Philadelphia, PA
- On National Pretzel Day, Philly Pretzel Factory will celebrate its fans by giving away pretzels for the eleventh consecutive year. With more than 170 locations, the nation's largest Philly-style pretzel brand is expecting to distribute more than 50,000 pretzels this year
On Thursday, April 26, traditional and Walmart locations system-wide will offer a pretzel to every guest who enters the store in honor of the national holiday. Additionally, Philly Pretzel Factory locations will award the first 100 customers in line with a card redeemable for a free pretzel every day throughout the month of May.
"When we started giving away pretzels on National Pretzel Day, we didn't realize what a huge success the holiday would become," said Dan DiZio, CEO and co-founder of Philly Pretzel Factory. "We have guests who start asking about the pretzel giveaway in January, and we know that the only reason we've been able to succeed as a business is because of their patronage. We celebrate the holiday to give back and thank our loyal customers because we truly appreciate them."
National Pretzel Day began in 1983 when Philadelphia Rep. Robert S. Walker declared his favorite food was deserving of its own holiday. During the time of the first declaration, but long before Philly Pretzel Factory was built, DiZio already had a knack for selling the knot-shaped delights. At the age of 12, DiZio would ride his bike to the corner of Southampton and Roosevelt Boulevard to sell his own pretzel creations. The young entrepreneur would sell five pretzels for $1, averaging total sales of 1,000 pretzels per day. After giving a cut to the supplier, DiZio would pocket $100 and ride home.
In order to turn his pretzel stand into something much bigger, DiZio teamed up with college buddy Len Lehman in 1998 to create the first Philly Pretzel Factory blueprint. Since then, the brand has grown from a single location in the Mayfair neighborhood in Philadelphia to 170 locations in 17 states across the U.S., from Massachusetts to Florida on the East Coast and to Nevada on the West Coast. The company is on pace to add 25 new locations this year with franchise owners across the U.S.
"Although we have a huge presence across the Mid-Atlantic, we've been expanding our footprint into new markets over the past few years," said Tom Monaghan, Chief Development Officer of Philly Pretzel Factory. "National Pretzel Day allows people in markets outside of the Mid-Atlantic to interact with our brand and taste our freshly baked pretzels."
