Krazy Q&A with Pizza General Manager
We all know that the pizza scene in Fort Collins is off the jeezy. We know that no matter where you go, you’ll get a good slice. Every day we plow into these shops, grab some pizza and leave only to return again. Cosmo’s, Panhandler’s, Krazy Karl’s; we’ve been there countless times. Do we actually take the time to get to know these fantastic establishments that take our money, deal with our munchies and cure our hangovers?
Since its opening almost 5 years ago, Krazy Karl’s has quickly risen up the tall ladder that is FoCo pizza. Last year in 2015, Karl’s had over 91,000 deliveries (holy shny-kees!). Clearly, Karl’s is really popular. When something is that well renowned its important to get to know who they are and what they stand for. General manager Dustin Hayes drew the short straw and sat down with me to answer the tough questions (not really). Hayes has worked at Krazy Karl’s since its inception, and has risen up the ranks to his position as general manager.
Q: So how did Krazy Karl’s find a home in Fort Collins?
A: Karl Mobley (original owner who has since passed away) had worked in a couple pizza places prior, and opened up a couple other ones back in Michigan. So he had experience in other restaurants previously, and Fort Collins just seemed like a perfect fit I guess. He also owned a bunch of night clubs and bars and he just put it all together and got Krazy Karl’s. And I think that is kind of the whole idea. We want to have some good pizza and also make a cool place to just chill.
Q: You were here when Karl’s first opened, did you know back then that this would become so successful?
A: (Krazy Karl’s) started to really, really take off in that second year. We all had the feeling that it was gonna be a big deal, but I’m not sure any of us thought it would be as successful as it has been. And its been a dream come true. I’m sure we will continue to grow but if we could continue the success we’ve had the last five years that’s all we really want.
Q: Before you guys started to take off in the second year, were there any struggles opening up in an area already packed with pizza places?
A: We actually turned a profit our first year, so it was never too bad, but its kind of hard to find the place, I mean we didn’t have a sign ’til a few months ago. We are kind of hidden away from Elizabeth, and just getting the name out there was pretty tough in the beginning. We used to go out on campus and throw Frisbees to people with coupons on them. So all you had to do was bring the Frisbee in and you got whatever deal was on it.
Q: The Bierhaus is the newest addition, how has that changed Krazy Karl’s?
A: Well we still serve the same food, so from that aspect nothing. But now you can get a beer with your pizza and that has brought a whole new element. Before we opened the ‘haus in 2014 we didn't really have a lot of options to eat here, you had to take it home, and now we have the space to have that and even host some events.
Q: You guys are open until 3am every day of the week, what kind of staff does it take to keep those kind of hours?
A: At this point, we haven’t stopped hiring. We are open really late so we need a lot of employees. And our turnaround isn’t bad since most employees are students who will graduate. We just continue to hire and hire. One philosophy we have, is that if you interview somebody or meet somebody and think they’ll be a good fit, but we don’t have spot, make a spot. We will hire that person.
Q: As I said earlier, Fort Collins is packed with pizza places, so what does Krazy Karl’s do to differentiate from other places like Cosmo’s for example?
A: To be honest, we don’t really focus too much on what the competition is doing. We just try and think about what we’re doing and make sure that we are giving good service and making good food. That’s really the whole mind set. I mean obviously there are some other places that have good pizza, but we focus on ourselves and let word travel and that has worked out really well. We do do a little advertising in the Collegian and some other areas, but really we are just kind of here and do what we do.
Q: Karl’s is clearly one of the more popular destinations for not only CSU students, but faculty and Fort Collins Residents. Have you guys given any thought to expansion?
A: Expansion has been on our list for awhile actually because, like you said, we can get super busy at times. We’re in negotiations right now for a restaurant to be built in the Rigden shops at Drake and Timberline, so if that goes through we should be getting better with that. Its kind of funny actually, because at one point we were considering Boulder as a possible expansion area but decided against it. We also looked at a spot in Greeley, and on the southeast side of town. We just want to be able to bring what CSU and the rest of Fort Collins have come to love at Karl’s to a bigger audience.
