California has turn out to be so hostile to enterprise that even the person who constructed California Pizza Kitchen says he wouldn’t begin the long-lasting chain there at present.
Rick Rosenfield, who co-founded the restaurant model with Larry Flax in Beverly Hills in 1985, mentioned Florida, not the Golden State, could be his first selection if he have been launching the corporate now.
“If it have been me at present, I might open in Florida earlier than I might open it in California,” Rosenfield advised Fox Information.
“California is much less business-friendly at present, they usually make it obvious.”
The chain, well-known for its California-style pizzas and its signature barbecue hen pie, has grown to 185 places, lots of them nonetheless in California.
However Rosenfield says the state that when helped outline the model has turn out to be a far more durable place to do enterprise.
He mentioned California was “the best place to do enterprise” a decade in the past, however believes circumstances deteriorated after the COVID-19 pandemic, pointing to labor shortages, hovering prices and the state’s fast-food minimal wage legislation.
California Pizza Kitchen was among the many restaurant chains battered by the pandemic as prospects stayed dwelling, finally submitting for chapter safety in 2020.
Rosenfield himself relocated to Florida in 2024, in response to the Los Angeles Occasions, and mentioned the distinction between the 2 states has been unimaginable to disregard.
“Florida is sort of pleasant.”
“There’s much less paperwork in Florida, and there’s extra paperwork in California, and that’s principally my expertise,” he advised the outlet.
His criticism echoes a broader company flight from California that has reshaped the state’s enterprise panorama.
McKesson Company and Charles Schwab moved their longtime San Francisco headquarters to Texas in 2019.
Oracle and Hewlett Packard Enterprise adopted in 2020, whereas Tesla shifted its headquarters in 2021.
In 2024, Chevron, SpaceX and X additionally relocated their headquarters to Texas, with Elon Musk and the 145-year-old power large citing regulatory and political frustrations.
Even so, Rosenfield mentioned California’s picture was as soon as one of many firm’s best belongings, and a key purpose the restaurant stood out from the competitors.
When he and Flax have been weighing names for the brand new idea, advisers argued {that a} conventional Italian identify would mix in.
“They mentioned, nicely, ‘With these different names, when you open in Windfall, it could simply be one other Italian restaurant,’” Rosenfield advised The California Submit. “However when you open a California Pizza Kitchen in Windfall, we need to go see what you fruits and nuts are as much as.”
The argument gained them over.
“I completely consider that the California identify resonated not solely in California, however all over the world,” Rosenfield advised The Submit. “It has a connotation of being wholesome and modern and clear and energetic.”
Rosenfield’s e book, The California Pizza Kitchen Story: How Two Federal Prosecutors Modified the Manner America Eats Pizza, was launched July 21.
