Morehouse, Bring Papa John’s Back
Morehouse should consider bringing the restaurant back as the company continues to rebuild.
The Papa John’s company has received lots of criticism since it was revealed that their former owner, John Schnatter, used a racial slur during a conference call in May 2018. Since then, the company has suffered from a lot of negative attention. Papa John’s North American sales have decreased significantly. Multiple prestigious institutions have removed the restaurant off their campuses, including Butler University and the University of North Florida. The University of Louisville removed the Papa John’s name from their stadium. Morehouse College even removed the restaurant off its campus back in July. While I do believe that these actions were justified at the time, I believe that Morehouse should consider bringing Papa John’s back.
Papa John’s has made a couple of good moves to build their reputation back. On March 22nd, it was announced that NBA Hall-of-Famer and four-time champion Shaquille O’ Neal would join the Papa John’s Board of Directors. In addition to this, O’Neal will invest in nine Papa John’s stores across Atlanta. He has plenty of experience in the restaurant industry, with ownership of a Krispy Kreme Doughnuts in Atlanta and a Big Chicken fried chicken restaurant in Las Vegas. O’Neal has a very big and enjoyable personality. He will be able to bring lost customers back.
The company has also distanced themselves from their former owner. Back in September, a commercial was released featuring multiple franchise owners, company directors and other employees speaking on camera. I think this was an powerful commercial, as it showed that none of the company members were willing to run away from Schnatter’s comments. Rather, it showed their willingness to step out of the shadows and make their voices heard. This commercial also emphasizes the idea that the reaction of Morehouse and other institutions was an over reaction. Their doesn’t seem to be any racist incidents tied to Papa John’s other than the ones that involve Schnatter.
“It’s time you heard from all of us,” Local Store Marketing Manager Zafira said.
Papa John’s Operations Director Rehana said, “From now on, you will hear more of our voices.”
The main reason why I believe that Morehouse should consider bringing the restaurant back is because of the difficulties with finding its replacement. Morehouse has been working on finding a replacement since summer 2018. The SGA sent out surveys for students to vote on their favorite choice for a new restaurant. At the time of the surveys, students top choices were Panda Express and Panera Bread, but because of limitations, due to the fact that the facilities original design was established for a Papa John’s, the campus is left with one less food option, and a completely abandoned space. Morehouse’s original goal was to have a replacement by the end of the spring semester. With the original date pushed back, the wait is now starting to seem unnecessary.
“Those two restaurants will not work over there because of the venting issues that we have,” Director of Auxiliary Services Clayton Monroe said. “There are code violations that won’t allow us to do some of the things that we want to do over there.”
Morehouse currently plans to have a new restaurant to fill the void by the first of summer. Any additional setbacks will cause more people to start questioning if Papa John’s should be brought back. I don’t believe that there is any doubt that Morehouse made the right decision to remove their Papa John’s at the time. The company had not done enough to regain the trust of Morehouse and other institutions. There wasn’t another powerful voice coming out of the company other than Schantter’s. Now, the company seems to be building a strong and diverse voice. A new Papa John’s is being built, and Morehouse has the chance to get ahead of the curve.
My name is Torrence Banks and I am a journalism student at Morehouse College.
