He moved to the U.S. in 1991. Now, he owns 270 Papa Johns stores

In 1991, Nadeem Bajwa immigrated to the United States from Pakistan. While attending college in Indiana, he worked a few jobs, including delivering pizza for restaurant chain Papa John’s, where he made $4.25 an hour.

Today, the 58-year-old has a fast food empire. Bajwa is now a major franchisee of Papa Johns in North America, with more than 270 locations across the country.

He is also the CEO of Bajco Group, which he co-founded with his two brothers, and holds a diverse portfolio of companies spanning construction, technology, accounting, his Papa Johns portfolio and more.

Bajwa’s path to success wasn’t an easy one. In his early twenties, he was the first in his family to move to the United States, where he encountered many challenges upon arrival.

“Coming to the U.S., actually, that was my first flight [ever.] I’d never flown before,” Bajwa said. “Just getting into the plane, it was a full flight coming here by myself, [there was] a lot of anxiety … but I was determined to make it.”

He said he experienced some culture shock and struggled with communication because he wasn’t fluent in English at the time. “Sometimes, when you are away from family, and you’re alone … it was very, very difficult,” Bajwa said.

To help fund his university expenses, Bajwa picked up some side gigs.

“My first summer, I did three jobs … washing dishes [during] breakfast time, and then delivering pizzas in the afternoon, and late night, working at Taco Bell,” Bajwa told CNBC Make It.

“I was living in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and … I just started delivering for Papa John’s when they came in town and from there, just started loving it, and tips were good, so that helped,” he said.

Bajwa quickly moved up the ranks at Papa John’s. By the time he graduated from university in 1996, he had already transitioned from being a delivery driver to area manager. After graduating, Bajwa applied to a few corporate roles because that’s what he always expected to do after his studies.

“I applied for some jobs, and on back of my mind, I was sort of hoping that I don’t get a corporate job, but I wanted to try it because that was one of the … check marks I had to check,” he said. “I just did not want to have that regret that I never applied, because all of life, I thought I would go corporate sector.”

“But when I went to find a [corporate] job, I couldn’t get [a] job that would pay me … more than what I was already making [at Papa John’s],” Bajwa said. For that reason, he decided to stay in the pizza business, and ended up running multiple pizza stores before becoming a franchisee himself.

In July 2002, with the help of family support and bank loans, Bajwa opened his first Papa John’s store in East Liverpool, Ohio.

“I bought used equipment for very low price, and at that time, I built the store for half [of] what I would have [paid], because I did a lot of [the labor] myself,” he added. “My whole thought was to open with as little money as possible, and spend the money towards marketing.”

The cost for the buildout of his first store was about $150,000, he said.

Bajwa learned a few lessons early on, thanks to some key mistakes.

Before opening his first restaurant location, Bajwa focused heavily on getting the word out about the store’s grand opening.

“I did too much marketing, and the first day [that the store opened], half of the crew walked out because it was chaos,” said Bajwa. “Too many people showed up because I advertised too much, and I focused more on advertising than training people to make pizzas … Then I learned how important it is to be ready before [opening].”

Then, within six months of this first location opening, Bajwa saw that the store’s revenue was ahead of forecasts, so he quickly went on to open a few more locations.

“After two stores, I thought, no problem. We opened three more immediately after that, and guess what, I did not have [the best people] around me, and [then we] started struggling,” he said. So, he and his team had to take a step back and give it some time before trying to expand again.

“There was a time that we grew too fast and hit the pump. [In] 2008, [during the] economic meltdown … those were tough times,” he added. Ultimately, Bajwa said, he’s grateful for these early failures because they taught him all that he knows today.

Throughout his journey, Bajwa said, he learned the importance of self-reflection. “You have to be humble, because the day you start thinking you got it all, I believe your downfall will start.”

In 2024, Bajco Group signed an agreement with Papa Johns International to develop 50 new restaurants by 2028. Bajwa said his goal is to get to 500 restaurant locations. With the growth of his Papa Johns portfolio over the years, Bajwa has also built adjacent businesses.

“We’ve developed a call center, construction arm, offshore accounting setup, and technology arm to bring [efficiencies] to our Papa Johns portfolio, which now have become separate businesses & serve multiple clients within and outside the Papa Johns brand,” he said.

“I never dreamt of this growth. [I just focused on] doing my best … and learning from my mistakes … and the rest just came,” Bajwa said. “So everything started with delivery pizza. Can you believe that?”

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