Ron Williams has always had an entrepreneurial spirit. When the opportunity presented itself for him to become a franchise owner of Ben’s Soft Pretzels locally, he knew he had to embrace it.
“It seemed like a good value, a great opportunity. It’s been good to us so far,” Williams said. “We have been in our first location since Meijer opened.
Williams, who also serves pretzels at University of Louisville football games, Evansville Otters Baseball games, and numerous events including the Kentucky State Fair and the New Year’s Eve party in downtown Nashville, said he enjoys the versatility of being able to set up at sporting events and festivals.
One way he continues to expand his business’ reach, is establishing another Owensboro location. Williams opened his second store in Towne Square Mall this past November. At this location, they have expanded the menu to include prizza, a combination of the signature pretzel crust and pizza. The new menu item is available with pepperoni, cheese, bacon or hamburger.
“Our menu uses the dough we’ve used all along, not altering it in any way,” Williams said.
The Towne Square Mall location started by introducing the 8-inch prizza size first. Within the next month, Williams said he plans to offer 16-inch prizzas as well. Other select nationwide locations offer prizza, but Williams said he will be the first to offer the larger size to customers.
“We have had a good response with the prizzas so far,” he said. “It’s been right up there with pretzel sales.”
As far as what fuels his passion, Williams said he enjoys working with great team members and knowing that part of his job is to brighten people’s days. For future expansion, Williams says there are some good things in the works.
“We are excited about the future. We have a great team that wants to make people happy. Why else have a pretzel business?” Williams said.
While people can come to the store and pick up their orders, they also offer third-party delivery services such as Door Dash and Big O Takeout. For more information including a full menu, visit here.
