Chen Rotenberg-Richter, 36, likes to recall the early days eight years ago, when she and her husband Moti, 39, became franchisees of Papa John’s in Israel, replacing the previous operator and committing to open new branches as required by the parent company.
She especially remembers one businessman who told her: “You’re a young woman. What do you know about life? What do you have to do with running a business like this?”
“Do you realize people thought I was delusional when we wanted to become franchisees of the chain?” she asks, leading the way into the dough room at the company’s Petah Tikva facility, which produces vast quantities of fresh dough each day.
Some warned you of bankruptcy.
“Yes,” she says. “When we were looking for a partner at the beginning, everyone told us, including family and friends, ‘You’re living in a fantasy.’ Even the bank wouldn’t give us an initial loan. No one believed we would succeed because the food industry is tough. Everywhere we went, we faced obstacles.
“When we wanted to rent a property and open a branch, we went through hell until someone agreed to lease us a space because we didn’t have the guarantees they expected. We learned where to fight and where to let go, and we grew slowly, step by step. No one gave us money. We did everything ourselves. We put in all our savings and knew that if we failed, we wouldn’t have money to eat. But once you learn to silence the background noise and believe in yourself, everything is possible.”
How many people are swallowing their pride now?
“Many of the people who dismissed us at the beginning are now chasing us for a franchise. All those who told us, ‘Don’t take this on. You won’t succeed. You’ll collapse and go bankrupt’, now understand they were wrong.”
Today, according to estimates, the Richters generate tens of millions of dollars in revenue in Israel and the Netherlands, employ about 1,500 workers and are preparing to open dozens more branches of the American chain, which is publicly traded at a market value of about $1 billion.
COVID-19 worked in our favor
Rotenberg-Richter, the third of four children of advertising executive Shosh Rotenberg, grew up in Givatayim and worked as a model as a hobby. She began working at her mother’s firm after her military service. What was meant to be a temporary job to fund a post-army trip turned into a decade-long immersion in marketing.
“It was a crazy school for life,” she says. “I learned the entire world of marketing there. My mother is an incredible mentor who used to put me to sleep with empowerment stories about being assertive before I even understood what that meant. It gave me the confidence to take risks and jump into the deep end.”
Her husband spent 13 years at a competing pizza chain, rising from delivery driver to network manager before deciding to strike out on his own. Their ambitions aligned.
“I felt a bit like I was in a golden cage in my mother’s business, and then we were approached by Papa John’s global management to replace the previous franchisee, who operated three branches and failed to meet expectations,” she recalls.
“They had heard that Moti had extensive experience in the field. We brought a young vision, and they were drawn to the determination and hunger in our eyes, as well as Moti’s experience, without which we would not have received the offer.”
Weren’t you afraid to take on the challenge?
“We understood the problem wasn’t the product, which is an excellent pizza, but the marketing,” she says. “I left my job with my mother and took over marketing, advertising, customer service, supplier negotiations and operations.”
“We looked for partners and investors, but at the last minute something always fell through. We were already at a lawyer’s office, about to sign with a partner, when that collapsed too.
Today I see it as divine protection and that we weren’t meant to bring anyone else in. My husband and I took on this network alone, against all odds, because many international chains tried to enter Israel and most of them failed.”
Three days before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down Israel, the couple signed the franchise agreement. “At first, people didn’t know what this virus was. They would buy a container of cottage cheese and wash it in the sink. Customers were afraid to order food. But the slowdown allowed us to rebuild infrastructure, launch a new app and website.
“The initial shock gave us the time to rebuild the entire platform from the ground up, and in the end COVID actually worked in our favor. Once people moved past the initial panic, food delivery became the fastest-growing sector, and we knew how to turn it to our advantage. We made marketing strategies that set us apart from the competition.”
Tell me about the first marketing move that gave you a big breakthrough.
“We were pioneers in working with influencers. I was eight months pregnant, sitting in a small room at home, messaging influencers on Instagram all day,” she recalls. “I’d ask, ‘Do you want to collaborate?’ ‘Would you like a Papa John’s delivery?’ Moti would personally deliver the pizzas because we didn’t have nationwide coverage yet. That’s what built us. We were both on the ground, and we weren’t afraid of hard work. We said, ‘Let’s try. At worst, we can always go back to being employees.’”
Tomato sauce from Portugal
Rotenberg-Richter and her husband Moti met at a party through mutual friends. She was 20, he was 23. “I gave Moti my phone number, he forgot about it and it took him a week to call,” she recalls. “Looking back, I understand. That’s so like him. He had just been promoted to regional manager at a major pizza brand and was simply busy.”
Three months after they started dating, they decided to buy an apartment together. “We didn’t know if we would stay together, but we both had an entrepreneurial, business mindset,” she says. “I had about 80,000 shekels I’d saved from various jobs, including babysitting, even before I started working at the advertising agency. He brought 80,000 shekels he had saved from odd jobs. We took out a 90% mortgage and bought a small apartment in Haifa near the Technion for half a million shekels.
“We signed an agreement with a lawyer stating that if we separated, we would sell the apartment, pay out the mortgage and split whatever remained. In other words, from day one we had chemistry, entrepreneurship and optimism. Eventually, we sold the apartment at a profit.”
In five years, the Israeli chain has grown from three branches to 42, with 10 more set to open. The company operates a 1,500-square-meter logistics center and dough factory in Petah Tikva, producing fresh dough daily that undergoes a 72-hour fermentation process. Its tomato sauce is sourced from Portugal, made from a specific variety harvested once a year and processed into canned sauce for global distribution.
You gave birth to your daughter while building the business. How do you juggle it all?
“When I was pregnant, I hired a marketing manager with the intention that she would step into my shoes after giving birth, but it didn’t work out. You need thick skin and relentless drive. You’re competing with chains that have dominated the Israeli market for three decades, that people grew up on.
“So a month after giving birth, I was running to the offices we rented in Ramat Gan with my baby. There was a tiny elevator that the stroller didn’t even fit into. It was the hardest thing in the world.
“Today I’ve learned to accept some help. At the beginning I didn’t know how to let go. On the one hand, I refused to let anyone else raise my children. On the other hand, you have an entire business that depends on you. I worked around the clock and stayed laser-focused on the goal. We both said that if we had to work hard and lose sleep at night, we would do whatever it took to succeed.
“I’m not afraid to be the only woman in the room, and most of the time I am, because it’s a very male-dominated field.”
Working weekends too
Seven months ago, following their success in Israel, Papa John’s global leadership asked the couple to examine additional European markets. They chose the Netherlands, invested about 10 million shekels in building a dough factory and logistics center in Utrecht and relocated with their two children to Amsterdam.
Once a month they travel back to Israel, alternating between them. “We wake up in the morning, take the kids to school, drive to the offices in Utrecht and hold Zoom calls with our headquarters in Israel,” Rotenberg-Richter says. “We’re involved 24/7, down to the smallest detail.”
“In the first months in the Netherlands, the only thing I kept thinking was, ‘What was I thinking? I’m only in my 30s, I have two kids, why did I do this to myself? I’m not lacking anything, thank God,’” she says. “I built a strong brand in Israel. I recently brought in another marketing manager and hired staff. I could ease up a little and catch my breath. So why am I constantly looking to challenge myself? Why can’t I just sit for a moment and enjoy what I have?”
And what did you answer yourself?
“It’s ambition. Even when I launch a huge campaign I’ve worked on for months, I’ll enjoy it for a few hours, and the next morning I wake up with pressure: What’s the next campaign? I have to lock in the next thing.
“From a young age, I’ve needed to prove to myself that I can do it, to challenge myself and step outside my comfort zone. Even on weekends, I’m always doing something. It’s hard for me to simply sit back and relax.
Where do the children study?
“We enrolled them in a Jewish school. It’s the best decision I’ve made, because they’re surrounded by Israeli and Jewish children and celebrate the Jewish holidays.”
Have they adjusted yet?
“The younger one, who is four and a half, doesn’t really understand yet. She just goes along with whatever we tell her. The older one is eight and a half. He has lots of friends in Israel, his whole life was there, and he didn’t want to leave.
“The move was planned for August 2025. In April we took them to the Netherlands for Passover vacation. I contacted the school administration in advance and got phone numbers of children who would be in his class. I showed them the neighborhood where we would live, and things gradually calmed down.”
Why did you choose the Netherlands?
“Because I could see myself living there. There are many countries where I couldn’t picture myself raising children. The quality of life here is incredible and the education system is strong. The Dutch are very open people. It’s an extremely international country, everyone speaks English. It’s truly a beautiful and calm place.
“But beyond all that, we studied the competition. There are two major chains there, ‘Domino’s’ and ‘New York Pizza,’ each with about 300 branches. If in Israel our current potential is around 65 branches, there -the sky is the limit. We also hold first rights to expand into Belgium and Luxembourg, so we understood the extraordinary potential.”
And the challenge is enormous as well.
“At first, I truly felt like I was losing myself. I was exhausted. I found myself being the boss, a mother, the cleaner and the cook, driving the kids to activities, everything. I remember one day at 5 p.m., taking the kids out to play soccer, and feeling like I was about to collapse.
“The difficulties are financial too. We invested all the money we made in Israel into developing the business in the Netherlands. I didn’t take a salary for two years and counted every shekel", she says
How are the Dutch different from Israelis?
“They’re more careful with their money. Israelis are more indulgent. The Dutch will look for a coupon or the best deal. And unlike Israelis, who love home delivery, they prefer to grab a pizza and eat it on the go, because they’re on bicycles or walking all day. Everyone is in motion. We even have bike couriers there.”
Dutch consumer culture gave rise to a new concept called Papa Grab & Go, small takeaway outlets located in malls and train stations. “The global management loved the idea,” Rotenberg-Richter says. “The goal is to create a dedicated menu and use compact ovens for personal pizzas with new technology that allows them to stay hot for up to two hours. You only need one employee to operate each branch.”
Do you even eat pizza?
“I love pizza and never get tired of it. In the beginning I ate all the specialty pies with lots of toppings. Today I go for a simple, classic margherita.”