CEO, CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN
WHY: Runs Costa Mesa-based restaurant chain. Took over the CEO role in 2018, decided to
relocate the company from Los Angeles last year into new HQ at The Met business campus in Costa Mesa.
IN THE NEWS: With an estimated 2021 revenue of almost $500M, CPK was No. 35 on the Business Journal’s list of OC’s largest private companies. More’s in store: growth initiatives include new restaurant designs, product lines and domestic franchising deals.
QUOTABLE: CPK in 2020 emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy, where it reduced its
debt from around $400M to $177M. “We made a lot of moves during that process that got CPK to a better position, low debt and even moving offices.”
