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A T L A N T I C November 2015 Vol. 17 No. 4
N AT I O N A L
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MALLARD COTTAGE TOURS CANADA
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C O V E R A G E
THE RISE OF MOBILE TECH
R E G I O N A L
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F O C U S
DIRECT FISH BUYING ALLOWED IN N.L.
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FEATURE: THE BUYER’S GUIDE ANNUAL LISTING OF SUPPLIERS
Zio’s Pizzeria planning massive expansion By Bill Tremblay Assistant Editor
Canada Post Publications Mail Agreement No. 40010152
MONCTON, N.B. — A vision 30 years in the making is about to become a reality for Sandro Speranza, owner and chief executive officer of Zio’s Pizza Kitchen. Throughout the last three decades, Speranza has been purchasing parcels of land at the corner of Church Street and Mountain Road in Moncton, N.B., the neighbourhood where he grew up. Now with seven properties in his name, which span nearly the entire block, Speranza is planning to construct a 13,000-squarefoot retail development, with a new Zio’s as the anchor.
The second phase of the development will add office space to the complex. “He’s been working at this since 1985, accumulating one piece of property at a time on that block,” said George Bartlett, Zio’s director of operations and franchising. As Speranza purchased the properties, he would clear the derelict buildings from the site as a first step to revitalizing the area. “It’s his neighbourhood; he grew up two streets over,” Bartlett said. “It is a run down area; it needs some revitalization.” The new Zio’s will feature a 220-seat casual full service restaurant and espresso bar as well as a carryout pizzeria and deli. While the development fulfills a dream, it
also fulfills a need to expand. The current Zio’s pizzeria, located on the same spot as the project, seats 22 guests and is unable to meet demand. Takeout and delivery account for 95 per cent of its traffic. “The business has outgrown itself. It’s grown from humble beginnings to $1 million a year in a tight, cramped space,” Bartlett said. “On Friday and Saturday nights they have to take the phone off the hook for an hour. They can’t keep up with the volume.” The restaurant will feature seafood, steak and pasta with an average check of $22 to $24. Pizza will, of course, remain on the menu including traditional Sicilian and wood-fired Neapolitan pies.
Zio’s also plans to introduce Roman-style pizza to Moncton. “It’s a thicker, more bread-like crust pizza,” Bartlett said. With Zio’s currently working on three new locations throughout New Brunswick, the existing pizzeria will be converted into a production kitchen for retail and franchise supply. The project is expected to cost about $4.1 million with the pizzeria opening in April of 2016, followed by the restaurant. “This would be a scary project going into this with a straight-up start up,” Bartlett said. “When you have an established brand in the market and a $1 million base business, it takes a lot of that fear away.”
Cara adds New York Fries to growing portfolio VAUGHAN, Ont. — Cara Operations Limited has entered into a purchase agreement to acquire New York Fries with an anticipated closing date this fall. The 31-year-old Canadian french fry quick-service chain has 120 locations in nine provinces, with the exception of Prince Edward Island. New York Fries was founded in 1984 by Jay Gould and his brother Hal. “It is a great brand that does not compete with Cara’s existing brands. The New York Fries brand complements Cara’s acquisition strategy and will give Cara a real estate presence in the Canadian food court market where we are not located today. It is well run, profitable and will continue to be run by its experienced team,” Cara’s chief executive officer Bill Gregson said in an email.
Upon closing, New York Fries’ head office will be relocated to Cara’s head office in Vaughan, Ont., and its business and back-end processes will be integrated over the course of a year. Warren Price, New York Fries’ long-time executive vice-president, will join Cara to continue leading the New York Fries brand. “Cara plans to continue the brand’s growth throughout Canada and will work to understand any additional international opportunities,” said Gregson. “With our successful IPO in April 2015, the company continues to look at potential acquisitions that complement Cara’s existing brands, are fairly valued and provide an opportunity to realize additional synergies.” In 2005, Jay Gould launched South St. Burger, which is not part of the Cara deal and has a licence agreement with Cara to continue serving New York
Fries for up to three years at its existing 34 locations. While Gould said he is happy to maintain the South St. brand, it was time to move on from New York Fries. His son, Mac Gould, who operated a New York Fries franchise, is coming onboard as part of the South St. management team. With Canadian locations in Alberta and Ontario, the burger brand is moving into British Columbia next year with a Vancouver location. “We have four or five stores on the books in the next 12 months and we’ll try to do at least that many per year. If we can accelerate that with good real estate and good franchisees, we will,” said Gould. “I don’t think we’ll get to the point anytime soon that we’re building 25 stores a year, but maybe 10 or 12. For the foreseeable future, I hope to do four to six units a year.”