Dive Brief:

• Little Caesars promoted Paula Vissing from COO to president of global retail and Ed Gleich from chief innovation officer to president of global services, the company announced Wednesday in a press release.
• Both executives will continue to report to CEO Dave Scrivano.
• These promotions will help support the chain’s new unit growth in existing and new international markets around the globe.

Dive Insight:

The pizza chain, which is currently in over 27 countries and territories, has been expanding into new markets, such as urban areas like New York City. The company’s expansion into digital and delivery are helping it enter areas where it hadn’t been before because it creates more flexibility to meet consumer needs in those markets.

Internationally, the company has been eying additional growth in Latin America, where it already has a strong business. The chain opened its first stores in Western Europe in 2019, expanding into Spain, and has signed deals to enter Portugal and the U.S., Little Caesars Chief Development Officer Jeremy Vitaro said in a past interview. 

Both Gleich and Vissing will be instrumental in continuing the company’s international growth momentum.  In his new role, Gleich will oversee various functions including “U.S. and international supply chain, bakery operations, equipment, restaurant design evolution and automation/engineering,” according to the press release. Gleich has been at Little Caesars since 2011, when he joined as head of marketing, and brings almost 30 years of restaurant experience to his new position. Prior to working at Little Caesars, he held roles at Golden Corral, Arby’s, Domino’s, Uno Chicago Grill and Applebee’s, according to his LinkedIn profile. 

As CMO of Little Caesars, Gleich helped drive increased restaurant-level sales and profits with the addition of national advertising, a new brand identity and promoting LTOs such as Pretzel Crust pizza and Bacon Wrapped Deep Deep Dish pizza. His contributions also include overseeing an update to the brand’s core menu, with new items like Detroit-Style Deep Dish pizza, the Lunch Combo and the ExtraMostBestest product line. As chief innovation officer, he “he focused on identifying and launching significant sales growth drivers such as native and marketplace delivery,” per the release.

Vissing has over 25 years of restaurant experience and in her new position, she will continue overseeing restaurants globally in addition to her new responsibilities of overseeing global marketing and development. Vissing has also been with Little Caesars since 2011, when she joined as vice president of purchasing and quality assurance.

She was promoted to senior vice president of international in 2016 where she was responsible for Little Caesars locations in over two dozen international markets. With Vissing in this position, Little Caesars boasted its longest period of international growth in the company’s 60-year history. As COO, which she became in 2021, she led global business functions during an aggressive expansion period that also included significant sales growth, according to the press release. Prior to Little Caesars, she worked at Captain D’s and UFPC, according to her LinkedIn profile.