Free Pretzels at Philly Pretzel Factory Tuesday

In celebration of National Pretzel Day, Philly Soft Pretzel Factory on East Baltimore Pike, near the Granite Run Mall, will be offering the freshly baked snack to each person who walks through the door on Tuesday.

"They get one free hot delicious pretzel right out of the oven," said Marty Ferrill, vice president of operations for Philly Pretzel. "No purchase necessary."

National Pretzel Day got its start in 1983 when Rep. Robert S. Walker declared the Pennsylvania favorite deserving of national recognition.

Former Gov. Ed Rendell re-declared National Pretzel Day a holiday in 2003.

"He sort of felt like it was losing steam I guess," Ferrill said.

Philly Pretzel  Factory began celebrating National Pretzel Day four years ago at all of its now 115 locations, which spread down the East Coast from New York to South Carolina.

"People were ecstatic and happy," Ferrill said of their first pretzel giveaway in 2007.

Philly Pretzel has been open since 1998 at its original location in the Mayfair section of Philadelphia, but Ferrill said they began to open other franchise locations in 2005.

Ferrill said the business' celebration of National Pretzel Day was successful in both rewarding loyal customers and attracting potential new customers.

"Every year it grows and grows," he said. "We get more and more customers in the store."

Despite the economic downturn that began in 2007, Ferill said Philly Pretzel's straightforward business model helped he and his associates weather those uncertain times and sustain three years of positive growth.

"We're very affordable," he said. "We're an inexpensive snack."

Ferrill said his pretzels are hand-twisted on each franchisees premises, each day and made with high quality ingredients and served within 20 minutes of baking.

"It is a simple product, made well," he said.