Papa John's Franchise Returns To The Valley

FRESNO (Monday, September 29, 2008) - Papa John's hasn't had a pizza presence in Fresno since 2002, when a tiff with a franchisee closed seven stores in Fresno, Tulare and Merced counties.

Matt Kleckner is changing that. He bought the franchise for Fresno and Clovis and resurrected the Papa John's name at a pizzeria behind Longs Drugs at Ashlan and Fowler avenues in Clovis.

He hopes to expand Papa John's, eventually having eight in the area -- and heating up the already fierce pizza wars.

Kleckner has worked for pizza restaurants in the past and decided to venture out on his own. He picked Papa John's, he said, because the brand is well-known and the ingredients are fresh.

"There are a lot of pizza companies, but none takes care of the product as well as Papa John's," he said.

He said he selected the Clovis location -- which is across the street from a Me N' Ed's -- because the area has many new houses.

Musical restaurants

The northeast corner of Blackstone and Barstow avenues has been a popular location for fast-food restaurants. Over the years, it's been home to a Schlotzky's, A&W and, most recently, Cali's Frozen Custard.

Very soon, the site will include a Fosters Freeze, a longtime player in the San Joaquin Valley's fast-food industry. It is moving into the former Cali's.

Don Beiderwell and his businesses partners are putting the final touches on the restaurant that will feature its trademark burgers, shakes and chocolate-dipped cones.

Beiderwell and his partners operate eight of the Fosters franchises in Fresno, Clovis and Visalia.

The new Blackstone store will replace one being closed at First and Barstow avenues.

"We really think this is a better location," Beiderwell said. "And we're trying to make this restaurant stand out."

The inside and outside of the building are being renovated to give it more of a retro look, including lots of stainless steel.

Beiderwell hopes to ride the tide of growing interest on Blackstone Avenue that has seen openings of Del Taco, El Pollo Loco and Yosemite Falls Cafe. And Robertito's Taco Shop is expected to move into a former Taco Bell store just southeast of Fosters Freeze.

"It's good to see the city rejuvenate and to be part of it," Beiderwell said.

An online gift

A Fresno-based gift card Web site allows customers to buy gift cards from national and local retailers online.

Bryan and Marcella Halverson created www.cvgiftcards.com. The site is still in its early stages and is expected to be more complete Wednesday.

The Halversons wanted to create a way for shoppers to buy gift cards -- particularly from local retailers -- without leaving their homes.

The site works this way: Customers buy the gift card online, with the ability to ship it to themselves or send it as a gift to someone else. They pay a transaction fee equal to 2% of the gift card's value.

The site joins another central San Joaquin Valley gift-card site, PlasticJungle.com, which allows users to sell, buy and trade gift cards that customers post on the site.

Central Valley Gift Cards, however, orders cards directly from the retailer, Halverson said.

"One thing we offer that nobody else does is the ability to buy local, especially for the stores that don't have Web sites," said Bryan Halverson.

So far, the site includes local businesses such as California Wok and Electric Beach tanning. Halverson is recruiting more. Retailers pay a fee to participate.

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