The Butler Pizza Company, Inc. has announced it has sold its operations in the Manhattan, Junction City, Ogden, and Clay Center areas to MJC Huts, Inc.
All Pizza Hut restaurants in these communities will continue to operate. The sale takes effect as of Monday, December 14, 2015.
“As a Pizza Hut franchisee, Butler Pizza has been making pizza in this area for over 50 years, according to founder Bernie Butler. “We were fortunate to have a lot of interest in the business from fellow franchisees, but we found the perfect group in Greg Shelton and MJC Huts.”
“greg really wanted to be in Manhattan. And that was very important to me because Manhattan is important to me, “Butler said. “this is where I started in the business. And it’s where I live. I needed to know I could count on someone to uphold our values and make a good pizza. I’ve known Greg since he was a kid and I’ve worked with his dad, Jack, since the early days of Pizza Hut. The Sheltons are great people and old pros in the pizza business and I think they are going to bring a lot to Manhattan, Junction City, Ogden, and Clay Center.”
“Pizza Hut is an iconic brand and global phenomenon,” remarked Greg Shelton, CEO of MJC Huts, Inc., but it’s also a part of this area’s history. It’s where K-State students, servicemen and women from Fort Riley, and families throughout the region get their pizza. When Bernie gave me the opportunity to bid on these stores, I knew I wanted to be a part of this community. My first job in a Pizza Hut was during my college days at KSU working for Bernie delivering pizza and washing dishes. Bernie helped define the pizza business, and I’m honored to follow in his footsteps to continue to provide the best pizza, wings, hospitality and more to this great area.
Butler Pizza Company, a partnerhsip co-owned by Bernie Butler and Rose Pritchard, recently made headlines nationwide when it decided to close the world’s longest-running Pizza Hut in Manhattan, Kansas after almost 55 years. Butler said “I was there in 1960 when Dick Hassur and Jim Nellis opened the doors in Aggieville. And I was there when Rose and I closed them one final time this summer. That’s a run of almost 55 years and it’s a run I am incredibly proud of.”
Butler says he’s still selling pizzas in North Carolina where he’s operated for decades with a different ownership group, but he’s staying in Manhattan, investing in real estate and other ventures, and focusing on giving back to the community. Pritchard added, “I will be more involved in the real estate company but will have more time to spend with my expanding family, volunteering, and maybe get my golf game in a little better shape.”
Terms of the sale are not being made public.
List of stores included:
–Manhattan – Westloop ( 2931 Claflin Road )
–Manhattan — Tuttle Creek ( 1005 Hostetler Drive )
–Ogden ( 523 Riley Avenue )
–Junction City — Chestnut ( 412 East Chestnut )
–Junction City — 6th Street ( 1035 West 6th )
–Clay Center ( 638 Crawford Street )
All stores remain open for business.