Recently, we sat down with one of our newest franchisees, Vishal Bhatnagar, opening a Toppers location in Menomonee Falls, WI on January 26, 2012. Read below to find out his background and the process he went through to become a franchisee of Toppers Pizza.
Q: Where are you from? 
A: I am originally from India although I spent most of my childhood and teenage years in Kenya. My family moved to Africa when I was seven and I stayed until I was 18.
Q: What was your career before franchising?A: I came to the United States to go to college. I attended Purdue University and earned a degree in aviation technology. Unfortunately, the events of 9/11 made it very hard to get a job in my field, as many of those jobs were being eliminated so I went to New York and worked for an engineering company. After a year of working there, my visa expired and I was forced to go back to my home country of India. Even though it wasn’t the most ideal situation, it gave me a chance to know the country of my origin. I also went back to school for my MBA and upon completing that, I worked for the largest coffee exporter in India. While there, I met my wife, Shruti, and we got married. During this time, my parents had applied for my Greencard so I could get back to the United States. In 2009, I was granted it and left India to come back to the U.S.
My dad had got into franchising in the U.S. and bought a Quality Inn & Suites in Menomonee so when I came back to the states, I helped him run that business. I’ve been doing that for the last 2.5 years and now I’m desiring to change things up a bit.
Q: How did you learn about the brand?A:
Toppers is very established in Whitewater, WI which is where my cousin went to school. My uncle also lives in Whitewater. I was initially exposed to the brand through them. It’s been a part of my life since 1998 or so.
Q: Why did you decide to open your own business?A: My MBA has really added value to my understanding of running a business. With that background and the experience of helping my dad with the hotel for several years, I feel like I have the necessary skills to be a great business owner. I’ve also been very successful on the marketing front. Shruti, my wife, has a degree in restaurant and hospitality management and will be helping me part time with the new location. I believe that we have the necessary business skills and industry knowledge to be very successful!
Q: What was appealing to you about joining a franchise system?A: I like the support of a franchise system. The hotel is also a franchise and I know from that experience about the tremendous amount of support corporate provides. I like that everything is standardized which helps with brand recognition and a consistent brand proposition. One very appealing thing about joining
Toppers is that I’m getting involved in its prime growth stage. When the company really takes off into a national brand, I believe it will be very beneficial for me.
Q: With regard to your previous experience, what skills do you feel helped you in your business?A: I believe my marketing experience will help me the most in this new business. I worked in an integrated marketing communication position at the coffee company in India. I was responsible for national marketing opportunities. I brought new ideas to market the product. I look at marketing as a holistic approach where there are several different pieces to the puzzle that make the engine run. I also have an appreciation for the customer experience and understanding consumer needs – all of which will be critical to build up my business. Fortunately, I am very familiar with Menomonee since the hotel is also in the area. It gives me a leg up on knowing how to cater to the consumers in the area.
Q: What obstacles have you overcome to get where you are today with your business?A: Personally, I had to overcome the challenges of having to go back to India because my visa expired. Ideally I would have found a work visa to be able to stay in the U.S., but I look at that positively because I got my MBA, was able to get to know my home country, and met my wife.
Q: What are your expansion or development plans? A: Yes. I would love to keep developing new
Toppers locations. I’m in for as many as
Toppers can give me in the future.
Denise Downing, owner of Toppers in Onalaska and La Crosse, Wisconsin was recently featured on News 19 WXOW. The segment highlighted Denise Downing and Toppers team member
Abby Klaas. The segment mentioned how Abby just celebrated her 10 year
anniversary with Toppers and is the head dough maker for the Onalaska
location. 
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