Founded in 1964 by Mr. Salvatoré Abbatiello, Pizza Salvatoré is recognized as the number one pizza and poutine delivery company in the markets where they operate. The third generation of the family currently operates 60 locations in Quebec, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick.
Pizza Salvatoré specializes in delivering pizzas and poutines. The primary objective of Pizza Salvatoré is to offer super-fast delivery for the best pizzas and poutines! The chain is best known for its cheese-stuffed pizza crusts and decadent poutines made with fresh cheese curds.
Tell us about yourself?
From our early teens, my siblings and I evolved in the pizzerias’ kitchens. I knew that I wanted to get involved to ensure the stability and growth of the business. My siblings and I grew up watching our parents and grandparents dedicate themselves to the family business. It was natural and important for us to continue in the same direction in order to be able to offer the same opportunity to our fourth generation!
If you could go back in time a year or two, what piece of advice would you give yourself?
Hire and promote the right people in order to achieve your goal. We started a very ambitious expansion phase in September 2020 by opening a restaurant every 14 days. Having built a business flowchart capable of supporting the expansion phase before it began was crucial and is the basis of our success!
What problem does your business solve?
We specialize in delivering pizzas and poutines with the primary objective of offering super-fast delivery and the best quality food! Our purpose is to have a positive influence on all who come in contact with Pizza Salvatoré.
What is the inspiration behind your business?
We are the third generation of a family business and have Italian roots. Family and gathering are two important values for our team members. Being really involved in the communities we are settled in. Our team is proud to make several donations to different organizations, accumulating more than $200,000 each year, which is redistributed to help feed and brighten up the daily lives of the less fortunate around us.
What is your magic sauce?
The whole family feels extremely privileged to have such a successful and motivated team by our side. It is thanks to this team that we have excellent results in each new location. We are very grateful to experience tremendous sales growth in each of our pizzerias during this difficult time for the food service industry. Our focus has always been on the customer and not on our competitors. We try to make each customer’s experience a fun one with several little attentions. We are young and dynamic, and it shows in the customer experience.
What is the plan for the next 5 years? What do you want to achieve?
In the last year, we grew from 36 to 60 locations and to being established in one to three Canadian provinces. Opening one location every 14 days is a hard task, but well under control with our team. We will continue our expansion mode because we are financially healthy. In the next five years, the focus will obviously be on our expansion phase but also on our operations. Our big challenge, as our company is growing tremendously, is that each restaurant remains efficient.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far?
The labour shortage is a major challenge. Since 2018, when we bought the company from our parents, we have never had it easy. However, since the pandemic, the situation has worsened. We have innovated and implemented several programs to ensure that team members have fun working at Salvatoré, thus greatly improving the retention of our valued team members.
How can people get involved?
You can reach us via our website www.pizzasalvatore.com, LinkedIn, and our Facebook page.