Standing Out From the Crowd

Celebrating Customer Memories

To honor their pizzeria’s 70th anniversary, Vince Cianfichi, Jr. self-published a book of nearly 90 customer stories about his parents (Mary and Vince Sr.), the old neighborhood, and good times enjoyed in the restaurant.

Vince prepared by asking dozens of longtime regulars to let him record them sharing their favorite restaurant memories. Vince added his own family stories about sacrifices made by his parents, treasured long-time employees, and his own challenges since taking over 30 years ago.

Focusing first on sharing warm customer memories demonstrates how much his family treasures their guests. It also allowed Vince to humbly add his own family stories without sounding self-important.

Vince also shares some ways his team reinforces customer relationships. For example, they track counter service orders by guest last names (not numbers) to better recognize and remember regulars. Vince’s team also looks up from their work to greet arriving guests. As Vince says, “Quality people and quality thinking come from an attitude of caring.”

Vince Cianfichi, Jr., Owner
Vince the Pizza Prince
Scranton, PA

Making Gelato Ultra-Premium

To recharge his batteries and seek new, flavorforward menu ideas, restaurateur Angelo Nicolosi explores Italy. In Torino’s Porta Nuova train station, he discovered a gelateria dressing their premium gelato with a drizzle of fresh, fall harvest olive oil and a pinch of sea salt. Angelo says that a few cents worth of fresh, fruity oil made the premium gelato taste ultra-premium by further intensifying its already vivid flavors!

Angelo Nicolosi
Nicolosi’s Pizzeria
Phillipsburg, NJ
 

Employer of Choice

 In a highly competitive labor market, David Jacobsen and Raluca Romero depend on dedicated parttimers working multiple jobs to support their families. So they made flexible staff scheduling a priority. Helping their team dependably earn weekly hours across multiple jobs (and paying a premium vs. understaffed chains) helps David and Raluca earn high retention, dependability, and productivity among their parttime team! Bravo!!

David Jacobson & Raluca Romero, Partners
Cheezy’s Artisan Pizza
San Francisco, CA