Nearly all of the restaurant's customers mdash; no matter their heritage mdash; still pay in good old U.S. dollars, but the fast food chain says that at least 5 percent of their patrons exchange pesos for their pizzas.
Behind every counter, store employees consult a chart explaining exactly how to convert the currency, based on the exchange rate of roughly 12 pesos to the dollar.
The idea of exchanging pesos for pizza began in January as a holiday promotion for customers returning from their Christmas visits in Mexico. When they returned, they could spend their spare pesos at the Pizza Patron.
However, the idea became so popular that it now remains a regular feature at all 64 Pizza Patron outlets. The chain's eateries are mostly in the Southwest, not necessarily along the border, but in heavily Hispanic cities like Dallas, Denver, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. Additionally, the campaign has now become a lightning rod in America's immigration debate.
"We wanted to say to our customer, 'Look, we understand you,'" said Antonio Swad, CEO and founder of the chain. "We understand that you might have some pesos that you want to exchange for pizza and we're the place to do that."
Swad said the plan immediately attracted new customers.
"Yeah, it was exactly the right thing for our customers," he said. "It was a way for us to reach out and to do a better job of serving our customer than maybe some of our competitors do.
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