Express to the Rescue

For 21 years, IU students have been getting it every night. Or at least that's what local fast-food bastion Pizza Express would say, more than 4 million pizzas after Jeff Mease and Jeff Hamlin first opened their doors to the Bloomington community. \nAnd now the Bloomington pizza staple has hit Indianapolis. Located at 923 Indiana Ave., just minutes from the IUPUI campus, the state capital's first Pizza Express promises consistency in flavor, price and brand, said Gabe Connell, co-owner of the Indianapolis location. \nThe original Pizza Express opened in 1982 and offered from its outset such favorites as the Big Ten Special and the Volume Deal, promising to feed hungry college kids on the cheap. \nChief operating officer Hamlin, also a former manager of Nick's English Hut, started the chain with then-IU student Mease, who later served as a part-time delivery driver for the franchise, according to a 1987 IDS article. \nConnell and partners Adam Mears and Jim Siegel, both IU-Bloomington alums, approached One World Enterprise, owner of Pizza Express, as well as several other Bloomington eateries, with the proposal to open an Indianapolis location last year. \n"We went to Jeff Mease and Jeff Hamlin and told them that we loved Pizza Express and the brand and wanted to bring it to Indianapolis," Connell said. "From there, we worked together on growing the Pizza Express brand and opening the first location."\nThe trio encountered very few speed bumps along the way, Connell said.\n"A lot of it was based on gut feelings," he said. "We knew that we were huge fans, and we knew a lot of fans and fellow alumni in the Indy (area) are huge fans of Pizza Express. It's strange to have a pizza shop have such a loyal following, and we felt it was a natural progression to bring it to Indy with so many Bloomington connections here."\nThe Bloomington Pizza Express sells between 6,000 and 6,500 pizzas per month, said Hamlin. The Indianapolis proprietors are determined to replicate its success. Business has been "extremely good" since the Jan. 9 opening, said Mitch Payne, general manager of the Indianapolis store.\n"We've done very limited marketing, pretty much word-of-mouth stuff," Payne said. "There's definitely been a lot of IUPUI students in and ordering."\nThough the store had a soft opening earlier this month, Connell said marketing will be stepped up in the coming months. The ever-present Express Man, a favorite at IU tailgates and campus events, has made his mark at several Indianapolis events and on campus at IUPUI. \n"The brand in Bloomington is really based on aggressive marketing," Connell said. "Everything that's done in Bloomington will be done here as well. Everything will stay consistent, from the taste of the breadstick to the ranch dressing to the image and the brand."\n--Contact senior writer Holly Johnson at hljohnso@indiana.edu.