The numbers continue for Over 313This August, the Detroit-style pizzeria opened its 20thth location – a new store in Webster, Texas – and reached a milestone of 125,000 members on its loyalty and rewards app.
According to a press release, the company has grown by more than 300% in the last three years. This landed it on the coveted Inc. 5000 list 2024which provides an overview of America’s fastest growing companies.
Via 313 began 13 years ago in a small, nondescript trailer in Austin, Texas, with Detroit-born brothers Brandon and Zane Hunt, both of whom will speak at the upcoming PMQ event. Pizza Power Forumtakes place from September 4th to 5th in Atlanta.
Related: It’s time to sign up NOW for PMQ’s Pizza Power Forum and start building the pizzeria of your dreams
The pizzeria was born out of a passion to share the style of pizza the Hunts knew and loved as children. Their name says it all: Via means “by the way” and “313” is the area code of their hometown of Detroit.
Since then, Via 313 has won numerous awards locally and nationally, including “Top 10 Pizzas of the Year” from Food Network and “Best Gluten-Free Pizza” from USA Today’s Readers’ Choice contest. The company has also gained a loyal following in the Lone Star State while expanding into four new major markets, including Houston, San Antonio, Denver and Salt Lake City, as well as additional stores in Austin. With this exceptional development, Via 313 has been able to bring on additional experienced executives to accelerate its growth.
“We couldn’t have predicted what Via 313 would become all these years later,” said Brandon Hunt. “Our dream was simple: to offer the rest of the country the best pizza we could make. We’ve been truly overwhelmed by the love we feel for it. It’s always humbling when people understand our vision and keep coming back.”
In 2020, Via 313 partnered with Savory Fund, an innovative private equity firm that invests in emerging restaurant concepts. Together, they expanded the concept into new markets while making the brand more efficient in terms of growth and scale.
“I will never forget the first time I ate a slice of The Detroiter in the summer of 2020,” said Andrew K. Smith, Savory’s general manager. “It was an experience I will never forget because there is nothing like it.”
“I was born and raised in Chicago, so knowledge Pizza,” Smith added. “Or at least I thought so. Working with the Hunt brothers and their unforgettable brand has been both rewarding and incredibly fun. There are no limits to what this brand can do and we are only scratching the surface right now.”
There’s no limit to how much they give back, either. With their Better Giving Through Pizza initiative, Via 313 has made supporting local causes a staple of the business. Each month, each store selects a local charity to receive a portion of the proceeds from that month’s limited-time deals. And for each new store, 25% of sales on grand opening day will go to another selected charity.
In the first six months of 2024 alone, Via 313 donated more than $100,000 to over 20 organizations.
“We grew up in poverty in Detroit and know how hard life can be sometimes,” said Zane Hunt. “Giving back is just part of our DNA, and no matter how big we get, every single community that Via 313 is a part of will continue to honor that.”
