America's Incredible Pizza Company (AIPC) is an American

restaurant chain A chain store or retail chain is a retail outlet in which several locations share a brand, central management and standardized business practices. They have come to dominate many retail markets, dining markets, and service categories in many pa ...

based in Springfield,

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

. The restaurants are

pizza Pizza is an Italian cuisine, Italian, specifically Neapolitan cuisine, Neapolitan, dish typically consisting of a flat base of Leavening agent, leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomato, cheese, and other ingredients, baked at a high t ...

buffet A buffet is a system of serving meals in which food is placed in a public area where the diners serve themselves. A form of '' service à la française'', buffets are offered at various places including hotels, restaurants, and many social eve ...

s and

entertainment center An entertainment center (or centre), also known as an entertainment complex or a home entertainment center, is a piece of furniture designed to house consumer electronic appliances and components. It is sometimes a large cabinet with an exterior ...

s. The first restaurant opened in Springfield in 2002. The company has 1,200 employees, and a revenue of $64.1 million.

History

America's Incredible Pizza Company, headquartered in Springfield, Missouri, is owned by Rick and Cheryl Barsness. The couple entered the pizza business with a single restaurant in

Victoria, Texas Victoria is a city and the county seat of Victoria County, Texas, United States. The population was 65,534 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The three counties of the Victoria, Texas metropolitan area, Victoria Metropolitan Statis ...

and by 1975, owned 11 franchises of Gatti's Pizza. AIPC grew out of an idea from its founder, Rick Barsness. When Barsness was a

hockey ''Hockey'' is a family of List of stick sports, stick sports where two opposing teams use hockey sticks to propel a ball or disk into a goal. There are many types of hockey, and the individual sports vary in rules, numbers of players, apparel, ...

player in high school, his team reached the state championships, but his father never attended a game. His father's absence nurtured a boyhood dream of a place where families could eat and have fun together. This was the type of place Barsness wished he could have spent time with his father.Whiteman (2006) In 2003, years of legal battles came to an end when Rick Barsness agreed to pay Gatti's a $1 million

settlement Settlement may refer to: *Human settlement, a community where people live *Settlement (structural), downward movement of a structure's foundation *Settlement (finance), where securities are delivered against payment of money *Settlement (litigatio ...

. Mr. Gatti's had charged that Barsness had violated his franchise

contract A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more parties. A contract typically involves consent to transfer of goods, services, money, or promise to transfer any of thos ...

with them, and had taken

trade secret A trade secret is a form of intellectual property (IP) comprising confidential information that is not generally known or readily ascertainable, derives economic value from its secrecy, and is protected by reasonable efforts to maintain its conf ...

s. In addition to the $1 million payout, Barsness also agreed to pay Mr. Gatti's Inc. 1% of IPC's net sales for the next 10 years. AIPC started franchising and established its corporate headquarters in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa ( ) is the List of municipalities in Oklahoma, second-most-populous city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the List of United States cities by population, 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The po ...

in 2003. It moved the headquarters to Springfield, Missouri in 2009. AIPC restaurants have an average of 250 employees and it costs $5–9 million to start a restaurant.Whiteman (2006), p. 5. America's Incredible Pizza announced that its location at Lafayette Square Mall in Indianapolis would close March 19, 2012.

Locations and format

At the AIPC, the music and decorations have a 1950s theme. AIPC has a

style

pasta Pasta (, ; ) is a type of food typically made from an Leavening agent, unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or Eggs as food, eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Pasta was originally on ...

salad A salad is a dish consisting of mixed ingredients, frequently vegetables. They are typically served chilled or at room temperature, though some can be served warm. Condiments called '' salad dressings'', which exist in a variety of flavors, a ...

, and

dessert Dessert is a course (food), course that concludes a meal; the course consists of sweet foods, such as cake, biscuit, ice cream, and possibly a beverage, such as dessert wine or liqueur. Some cultures sweeten foods that are more commonly umami, ...

bar, with several seating areas for customers to eat. These include the Starlite Drive In, Family Room, Diner, and Gym. The restaurant has 30 types of pizza and an 80-item salad bar. An AIPC restaurant has an average area of .Whiteman (2006), p.4. The restaurant is smoke-free and

alcohol-free Alcohol-free may refer to: *Non-alcoholic drink, a version of an alcoholic drink made without alcohol * Alcohol-free zone, that prohibit the consumption of alcohol *Teetotalism, abstinence from alcohol *" Alcohol-Free", a song by South Korean girl ...

. It has an

arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated video, pinball, electro-mechanical, redemption, etc., game ** Arcade video game, a coin-operated video game ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade video game's hardware ** Arcad ...

go-karts Kart racing or karting is a motorsport discipline using open-wheel, four-wheeled vehicles known as go-karts or shifter karts. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits, although some professional kart races are also held on full-size motor ...

billiards Cue sports are a wide variety of games of skill played with a cue stick, which is used to strike billiard balls and thereby cause them to move around a cloth-covered table bounded by elastic bumpers known as . Cue sports, a category of stic ...

bowling Bowling is a Throwing sports#Target sports, target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a bowling ball, ball toward Bowling pin, pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). Most references to ''bowling'' are ...

, and

miniature golf Miniature golf (also known as minigolf, putt-putt, crazy golf, and by #Nomenclature, several other names) is an offshoot of the sport of golf focusing solely on the putting aspect of its parent game. The aim of the game is to score the lowest ...

, among other activities.

Incredible Pizza Company Foundation

In fall 2007, the Incredible Pizza Company founders, Rick and Cheryl Barsness, founded the Incredible Pizza Company Foundation (IPC Foundation) for the goal of donating to

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Miss ...

and

orphanage An orphanage is a residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared by their biological families. The parents may be deceased, absent, or abusi ...

s. On February 20, 2008, the IPC Foundation gave $24,000 to the

Convoy of Hope Convoy of Hope is an American faith-based nonprofit humanitarian and disaster relief organization that provides food, supplies, and humanitarian services to impoverished or otherwise needy populations throughout the world. The organization also ...

, a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

. In September 2008, the IPCF donated $6,500 to Care to Learn, a fund managed by the Foundation for Springfield Public Schools.

NASCAR sponsorship

America's Incredible Pizza Company was the primary sponsor of number 11

CJM Racing CJM Racing was a NASCAR Nationwide Series team. It fielded the No. 11 car for a variety of drivers. Sprint Cup Series Businessmen Bryan and Tony Mullet formed Victory Motorsports in 2006 in NASCAR, 2006 when they purchased the Sprint Cup equipme ...

in the

NASCAR Nationwide Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...

in 2008 and 2009. On June 17, 2008, Jason Keller, the driver of the Incredible Pizza-sponsored car, attended the opening of the 15th Incredible Pizza restaurant in

Mesquite, Texas Mesquite is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Dallas County, Texas, Dallas County with portions extending into Kaufman County, Texas, Kaufman County. The population was 150,108 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, and maki ...

. In 2008, first complete NASCAR season that the AIPC sponsored a racing team, the team finished in 17th place. In July 2008, CJM Racing and AIPC partnered with

Joe Gibbs Racing Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) is an American professional stock car racing organization founded by Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs. His son, J. D. Gibbs, ran the team with him until his death in 2019. Founded in Huntersville, North Carolina, ...

. The partnership between the two racing teams included the NASCAR driver Scott Lagasse Jr., who finished 13th in the No. 11 America's Incredible Pizza Company

Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ) is an American automobile division of the manufacturer General Motors (GM). In North America, Chevrolet produces and sells a wide range of vehicles, from subcompact automobiles to medium-duty commercial trucks. Due to the promi ...

Charlotte Motor Speedway Charlotte Motor Speedway (known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009 due to sponsorship reasons) is a quad-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Concord, North Carolina. It has hosted various major races since it ...

in October 2008. The sponsorship ended in December 2009 when CJM Racing suspended operations. Keller provided the best run for the team, a third at

Gateway Motorsports Park Gateway Motorsports Park (currently known as World Wide Technology Raceway for sponsorship reasons) is a motor racing facility in Madison, Illinois, just east of St. Louis, close to the Gateway Arch. It features a oval that hosts the NASCAR Cup ...

in 2008.

Awards

In 2008, the America's Pizza Company was named a "Top Family Entertainment Center of the World" (TFEC) from the

International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) represents over 6,000 amusement-industry members in more than 100 countries worldwide and operates several global attractions-industry trade shows. Its annual IAAPA Expo in ...

(IAAPA), which places it among the top five entertainment centers in the world. In 2008, AIPC was rated the 456th fastest growing company in the United States by the '' Inc'' 500. In the ''Inc.'' Top 100 Food & Beverage Companies, AIPC was rated number 12th, with a 693.1% growth.

References

Bibliography

External links

Official website

Official website in Mexico
{{pizza chains Companies based in Springfield, Missouri Economy of the Southwestern United States Regional restaurant chains in the United States Pizza chains of the United States Restaurants established in 2002 Pizza franchises Economy of the Midwestern United States Buffet restaurants 2002 establishments in Missouri