ROBBY BASATI, 35
CEO
Company: RoboFran Development Units: 15 Mountain Mike’s Pizza; 2 branded gas stations; 1 Neighborhood supermarket; 8 development agent stores for Mountain Mike’s with 4 new ones in development and 3 in the pipeline for 2021 Family: Wife and 2 beautiful daughters, 2 and 6 Years in franchising: 15 Years in current position: 15
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PIZZAPRENEUR At 35, already a 15-year franchisee Written By KERRY PIPES
18
Multi-Unit Franchisee
ISSUE 1, 2021
ne of Robby Basati’s friends used to drive a delivery car for Mountain Mike’s Pizza. That’s how Basati first learned of the brand famous for its curly pepperoni with a kick. And when he first tasted the product in 2003, he was hooked. Today, he operates 15 Mountain Mike’s locations and employs more than 300 people in California’s Central Valley, Monterey Coast, and Inland Empire areas. Basati was born in San Jose, the son of Indian immigrants who came to America in 1979. He attended San Jose State University and was still a student there when, at age 20, he purchased his first Mountain Mike’s location in Hollister, about an hour south. That was in 2007, just before the Great Recession. It was a rough start for Basati. “We almost went under a few times but we kept at it,” he recalls. He made it through, and when the economy eventually turned positive he purchased his second location in nearby Prunedale in 2014. It was rapid growth from there on. Seaside, Salinas, the Central Valley, and the Inland Empire quickly became a part of the young entrepreneur’s growing portfolio and, he says, “We embraced each store and its community.” Basati loves being a Mountain Mike’s franchisee. He’s currently the development agent for 8 stores, and has 4 more stores of his own in the development pipeline. But he’s not just a pizza guy, he has other diverse business interests as well. He also
