Editor’s note: This story was corrected on May 2 to remove references to hot sandwiches.
PORT ANGELES — Jimmy John’s is coming to Port Angeles.
The sandwich eatery chain, which specializes in home delivery, will open a 40-seat restaurant in the former Starbucks at 108 Del Guzzi Drive by mid-May — and could make its debut by May 9, franchise owner-operator Adrian Davila of Olympia said Thursday.
“There’s nothing in Port Angeles like a Jimmy John’s,” he said.
Davila, owner of Jimmy John’s franchises in Olympia and Bellingham, said he has filled about half of the 50 job openings at the restaurant.
Jobs are 15 to 25 hours a week and pay the $9.47 hourly minimum wage.
Employees tend to be teenagers and college students, with 25 workers on duty during the peak midday hours.
Jimmy John’s will be open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.
“It’s high-energy, fun, not your typical fast-food restaurant,” Davila said, adding that 70 percent of his staff in Olympia has been working at the restaurant for two years.
Remodeling building
Davila said he is spending $293,000 to completely remodel the 1,835-square-foot building located in the Olympic Plaza minimall, according to the city building permit issued Feb. 18.
He is leasing the site from property owner KT Olympic Plaza LLC of Bellingham.
Famous for its delivery of sandwiches, the chain won’t decide on the delivery area until the day before the restaurant opens, Davila said.
The decision is reached after a corporate representative drives a five-minute radius from the restaurant during peak traffic at 5 p.m. in the afternoon to determine the delivery area’s boundaries.
The staff will include six drivers.
Sandwiches will range from $4.50 to $8.75.
Davila said Jimmy John’s has more than 2,000 restaurants in 43 states and has been opening at 200 locations annually for three years.
Davila said he has considered opening a franchise at the Del Guzzi Drive location for two years.
“I learned it was a very seasonal city, with peak business from May to September,” he said.
Potential in Port Angeles
Davila said he saw the potential to do well in Port Angeles, “with it being an outdoorsy place, and sandwiches pack well and carry well.”
He added that he also studied the traffic in the area and liked the lease terms.
“I just told myself that I need to give it a shot,” Davila said.
Jimmy John’s was founded in 1983 by James John Liautaud and is headquartered in Champaign, Ill.
He started the business by opening a sandwich shop with a $25,000 loan from his father, who owned 48 percent of the company to Jimmy John’s 52 percent.
He bought out his father in 1986.
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Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 55650, or at pgottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.
