G SA Y Que Wimberly The Missing Brick - Indianapolis, Indiana How did you begin working in the pizza industry? I began my career in the pizza industry by wanting to introduce my two sons to entrepreneurship. We as a family have always loved pizza and believed that our city (Indy) was missing a black-owned pizza joint that serves uniquely crafted pizzas and celebrates our culture. My journey in this started two years ago with no formal training or experience. Just trade shows and trial and error Not only are we self-built, we're also self-taught. What is something uniquely you that you have brought to the pizza industry? Indy Style Pizza is the one thing that we brought to the pizza industry. We created a pizza style that's just as unique as Detroit, Chicago, New York and California style pizzas. Starting with our crust that's shaped like the state of Indiana. Most of our ingredients that top our rectangular shaped pizzas are produced and manufactured right here in Indiana. Indy Style Pizza has become a household name here. Soon the world will taste what Indy has to offer. What's been your biggest challenge in the pizza business? My biggest challenge in the pizza business is probably what just about every pizzeria is experiencing at the moment and that's hiring good employees. I'm hoping to see a turnaround soon, especially with college students coming home for the summer. What do you do to motivate your staff during these challenging times? Food makes everyone happy. Normally when my team needs motivation I FEED THEM!! What area do you feel like you currently need to improve upon to continue taking your pizza business to the next level? I would say in order for TMB to get to the next level of business, it's time for me to delegate and hire highly skilled professionals in the area of expertise that we need, like a PR/ Branding coach and marketing manager. I guess that means developing an expense budget for employees outside the restaurant and da-to-day operations. Photo by Erica Clayton J U N E 2 0 2 1 / P I Z Z AT O D AY. C O M / 4 9 048_PIZ_0621_FTrisingstars.indd 49 5/11/21 1:19 PMhttp://www.PIZZATODAY.COM