In 1991, he moved to the U.S. and delivered pizza for $4.25 an hour. Now, he owns over 270 pizza restaurants

In 1991, Nadeem Bajwa immigrated to the United States from Pakistan. While attending assemblage successful Indiana, helium worked a fewer jobs, including delivering pizza for edifice concatenation Papa John's, wherever helium made $4.25 an hour.

Today, the 58-year-old has a accelerated nutrient empire. Bajwa is present a large franchisee of Papa Johns successful North America, with much than 270 locations crossed the country.

He is besides the CEO of Bajco Group, which helium co-founded with his 2 brothers, and holds a divers portfolio of companies spanning construction, technology, accounting, his Papa Johns portfolio and more.

Bajwa's way to occurrence wasn't an casual one. In his aboriginal twenties, helium was the archetypal successful his household to determination to the United States, wherever helium encountered galore challenges upon arrival.

"Coming to the U.S., actually, that was my archetypal formation [ever.] I'd ne'er flown before," Bajwa said. "Just getting into the plane, it was a afloat formation coming present by myself, [there was] a batch of anxiousness ... but I was determined to marque it."

He said helium experienced immoderate civilization daze and struggled with connection due to the fact that helium wasn't fluent successful English astatine the time. "Sometimes, erstwhile you are distant from family, and you're unsocial ... it was very, precise difficult," Bajwa said.

To assistance money his assemblage expenses, Bajwa picked up immoderate broadside gigs.

"My archetypal summer, I did 3 jobs ... washing dishes [during] meal time, and past delivering pizzas successful the afternoon, and precocious night, moving astatine Taco Bell," Bajwa told CNBC Make It.

"I was surviving successful Fort Wayne, Indiana, and ... I conscionable started delivering for Papa John's erstwhile they came successful municipality and from there, conscionable started loving it, and tips were good, truthful that helped," helium said.

Bajwa rapidly moved up the ranks astatine Papa John's. By the clip helium graduated from assemblage successful 1996, helium had already transitioned from being a transportation operator to country manager. After graduating, Bajwa applied to a fewer firm roles due to the fact that that's what helium ever expected to bash aft his studies.

"I applied for immoderate jobs, and connected backmost of my mind, I was benignant of hoping that I don't get a firm job, but I wanted to effort it due to the fact that that was 1 of the ... cheque marks I had to check," helium said. "I conscionable did not privation to person that regret that I ne'er applied, due to the fact that each of life, I thought I would spell firm sector."

"But erstwhile I went to find a [corporate] job, I couldn't get [a] occupation that would wage maine ... much than what I was already making [at Papa John's]," Bajwa said. For that reason, helium decided to enactment successful the pizza business, and ended up moving aggregate pizza stores earlier becoming a franchisee himself.

In July 2002, with the assistance of household enactment and slope loans, Bajwa opened his archetypal Papa John's store successful East Liverpool, Ohio.

"I bought utilized instrumentality for precise debased price, and astatine that time, I built the store for fractional [of] what I would person [paid], due to the fact that I did a batch of [the labor] myself," helium added. "My full thought was to unfastened with arsenic small wealth arsenic possible, and walk the wealth towards marketing."

The outgo for the buildout of his archetypal store was astir $150,000, helium said.

Bajwa learned a fewer lessons aboriginal on, acknowledgment to immoderate cardinal mistakes.

Before opening his archetypal edifice location, Bajwa focused heavy connected getting the connection retired astir the store's expansive opening.

"I did excessively overmuch marketing, and the archetypal time [that the store opened], fractional of the unit walked retired due to the fact that it was chaos," said Bajwa. "Too galore radical showed up due to the fact that I advertised excessively much, and I focused much connected advertizing than grooming radical to marque pizzas ... Then I learned however important it is to beryllium acceptable earlier [opening]."

Then, wrong six months of this archetypal determination opening, Bajwa saw that the store's gross was up of forecasts, truthful helium rapidly went connected to unfastened a fewer much locations.

"After 2 stores, I thought, nary problem. We opened 3 much instantly aft that, and conjecture what, I did not person [the champion people] astir me, and [then we] started struggling," helium said. So, helium and his squad had to instrumentality a measurement backmost and springiness it immoderate clip earlier trying to grow again.

"There was a clip that we grew excessively accelerated and deed the pump. [In] 2008, [during the] economical meltdown ... those were pugnacious times," helium added. Ultimately, Bajwa said, he's grateful for these aboriginal failures due to the fact that they taught him each that helium knows today.

Throughout his journey, Bajwa said, helium learned the value of self-reflection. "You person to beryllium humble, due to the fact that the time you commencement reasoning you got it all, I judge your downfall volition start."

In 2024, Bajco Group signed an statement with Papa Johns International to make 50 caller restaurants by 2028. Bajwa said his extremity is to get to 500 edifice locations. With the maturation of his Papa Johns portfolio implicit the years, Bajwa has besides built adjacent businesses.

"We've developed a telephone center, operation arm, offshore accounting setup, and exertion limb to bring [efficiencies] to our Papa Johns portfolio, which present person go abstracted businesses & service aggregate clients wrong and extracurricular the Papa Johns brand," helium said.

"I ne'er dreamt of this growth. [I conscionable focused on] doing my champion ... and learning from my mistakes ... and the remainder conscionable came," Bajwa said. "So everything started with transportation pizza. Can you judge that?"

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