future intact.

“There’s a shelf life to restaurants, and very few restaurants have had the staying power of our company,” said Paul MacPhail, president and COO of the Uno chain. “For us to be in business for 60 years is a phenomenon in the
restaurant industry.”

Founded in Chicago as Pizzeria Uno in 1943, the brand has changed as much as it’s stayed the same. An enduring commitment to quality and a culture of continuous improvement have allowed the company to grow with the changing needs of its consumers, and at the same time has helped preserve its identity as competitors come and go.

“We had a long history of success at Uno,” he said. “As we got into the early ’90s, the number of casual dining restaurants was increasing and demographic profiles were changing. We knew we needed to be more than a pizza restaurant. We began a process of evaluating the eating and dining trends of the consumer and where they were going in the future and adjusted our concept to be more mainstream in the casual dining arena.”

Listening in
To better respond to its customers’ changing needs, Uno expanded its menu from just pizza to include a broad offering of steak, seafood, and pasta entrees; today, pizza accounts for only 20% of its business. As part of this transition, its name changed from Pizzeria Uno to Uno Chicago Grill to better represent its new offering.

“We’re in a very high growth mode, and the restaurant industry is growing at a substantial rate,” said MacPhail, noting that much of the growth is driven by the changing habits of consumers and demographics. “We’re just at the early stages of that, with the baby boomers going into the next phase of their lives. They eat out more often, they have two income households, and they’re pressed for time.”

However, the company’s recipe for its pizza is still the same. In fact, it remains a mystery to this day, even to most Uno employees. “The menu has evolved in terms of the new products being offered,” said MacPhail. “We have a lot of variety, and our products continue to change a
couple times a year so we can keep our menu fresh and appealing to the customer. But in terms of changing the recipes on our pizzas, we would never think of it.”

Building out
There are currently 201 Uno restaurants, with plans for another 30 to open this year. The company has approximately 8,000 employees, and its system-wide sales are approximately $500 million a year.

Uno operates 121 of the restaurants, with the remainder owned and managed by franchisees. MacPhail considers the company’s franchise support program to be a competitive advantage over other concepts. “We are continually honored as one of the best franchise opportunities in our category,” he said.

The company is extremely particular about who it allows to become a franchisee in its system. “We know that if their values and financial capabilities don’t match what we’re looking for, their probability for success goes down. We’d rather say no than bring a poor franchisee into our system.”

The company’s support program consists of hands-on services such as a 10-week training program, design services, site selection support, ongoing evaluations, marketing programs, and quarterly training and development opportun-
ities. In addition, it holds biannual franchise meetings to introduce strategic developments within the company and future plans, among other things.

Another primary area of focus is Uno’s consumer food division, which started 15 years ago at the request of a supplier to sell fresh pizzas in a supermarket. Today, the company runs a 40,000- square-foot food manufacturing plant in Brockton, Mass., employing 130 full-time staff. The plant makes pizza products and consumables for retail and food service operators such as movie theaters, hospitals, and schools. MacPhail says its biggest customers are major airline carriers. The division grew 30% last year and 20% the prior year. The business garnered from the division is about $25 million, but MacPhail says the company expects it will grow to $100 million before long.

Connecting the dots
In an industry so reliant on information, it’s no surprise that technology has played a major role in Uno’s success. MacPhail says it helps the company to make better decisions.