Tim Sparks Says 38 Pizza Hut Classic Locations Open in Daland Network
Tim Sparks said 38 pizza hut classic locations in Daland Corporation's network have brought back red cups, a salad bar, checkerboard tables and Tiffany-style stained-glass lamps. The Kansas-based franchise group now has retro dining rooms in 38 of its 93 Pizza Hut restaurants, a targeted remake rather than a chainwide reset.
Sparks said the response to the nostalgic remodels has been very positive and that he wants Pizza Hut to return to its former glory. He also said content from bloggers who visited a Pizza Hut Classic and posted video and photos has gone viral.
Tim Sparks and Daland
Daland Corporation, based in Kansas, runs the 93 franchises. Sparks, its president, said, "I have been wanting Pizza Hut to return to its former glory for years." He also said, "It's a good time to start having dinner together," and added, "Everybody gets super excited," along with, "There's a lot of feel-good to it for sure."
He described the brand as "kind of iconic to the country" while discussing the throwback remodels. Sparks said he hopes the updated dining rooms will bring customers back inside, where the restored features are part of the draw.
Pizza Hut's Classic look
The retro remodels revive details tied to the chain's older dining-room style, including the red cups and salad bar that once defined many stores. Checkerboard tables and Tiffany-style stained-glass lamps are also back in some locations.
Pizza Hut was founded in Kansas in 1958 by brothers Dan and Frank Carney after they borrowed $600 from their mother. The company later started Book It! in 1984, and it still uses the reading program to reward children with pizza.
From a handful to 38
Until recently, only a handful of Pizza Huts kept the classic look. That changed as Daland expanded the retro design into more of its stores, pushing the count to 38 locations across its network.
Pizza Hut says its sign only had room for eight letters, a detail that has long been part of the chain's identity. The company now operates more than 16,000 Pizza Huts in more than 100 countries, but the classic dining-room style remains limited to a small slice of that footprint.
