Thanks for you comments ... all good points. I'm considering investing in PZZI, but still have much to learn about them.

As to how a pizza company can distinguish itself, it appears that fresh dough plays a role. The Pizza Inn products my wife and I had in Virginia clearly had better dough, perhaps because it was fresh.

Location also plays a key role. Checking out the Pizza Inn locations here in the Southeast, they appear to be in areas not readily served by the "big boys" - Pizza Hut, Domino's, Papa John's, et al.

Perhaps that's a corporate strategy, but if so it inherently places a limiting factor on growth.

So, the question arises: How well does Pizza Inn compete in areas where they go head-to-head with the big guys? Anecdotal evidence is OK, but if anyone has substantive information, that would be great.

By way of background, I'm a fan of food franchise companies who have succeeded in distinguishiing themselves in some sound way from their competition.

Panera is a good example. My bride and I happened upon a Panera's way back in 1999 and found their store design and atmosphere, quality menu, management experience, and the eclectic mix of customers of great interest.

Panera has done an outstanding job of consistently distinguishing itself in the market by consistently sticking to their excellent business model.

However, I'm having difficulty with the idea that a pizza company can truly differentiate itself other than consistently having fresh and tasty products offered in a relatively population dense areas, providing prompt and effective service, and demonstrating cleanliness throughout, to include spotless bathrooms.

Any thoughts?