Philly Pretzel Factory, featured on ‘Undercover Boss,’ coming to the Las Vegas Strip

A franchise owner will bring the first Nevada location of the Philly Pretzel Factory chain to the Strip later this year.

This will be the most westward location for the chain, which is concentrated in the Northeast. Its most western location so far is in central Texas, Nevada franchise owner John Gerds said.

The first valley location will open in the Grand Bazaar Shops on the Strip. While an exact opening date is not set yet, Gerds hopes to open this year, he said. The chain is based in Philadelphia.

This will also be the first Philly Pretzel Factory to sell alcohol, he said. He’s in the process of finalizing a beer and wine menu. Convincing Philly Pretzel Factory wasn’t difficult, he said.

“They loved the idea,” he said. “It’s something they’ve never been able to do before.”

The stores will be open 24 hours. Gerds has plans for two other locations, with Fremont Street as a possibility, but is still finalizing the locations, he said. He wants to expand into malls and hotels. Gerds and his family will move from Michigan to the valley to oversee the franchise.

In 2012, the business was featured on the TV show “Undercover Boss.” The company’s CEO, Dan Dizio, went undercover and was trained by a Pennsylvania store’s assistant manager, Marques Chandler, a hardworking father who worked 60-hour weeks and aspired to send his daughters to college, according to AOL Jobs.

But when Chandler was close to leaving his job, DiZio stepped in, disguised as a trainee, and eventually made the employee a franchise owner.

The Las Vegas Valley locations will be his first stores as a franchise owner. He previously founded Shooter Entertainment, a film production company. Gerds was attracted to franchising for a stable income and will continue working in film once his valley pretzel stores are established, he said.

The valley locations were chosen so that Philly Pretzel Factory will get a mix of East Coast tourists already used to the brand while introducing it to tourists from the West Coast, international tourists and local valley residents, Gerds said.

“The Strip has so many different food options, and people are nervous to try something new,” Gerds said. “They’ll see these signs and think of back home.”

Contact Wade Tyler Millward at wmillward@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4602. Follow @wademillward on Twitter.