Little Caesars facts for kids
“Pizza! Pizza!”; logo used since 2017
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Headquarters in Detroit
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Trade name
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Little Caesars |
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Formerly
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Little Caesar's Pizza Treat (1959–1971) |
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| Industry | Restaurant Franchising |
| Genre | Fast food Pizzeria |
| Founded | May 8, 1959 Garden City, Michigan, U.S. |
| Founders | Mike Ilitch Marian Ilitch |
| Headquarters | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
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Number of locations
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5,463 (2017) |
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Area served
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List
United States (including Puerto Rico and Guam)
Bahamas Bahrain Barbados Cambodia Canada Chile Colombia Costa Rica Dominican Republic El Salvador Guatemala Honduras India Jamaica Kuwait Mexico Nicaragua Panama Peru Portugal Saudi Arabia Spain Trinidad and Tobago Turkey United Arab Emirates United Kingdom |
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Key people
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David Scrivano (President and CEO) Paula Vissing (COO) |
| Products | Pizza, chicken wings, breadsticks, soft drinks |
| Owner | Ilitch Holdings |
Little Caesars is a well-known American pizza restaurant chain. It started in 1959 and has grown to be one of the largest pizza chains in the United States. You can find Little Caesars restaurants not only in the U.S. but also in many other countries across Asia, Europe, North America, and South America. The company is owned by Ilitch Holdings and has its main office in Detroit, Michigan.
Contents
The Story of Little Caesars
Little Caesars Pizza began on May 8, 1959. It was founded by a married couple, Mike Ilitch and Marian Ilitch. Their very first pizza shop was in Garden City, Michigan, a town near Detroit. They called it "Little Caesar's Pizza Treat." That original store moved to a new building in nearby Westland in October 2018.
The first Little Caesars franchise opened in 1962 in Warren, Michigan. A franchise means that someone else pays to use the company's name and business ideas. In the same year, the Little Caesars logo became a 3D figure, which was used on signs outside the restaurants.
The company became famous for its advertising slogan, "Pizza! Pizza!", which started in 1979. This phrase meant you could get two pizzas for about the same price as one pizza from other places. At first, these two pizzas came in a special long box. Later, Little Caesars started using regular pizza boxes. For a while, their menu also included items like hot dogs, chicken, and sub sandwiches.
In 1997, Little Caesars introduced "Hot-N-Ready Pizza." This was a large pepperoni pizza sold for a low price, ready to pick up right away. This idea was very popular and became a permanent part of the chain. Little Caesars then focused more on customers picking up their orders.
In 1998, Little Caesars made history by filling the largest pizza order ever at that time. They made 13,386 pizzas for the VF Corporation in Greensboro, North Carolina. Little Caesars was also one of the first companies to use a new type of fast-cooking oven called the "Rotary Air Impingement Oven."
In December 2014, Little Caesars announced plans for a new, large office building in downtown Detroit. This building, called the Global Resource Center, was meant to double the size of their main headquarters. It was planned to connect to their existing offices near the Fox Theatre. The building was completed, adding more workspace and jobs in Detroit.
In 2017, Little Caesars updated its logo. The new design removed Caesar's chest hair and changed his wreath and toga. The toga now has hidden letters that spell "LC" for "Little Caesars." This updated Caesar also started appearing in their advertisements.
Marketing and Slogans
Little Caesars is known for its "Pizza! Pizza!" slogan. However, in Canada, they cannot use this phrase. Another restaurant chain, Pizza Pizza, already owns the trademark for a similar name there. So, in Canada, Little Caesars uses other slogans like "Two Pizzas!" or "Delivery! Delivery!".
Growing the Business
Little Caesars sold its first franchise in 1962. By 1987, they had restaurants in all 50 U.S. states. For many years, especially in the 1990s and early 2000s, you could often find Little Caesars inside Kmart stores. After Kmart stores faced challenges, many of these pizza spots were replaced. However, as of 2021, two Little Caesars locations still operate inside Kmart stores in Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Between 2008 and 2015, Little Caesars was the fastest-growing pizza chain in the United States. In 2017, the company had 5,463 locations, including those in the U.S. and other countries. To open a Little Caesars Franchise, the estimated cost can range from $378,700 to $1,695,500.
International Expansion
By 1987, Little Caesars had expanded across the Northern United States. In 1989, they bought the Mother's Pizza chain, which had locations in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. As of 2022, the company had locations in many countries, including Canada (since 1969 in some cities), Mexico (since 2006), Turkey, Spain, and several countries in Central and South America, and the Middle East.
Little Caesars also operated in the Philippines in the 1990s but closed down in the 2000s. It returned to the market on January 25, 2019, with a new branch in Manila. In 2019, Little Caesars restaurants in Australia closed after entering that market in 2014. The company entered the Indian market on January 29, 2020, opening two stores in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
In March 2022, Little Caesars left Russia due to the conflict in Ukraine. In December 2022, the company returned to the UK market after 22 years, opening a store in Derby. More stores opened in Greenford and Nottingham in 2024. In early September 2024, Little Caesars announced its exit from Singapore, with operations ending on September 30. The last store was in Funan. In 2022, Little Caesars had plans to expand into France, Germany, and Portugal.
Delicious Products
Little Caesars offers a variety of pizzas. Many popular items are part of the HOT-N-READY menu. This means they are already made and ready for you to pick up right away. Other pizzas are specialty items or can be custom-made. In 2013, they added the Deep! Deep! Dish Pizza, which is a type of Detroit-style pizza.
Besides pizza, the menu includes flavored Caesar Wings and different kinds of bread, like Crazy Bread and Italian Cheese Bread. Some locations also offer salads. All Little Caesars restaurants sell Pepsi drinks and brownies.
In 1996, they introduced Pizza by the Foot, a three-foot-long rectangular pizza. This product is no longer sold in the U.S., but a similar item, Pizza by the Meter, has been very popular in Saudi Arabia since the 1990s. Little Caesars also sometimes offers special pizzas for a limited time. For example, in 2014, they had the Soft Pretzel Crust Pizza, and in 2015, the "Bacon Wrapped Deep! Deep! Dish Pizza."
In May 2019, Little Caesars started testing a pizza with meatless sausage made by Impossible Foods. In June 2020, they brought back Stuffed Crazy Bread, which was first introduced in 1995. The original Crazy Bread first appeared in 1982.
As of May 15, 2023, Little Caesars introduced Crazy Puffs in Canada. These are small, handheld snacks made with pizza dough, cheese, pepperoni, and sauce, topped with garlic sauce and herbs. They later launched in the U.S. on March 11, 2024, with both pepperoni and cheese options.
Sponsorships
In September 2022, Little Caesars became the official pizza sponsor of the National Football League.
See also
In Spanish: Little Caesars para niños
