Wease Family Circus
Salvatore Fantauzzo walks into the Circus. Soccer Sam. Started with one pizza shop on Main Street in 1978. Turned it into 32 locations across New York. Financed his employees. Turned box makers into franchise owners. Built an empire on loyalty, hard work, and a high school home ec project. This episode is the origin story. A senior year assignment turned into a 48 year legacy. Fred's meat market almost became a pizzeria. A shoe store across the street became the first Salvatore's. Captain Tony's, Pontillo's, and Bunny Goodman were the only competition back then. Sam talks about the 1983 pizza convention in Florida that changed everything. Mozzarella sticks. Chicken fingers. Buffalo wings from a girl who worked at the Anchor Bar. The moment Salvatore's became more than just pizza and subs. He talks about buying Aziz Pizza's leftover boxes when they went out of business because he was broke. The Pac Man machine in the lobby that kept him afloat. His brother pushing him to that convention. Necessity forcing him to expand because pizza alone wasn't cutting it. The franchise model that built Salvatore's. His brother and John Corgi were his first employees at 13. The second location opened inside a bar called Chadwicks. Nick from Donuts Delite started making boxes at eight, went to college for graphic design, came back, and now owns the store. 30 of 32 locations are owned by former employees. That's the Salvatore's way. You start making boxes. You work your way up. Sam finances your store. You build your life. Sam's biggest mistake? Not recognizing talent early enough. Mike DeBull left to start the Wegmans pizza department and built the entire food court concept. Chelsea from Branca started as a 17 year old server and runs one of the biggest restaurant operations in Monroe County. Tim Archeco owns Otto Tomato in Pittsford. All former Salvatore's. The soccer obsession. First Lancers game at 10. Every Inter Miami home game for five years straight. Last night he watched Messi blow a 3-0 lead and lose 4-3 to Orlando. 26,000 fans. Half from Uruguay, Costa Rica, Argentina. Young boys wearing pink and proud because of Messi. The women's soccer revolution. Trinity Rodman just signed a million dollar contract. Joe Sahlen gave away the Western New York Flash years ago. Now teams sell for 220 million. Wease had women's players on the show in the 90s when nobody cared. Those same women are millionaires today. Sam's 98 year old father in law lives alone, cooks alone, and mowed his own lawn until Sam intentionally broke the mower three months ago. Refuses senior living. Sharp as ever. Three kids. Ten grandkids. Santino owns Bushnell's Basin at 21. Started making boxes at 12. Tried college for six months and said I can't do this. Roxy helps run Santino's spot and owns her own nail salon. The youngest works for Salvatore's. Sal is an acupuncturist. The third generation is coming up. The Rochester versus Florida debate. Wease goes off on the guy who called Rochester a shit hole. Festivals everywhere. Music everywhere. Great hospitals. Great restaurants. Rochester is not a shit hole. Sam's body is broken down from working so hard his whole life. Florida heat helps. Rochester hurts. Pickleball with Linda. Soccer with his boys when he's in town. Wease on his Parkinson's. Walked three and a half miles this morning. Gym at 6 a.m. He doesn't want to get out of bed but he has to keep moving. Spirit Airlines collapses the day Doreen is supposed to fly to Tampa to take care of her mom. JetBlue acquires Spirit. Wease bought the tickets with points. Now the points are gone. I need this broad. I'm no good alone. This episode is the Salvatore's story. The soccer. The franchise. The mistakes. The loyalty. The legacy. It's nice to be important. But it's more important to be nice. CHAPTERS * 00:00:00 Welcome and Sponsor Introduction: The Contractor Store * 00:00:56 Introducing Soccer Sam: Salvador Fantuzo and the Koji Connection * 00:02:54 The First Salvador's and Brother Wease's Early Support * 00:03:54 From High School Project to Pizza Empire: 32 Locations and Counting * 00:05:58 The Home Economics Class That Started It All * 00:10:13 Pizza Philosophy: Rochester Style vs New York Style * 00:15:20 Soccer Sam's Passion: From Lancers to Lionel Messi * 00:16:28 Hope Solo, Women's Soccer, and Making Millions * 00:18:12 Inter Miami VIP Experience: 26,000 Fans in Pink * 00:31:08 Building an Empire: Turning Employees into Owners * 00:44:22 Business Mistakes and Lost Talent: The Wegmans Story * 00:51:06 The Importance of Family Support and Hard Work * 00:56:28 Rochester Pride and Spirit Airlines Drama
21 episodios
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