Pizza Today - February 2016 - 66

Pizza Expo Preview

PE: How much time - and how many
business plans - did you go through
refining your concept? What were the
elements that made the concept click
into place?
AG: I have no concept of time. A business plan,

like life, is a computer program that never leaves
beta testing. John Lennon said: "Change with
your music, or your music will change without
you." You are always changing and adapting
based on feedback. The only element that I see
as the root of my success is hard work.
PE: What was the key to getting
proper financing? Did it get easier to
finance as you grew from one to 14
locations?
AG: There are no easy answers to this question.

It is a tap dance on a head of a pin. Each situation is unique unto itself.

PE: When you look back on the eight
years you've been in business, what
are the key building blocks of success?
AG: Hard work, family support and the

unquenchable thirst for success. Fresh Brothers
is a chain that is only as strong as its weakest
link. Constancy is the iron-forged link that
makes our chain impenetrable. Most people
do not equate consistency and growth with
fun. I do. The world of pizza is a world of joy. I
embrace that joy.

PE: Pizza Expo attendees are going to
get up early in Las Vegas to listen to
your keynote. Why will they be happy
they chose to sit in?
AG: I'm a humble guy with dreams and a story

to tell. That story wakes me up each morning in
anticipation of new challenges to meet. I hope
that my story will inspire my audience as well.

PE: Sausage or pepperoni?
AG: The Fresh Brothers Miller Pizza Special

will knock your socks off, man. Sausage,
pepperoni, ham, bacon and ground beef.
Enough said.

6 6 / P I Z Z AT O D AY. C O M / F E B R UA R Y 2 0 1 6

Make 2016 Your Best Year Ever
Building your business and your
brand requires smart investments
in good times as well as bad. Take
the time now to build on recent
successes. Here are five ways to use
Pizza Expo to achieve the next level
of sales and profits:
1. Make smart upgrades
Identify which of the industry's newest products and services can boost
your profits. With 450-plus exhibiting
companies on an Exhibit Hall floor that
covers an area the size of 5.5 football
fields, Pizza Expo showcases virtually
every top supplier in the pizzeria industry.
There are more than 200 categories of
exhibitors on display, offering everything
from quality-improving ingredients to
top-notch pizza-making equipment, stateof-the-art POS systems and multiple
other products that can enhance your
brand. Explore the possibilities.
2. Fill gaps in your knowledge
What you don't know can hurt you.
Pizza Expo's education program of more
than 90 sessions on topics covering all
aspects of operating a pizzeria business
provides resources you can get nowhere
else. Expo week kicks off with the School
of Pizzeria Management and 10 half-day
workshops designed to give you tools
you can plug in immediately to improve
your operations. An extensive schedule
of seminars and panel discussions on
Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday offers
expert knowledge and advice you should
not pass up. And Tony Gemignani's
"Making Pizza" workshops - as well as
13 menu-expanding cooking and baking
demonstrations - share techniques to
improve what comes out of your kitchen.
Get an instant education.
3. Learn From Your Peers
Knowledge sharing is part of what
makes Pizza Expo so special. It begins
with the more than 30 talented pizzeria

professionals who present during our
workshops, seminars and baking demonstrations. They willingly give their time
and talents to their sessions, and they
pass along business practices that have
worked for them and could well work
for you. Pizza Expo's networking events
feature this same collegiality. Monday's
reception, Tuesday's Beer & Bull and
Wednesday's Block Party give you the
chance to connect with rooms full of
fellow pizzeria professionals. You'll meet
them in the seminar rooms and on the
Exhibit Hall floor. You'll be surprised by
the open exchange of ideas.
4. Educate your managers
Bring your top people to Expo. That's
what many who return each year do
so that those who help them succeed
most have the tools to contribute to the
business. Enroll them in the advancedtraining workshops, send them to
appropriate seminars and let them see
the range of products available on the
show floor. Allow them to meet others
who can offer them solutions for the
problems with staff and operations they
deal with daily. Energize your whole staff
under their improved leadership.
5. Rediscover your pizza passion
This is a fun industry and your customers react positively if you project that
passion with personal expression in your
own business. Re-energize by hearing
some of the most successful names in
the business speak during Expo week.
The owner of Pizza Today's Independent
Pizzeria of the Year for 2015 speaks
on Monday about his connection to
the industry. Three keynotes - one
by celebrity chef Fabio Viviani and two
by big-name pizzeria owners Adam
Goldberg and Tony Gemignani - place
a spotlight on individual talent and
determination that pays big dividends in
today's marketplace. Go out and make
2016 your best year ever!
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Pizza Today - February 2016

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