Blaze Pizza's Summer "Unternship" Program Rewrites The Rules

LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwired - May 25, 2017) - In the dining room of one of Blaze Fast-Fire'd Pizza's nearly 200 restaurants, emblazoned are the words "Unfollow the Rules." The statement is emblematic of the company's independent spirit -- and the disruptive force it has become in the restaurant industry. So it should come as no surprise that Blaze Pizza will take an unconventional approach when it launches its first ever Unternship program next month. 

On June 6, four Blaze Unterns will join the Marketing Department at the company's headquarters in Los Angeles, tasked with educating the leadership team on emerging digital trends and youth culture. The four will also play a starring role in the company's social strategy, taking the wheel of the brand's Snapchat channel for the month and shaping how the brand communicates with its followers, particularly Gen Z. 

Honoring its commitment to valuing the people behind the pizza, the Unterns are all Blaze Pizza team members who are currently working at locations across the country. These individuals will leave their hometown restaurants in Michigan, South Carolina, Washington and California and live together in furnished housing, provided by Blaze, located just blocks from the office. 

"At Blaze, we're all about thinking outside the box," said Elise Wetzel, Co-Founder of Blaze Pizza. "So, rather than solely read articles on youth culture, we thought it would be fun to go right to the source and learn from the group that lives it every day. We're excited to share this opportunity with our team members and work side-by-side with them to cultivate fanatics."

Chosen for their brand passion and social savvy, the Unterns will utilize both to create dynamic content for Snapchat, increase engagement and grow Blaze's audience. Spending much of their time working outside the walls of a traditional office environment, the group will provide followers with exclusive behind-the-scenes coverage, including a look into the company's sponsorship of Vans Warped Tour and integration with tour band Jule Vera, who will be performing acoustic sets at select restaurants this summer.

The collective will also be found traveling across Southern California to meet with key Blaze partners and gain valuable experience that they can leverage in their future careers.

"Just as we're changing the game in the way people think about and eat pizza, we're rewriting the rules on what a summer internship can be," said Kim Freer, Director of Cultivating Fanatics at Blaze Pizza. "I think we'll learn just as much from our Unterns as they will learn from us." 

Guests can follow along on the company's Snapchat channel or Untern blog.

About Blaze Pizza
The first Blaze Pizza® restaurant opened on August 6, 2012, in Irvine, Calif., and quickly gained attention for its chef-driven recipes, thoughtful interior design, and a service culture that celebrates individuality. Now ranked as the leading fast-casual pizza chain in the Technomic Top 500 Chain Restaurant Report, Blaze Pizza is building momentum and developing a cult following as it expands across the country. The company currently operates 195 restaurants in 32 states and Canada, including the major metropolitan areas of Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Toronto, Dallas, Las Vegas, and Boston Founded by Elise and Rick Wetzel (co-founder of Wetzel's Pretzels), the concept is backed by investors including LeBron James, Maria Shriver, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Boston Red Sox co-owner Tom Werner and movie producer John Davis. For more information, please visit blazepizza.com and facebook.com/blazepizza or click here to view a company video.

Blaze Pizza®, Fast-Fire'd®, the horizontal logo design, and the proprietary names "Pizzasmith", "Intelligent Choices For Our Pizzas, People & Planet" and related trademarks are the property of Blaze Pizza LLC.