Nation’s Restaurant News:
Mr. Jim’s Pizza Worldwide Inc., a 58-unit pickup and delivery pizza chain, works to differentiate itself from the big-player competition with a neighborhood focus and product quality, according to founder and owner Jim Johnson.

With stores predominantly located in Texas but with outposts in Louisiana, North Carolina, Wyoming and, most recently, Nevada, Johnson said he expects Mr. Jim’s to open as many as eight more stores in the next year. The company, based in the Dallas suburb of Farmers Branch, Texas, recently set up a broker system for franchising.

Last fall Mr. Jim’s debuted a two-tiered pricing system, offering a 14-inch D’Lish pizza at $6.99 and a 14-inch D’Luxe with two levels of toppings at $10.99. Pizzas are offered with a choice of thin or thick crusts.

“We try to follow the motto, ‘We’ve got the pizza to fit the life you live,’†said Johnson, who founded the company in 1975.