Cici's President Handing Off Job To La Madeleine Exec

(Tuesday, August 25, 2009) - CiCi Enterprises LP said Monday that its president, Craig Moore, will retire after 17 years with the parent of the CiCi's pizza chain.

He will be replaced at the Coppell-based company by Michael R. Shumsky, chief executive at Dallas-based La Madeleine Inc.

"I'm very, very excited about the prospect of growing the brand," said Shumsky, 57, who will have the title chief executive when he takes over at CiCi's in September. "CiCi's is well-positioned for the price-conscious consumer. Even in a very saturated pizza market, CiCi's has tremendous opportunity to grow."

CiCi's, founded in 1985, appeals largely to families with its "all-you-want" buffet of 18 kinds of pizza plus pasta, salads and dessert for less than $6 per person at most locations.

Since 1992, the chain has grown from 30 restaurants in one state to 650 restaurants in 32 states. During the same period, it has gone from 17 franchisees to 270.

The company hopes to have 800 restaurants by next year, according to its Web site.

Current sales are about $650 million. Same-store sales, a key measure of chain health, are up in the midsingle digits over the last year, Shumsky said.

Moore, who joined the company in 1992 as a restaurant manager and was named president in 2003, will remain a significant owner in CiCi's.

He is expected to stay until the transition, which begins this week, is complete, the company said.

Shumsky leaves La Madeleine, a chain of French-inspired bakery cafes, after less than two years on the job.

La Madeleine operates in the fast-casual restaurant segment, which has seen sales rise during the recession as cash-strapped consumers trade down from casual-dining restaurants.

At the same time, sales in the pizza category have been flat, as pizza parlors work to keep market share in the midst of a profit-draining price war. Most chains are selling some pizza for $5.

Shumsky noted that CiCi's has always focused on consumers who watch their wallets.

"I don't see us competing against the people coming down to $5," he said. "CiCi's has always been there. CiCi's has been in the value segment since its inception."

Shumsky's departure leaves La Madeleine once again looking for someone to fill the top slot.

He took over for Greg Buchanan, who left La Madeleine in 2007 to become chief executive of Buffet Partners Holding Co. Buchanan had taken the helm in January 2005, when Wally Doolin left to head up Buca di Beppo.

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