ANN ARBOR – Just over five months since it opened, PizzaForno’s pizza kiosk on South University has shut down operations.
The automated pizza machine was an entirely new -- and futuristic -- option on the college town drag when it arrived this summer, offering fresh, hot artisan pizzas ready in three minutes flat.
Recommended Videos
Master licensees of the South U location Tim Epko and Adam Page said factors like customer buying patterns, rent cost, proximity to foot traffic and competition played a role in the decision to close.
For disappointed fans of the chain, they did say they will be opening another location in Ann Arbor very soon in a statement emailed to A4.
Read their full statement below:
As we’re the first-to-market automated pizzeria in North America, PFX LLC, parent company to PizzaForno, has gathered an immense amount of data, which has helped us identify and place units in prime areas where we truly solve a problem, like food deserts and areas where a 24/7 food option helps those in the community, as opposed to compete in a community with numerous food options. Michigan was the first state in the U.S. to get a PizzaForno automated pizzeria, and South University was an amazing test market for us.
We are grateful to the South University neighborhood for welcoming our futuristic pizzeria to be part of the beautiful landmark street. As we recently opened our 60th unit in North America, we believe we can better serve the area by relocating for the optimal location for PizzaForno taking into account rent cost, customer buying patterns, competition, and proximity to foot traffic.
PizzaForno has found alternate locations that better compliment the unique footprint PizzaForno brings to a market and we will be seen popping up on campuses, in hospitals and inside businesses that need alternate food options as hiring kitchen staff has become increasingly difficult. Although our South University location is permanently closed, we will be back open in Ann Arbor very soon. In the meantime, PizzaForno is focused on opening an additional 35 units in the next 90 days across Georgia, California, Louisiana, Texas, and Michigan.