The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Papa John’s founder stepping down as CEO
NEW YORK — Papa John’s founder John Schnatter will step down as CEO next month, about two months after he criticized the NFL leadership over national anthem protests by players — comments for which the company later apologized.
Schnatter will be replaced as chief executive by Chief Operating Officer Steve Ritchie on Jan. 1, the company announced Thursday. Schnatter, who appears in the chain’s commercials and on its pizza boxes, remains chairman of the board. He is also the company’s biggest shareholder.
Earlier this year, Schnatter blamed slowing sales growth at Papa John’s — an NFL sponsor and advertiser — on the outcry surrounding football players kneeling during the national anthem. Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick had kneeled during the anthem to protest what he said was police mistreatment of black men, and other players started kneeling.
“The controversy is polarizing the customer, polarizing the country,” Schnatter said during a conference call about the company’s earnings on Nov. 1.
Papa John’s apologized two weeks later, after white supremacists praised Schnatter’s comments. The Louisville, Ky.-based company distanced itself from the group, saying that it did not want them to buy their pizza.
Ritchie declined to say Thursday if the NFL comments played a role in Schnatter stepping down.
Shares of Papa John’s are down about 13 percent since the day before the NFL comments were made. Schnatter owns about 9.5 million shares of Papa John’s International Inc., and his stake was valued at more than $560 million on Thursday, according to FactSet. The company’s stock is down 30 percent since the beginning of the year.
“I think it’s possible that this was a conscious decision to get him out of the line of fire,” said restaurant analyst John Gordon, CEO of Pacific Management Consulting Group. “The focus of the brand needs to be the pizza.”
Schnatter, 56, founded Papa John’s more than three decades ago, when he turned a broom closet at his father’s bar into a pizza spot. Since then, it has grown to more than 5,000 locations. Schnatter has also become the face of the company, showing up in TV ads with former football player Peyton Manning.
The leadership change comes as pizza makers, which once dominated the fast-food delivery business, face tougher competition from hamburger and fried-chicken chains that are expanding their delivery business.
Ritchie said his focus as CEO will be making it easier for customers to order a Papa John’s pizza from anywhere. That’s a strategy that has worked for Domino’s, which takes orders from tweets, text messages and voice-activated devices, such as Amazon’s Echo. Papa John’s customers can order through Facebook and Apple TV, but Ritchie said he wants the chain to be everywhere customers are.