Pizza Today - October 2023 - 32

pizza oven. It also has promotions
such as Meatball Madness, a March
event that benefits the local Boys and
Girls Club. " We do try to stay ahead, "
Shore says. " That's what the pandemic
taught us, you can't stand still. "
Some sales slowdowns are
more routine, such as seasonal
fluctuations. Take January for
example. " When you look at people's
mindsets after the holidays, people
are watching their waistlines and
their wallets, " says Travis Smith, vice
president of marketing at Mr Gatti's
Pizza, based in Fort Worth, Texas.
" For new year's resolutions, pizza is
not the first thing you think of. "
The franchise company, with more
than 70 locations open, emphasizes
its salad bars and cauliflower crust
pizzas in marketing materials during
this time of year. Also, as a restaurant
in the Family Entertainment
Center (FEC) category, Mr Gatti's
also focuses on its games and party
offerings.
Mr Gatti's Pizza has signed several
franchise agreements that will double
the number of the brand's units. One
detail the owners must prepare for is
a potential lull after the grand opening
sales spike. Mr Gatti's tries to be
proactive to fend off these slumps.
The owners start promoting the new
restaurant 60 days prior to opening,
and the event includes free games
and giveaways. To build local goodwill,
the team drops off free pizzas at
the local firehouse and supports little
league teams and food banks.
" We have locations in large markets
and small markets, and the thing
they all have in common is connection
to the community, " Smith says.
" The franchise owner is hands-on. "
The goal is to be ingrained in the
marketplace, so that dining at Mr
Gatti's Pizza becomes part of consumers'
routines.
Owners seeking advice can call
someone on Mr Gatti's franchise
advisory council or they can call
Smith, who gives franchisees his cell
number. " We can look to the system
and the experience we have with
other operators, and we are able to
32 / PIZZATODAY.COM / OCTOBER 2023
tap the knowledge that has been built
up over decades, " Smith says of the
54-year-old brand. " We definitely
have a resource in our history that we
can tap and look back on what we've
done in a similar time. "
It helps to have sales figures
available so that owners can
respond quickly. The threelocation
Taglio Bar + Pizzeria and
one-location A Tavola in Cincinnati,
Ohio completes several weekly
and monthly reports and audits to
analyze sales, costs and purchases.
" We have regular weekly meetings
with our teams at each location, " says
Jake Goodwin, chief operating officer
and co-owner. " We spend that time
focused on building sales, systems,
our teams, training and all costs and
purchases reports and audits. " Also,
meetings with the accountant were
increased from monthly to weekly.
The group, which opened the
third location of Taglio in June last
year, tries to be proactive in maintaining
sales. " As with all of our
locations we have to become a part
of our community and neighborhood, "
Goodwin says. The restaurants
joined the Montgomery Chamber
of Commerce and volunteered for
community events. They also teamed
up with a real estate management
company to provide open house
and move in baskets for all tenants.
Taglio/A Tavola created a calendar
and systems to send out menus and
delivery postcards to reach new customers,
invested in new software for
social media management and guest
e-mails, and integrated new point of
sale features including text marketing
and an updated online ordering
layout.
Maintaining focus is important.
" We focused in on consistent service
and food quality, " Goodwin says.
" These two pillars are what Taglio is
founded on and is what will continue
to drive sales. "
NORA CALEY is a freelance writer who
covers small business, finance and lifestyle
topics.
http://www.GalbaniPro.com/Premio http://www.GalbaniPro.com/Premio http://www.PIZZATODAY.COM
Pizza Today - October 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pizza Today - October 2023
