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It was back in the spring of 2001 when Steve Green walked into a Connecticut pizzeria named Randy’s Wooster Street Pizza. He met and spoke with owner Randy Price who had turned a lifelong hobby into a pizzeria brand and through some crafty marketing and a very unique concept had made quite a name for himself. The hobby he incorporated into his pizzeria involved his love for all things Hot Wheels. You remember them…those little die-cast cars that you left scattered across the floor that mom and dad stepped on when they walked through the living room on Saturday mornings. When I saw the photos and learned about how he had incorporated Hot Wheels and his former profession as an auto body mechanic into a pizzeria design, I asked Steve, “Is this the coolest pizzeria or what?” That turned out to be the headline for the article.
In revisiting some of our favorite cover stories from the past 10 years, Randy’s Wooster Street Pizza was on the top of my list. In the time since that article, I have visited a few interesting pizzerias and wanted to see if this was still the coolest one...it is.
Since that first cover story, Randy has learned a few things. When I sat down with him back in March, he offered some really great tips for opening second locations, dealing with landlords, contractors and had a few new marketing strategies.
Hot Concept
When you walk into Randy’s Wooster Street Pizza, you are transported back to the days of your youth. In both locations (Southington and Manchester, CT), one of the first things you notice is the full-scale mock-up of some familiar Hot Wheels. He has a full-blown version of the S’Cool Bus in which customers can reserve for birthday parties. Randy says the bus stays booked for the weekends. You also see thousands of Hot Wheels, both vintage and new, everywhere. They are mounted in the tables, on the walls and even in a customized vending machine that dispenses cars.
“The great thing about the vending machine is that you can get Hot Wheels for around a dollar and kids line up at this thing to pay $2 each for them,” Randy said. “It is a really nice machine and looks like something you would see in a corporate franchised location. I intentionally try to create a cross between that corporate image to the look and friendliness, service and product of a ‘mom and pop’ location because it boggles me how people flock to that corporate image. It is that corporate feel that creates a comfort area with customers. They are content and happy and think they are getting a bargain. What we try to tailor to that corporate image but still have a mom and pop atmosphere. Many times people have come in and asked if we were a chain from out West. We’re not, but because we have that franchised look to the décor, it appeals to a lot of people.”
Randy now has two locations. He had one other location that closed about a year ago. In that location, he doubled the size and added a bar, but the bar concept just wasn’t an idea that fit with his original concept. “It just wasn’t doing the numbers it took to keep a place of that size open and profitable,” Randy said.
What’s Changed?
Since our last story on Randy’s Wooster Street, there have been a few changes. Back then Randy wasn’t a delivery guy. “I was adamantly against it,” Randy said. “To me, delivery was associated with an inferior product. But now, it has become more of a norm. People want to come home and they want to get something delivered to their little sanctuaries, so we gave it a try. We are now doing about 20% of our business in delivery and we just started it about two years ago. Our future now is our express concept. It will have a slightly different logo and focus on takeout and delivery with a very limited seating area of 25 or 30 seats tops. The dough will be made in bulk at the Southington location and shipped out in refrigerated trucks to the new express units for dividing and stretching. We have plans to open three to four of these within the next year.”
Opening New Locations
When you have two locations the quality can diminish. Consistency is the key to success, so Randy has recipe cards and everything needed to guide cooks and staff in duplicating his products elsewhere. “The key is that you have to have the right chefs,” Randy said. “If you are going to open a second location, make sure you have key people in the first location. You need a key pizza maker who can train the new staff how to make the product your way for the new location before they open. You also need the right management to get the second location up and going the right way."
Moving Locations
While I was visiting, Randy was two weeks out from moving his Manchester location about a quarter mile down the street. Getting in line with his franchise packages, the new location has a smaller dine-in area, with easier in/out access for take-out and delivery. Moving locations can be tricky but he has a few strategies to help in the move. “We have a ‘We’re Moving’ message on the pizza boxes for starters,” Randy said. “We have also been putting up posters all around stating that we are moving. Luckily, we aren’t moving very far, but we will have newspaper ads the day we move. We also have our own Randy’s Travelers Checks that we will be giving out to VIP customers with a coupon. It looks like a real Travelers Check and tells about the new location and with an offer."
Building a New or Second Location
With the construction of the new location and from previous experience, Randy has learned a few things to watch out for when dealing with contractors, landlords, building inspectors and all of the other red tape involved. “You need to watch for things like dealing with the Building Department in your area,” Randy explained. “Get all of your ducks in a row before you even sign a lease. There is always something you will miss. Even if you think you are prepared, you are never fully prepared. You just have to bite your tongue and go with it. The first place I would recommend you go to is the Town Hall. Usually you will have to get a Usage Permit. This requires you to tell them what you will be doing; they may or may not want a certain type of business in that area. You need to check with the Zoning Departments, Building Departments, Health Departments, there are water and sewer regulations and fire marshals…there is a lot to check out. There are a lot of laws that change and you need to know what they are before you start building.
“One thing that is changing and is a big issue these days involves grease traps,” Randy continued. “A lot of times the grease interceptors that go underneath the sink aren’t adequate. At one of my locations, I had to have a 2,000-gallon grease trap that was underground and outdoors. You have to go to your town and see what the requirements are for your area. Check with the water and sewer departments or sometimes the Health Department before you start. These things (grease traps) can cost up to $7,000 or $8,000 and this can make or break some new start-ups.”
Randy strongly suggests that if you want to save dollars, find an existing restaurant location. In many cases, you can get grandfather claused in with certain things like grease traps, but not everything. Anything that is fire related can’t be grandfathered in. You have to have the right fire suppression systems in, so check with the fire marshal. “There are so many little things that can get you, such as the types of locks on your front door,” Randy said. “In many places you can’t have a key lock on the front door; you have to have a thumbscrew. If you are over a 100-person capacity, you have to have panic bars on some of the exits. There are so many things you will find out about later if you don’t check up front. You may think you have your budget to open, but in most cases, whatever it is you can double that in getting open.”
Dealing with Contractors and New Landlords
In many build-out scenarios, soon-to-be restaurant owners are quoted a finish date by the contractors. I have heard so many nightmare stories about missed deadlines. Randy suggests you get these deadlines clearly stated in the contracts up front. Randy says he usually gets 120 days to open. That, according to him, is the norm these days. Once you get this outlined with the contractor, you can have certain clauses in there with penalties for uncompleted jobs at the deadline date. Also, be sure that it is clear with new landlords that you aren’t expecting to pay rent during the renovation or build-out.
Randy also recommends talking to the future landlords about any allowances that are available. He said that he did his own lighting and was given an allowance by the landlord for it. There was fluorescent lighting, which is not good for lighting food, so he wanted to change it out and worked with the landlord prior to beginning. “Get everything in writing,” Randy said. “Don’t let them say they will do it because when it comes right down to it, if it is not in writing, they don’t want to talk to you.”
Another thing you want to be aware of in dealing with new landlords deals with the triple net lease. In some cases where you share a building with any number of other businesses, you pay for your percentage of taxes and maintenance based on the space you occupy. If you don’t have it stated clearly in the original lease, if one of these businesses close, you may be required to assume that share or percentage of taxes and maintenance. This can be substantial if there is a grocery store next door. The first thing you need to do here is make sure you have a good attorney who has dealt with restaurants before.
Marketing
Marketing can take on many forms. It doesn’t always have to be direct mail or coupons. One of the neat things I noticed in Randy’s Wooster Street Pizza was a dessert offering he had; S’mores. No, not a pre-made s’more, but real s’mores that kids can make right at the table. They way they are offered is with a small sterno heating can. Nestled around the edge are all the s’more fixings needed for a kid to feel like he is camping out in the backyard; graham crackers, Hershey’s chocolate, marshmallows and skewers to roast the marshmallows. Randy said that once they bring one of these out to a table and another kid at another table sees them, they start selling off the shelf. Little things like this can easily boost average ticket sales and make it fun and entertaining for the customers.
Another thing Randy does is offers his Challenger Pizza. It is a 10-pound, double stuffed pizza that challenges two people to eat it in a one-hour time period. If they do it in the allotted time they get it for free and get their photo on the Hall of Shame and a T-shirt. If they don’t complete the task, the pizza costs them $35 dollars. Randy says he now gets about three or four teams each week attempting to defeat the Challenger.
