Jim Aiello Jr., founder of Pizza Sola.
THE SECRET INGREDIENT:
generations of maverick men: behind the scenes of pizza sola BY sar ah lolle y CONTRIBUTION S B Y ja mie be c k P HOTOGRAP HY O F J IM B Y mar ie mash yna
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Although it hails from Italy, pizza is and has been an American staple and favorite for decades. Pittsburgh is home to many and varied pizza shops, but Pizza Sola stands out as a top shelf pizzeria serving authentic New York style pizza with fresh, homemade ingredients. The original shop opened in the South Side as Pizza Vesuvio in 2002, and after a name change has grown to include three additional locations (Oakland, East End, and Cranberry) with plans for further expansion. Some may credit the success of this chain to its excellent food or its hip interiors, but those more familiar with the operation know that the credit belongs to its founder Jim Aiello, Jr. and of course his heralded staff. What made this former tax accountant turned real estate developer decide to enter the restaurant business? Well, that is a long and interesting story that dates back almost a century to his great grandparents, Pete and Sarafina Locante, and his grandfather Ross Aiello’s entrepreneurial choices. Ross Aiello was born to Italian immigrant parents who arrived in America from Calabria,
Italy. Beginning at a young age, Ross struck out on his own in small ventures rather than work in the local factories like his peers. During his lifetime he hauled coal to the Hill District, then invested in and ran saloons with his father-inlaw, a prominent restauranteur in the 1960s. He then founded and operated a large warehouse in the Strip District as a Master Distributor of Pabst Blue Ribbon, which was at one time Pennsylvania Railroad’s largest customer. This business just celebrated its 65th anniversary in business. He was also a commercial real estate owner to top off the list. Ross’s son Jim Aiello Sr., a commercial real estate developer with an affinity for the restaurant business, bought Locante’s restaurant, which later became Rico’s on West Liberty Avenue, from his grandfather in the 1970’s. He also opened Jamie’s Upper Crust next door, one of the first local restaurants to serve Chicago-style deep dish pizza as well as frozen prepared foods. At the age of 11, Jim Jr. decided to live with his father after his parents divorced. As such, he was constantly spending time with his dad and
Food grandfather at their businesses and watching them work. Both men were driven, assertive and unafraid of failure. These years of observation influenced Jim Jr.’s perspective and approach to his own future and career. He watched his father and grandfather juggle multiple business interests simultaneously and forge their own paths, for better and worse. At home, the best times between father and son were when they were cooking in the kitchen. The bond between men in this family was in the maverick spirit, like a secret ingredient in the sauce, they had a special kick to them. “Every summer my dad made me work in construction. Starting in my early teens, I either worked in landscaping, concrete, or building. I would work two months and play one when most kids got three months off,” says Jim Jr. as he surveyed the remodeling work in his new home. When talking with Jim about his life, it is easy to see that many events and hardships dating back to his teens helped train him for the hurdles and battles any businessman must overcome in order to succeed. The Aiello men love all physical activity, most of all football, and like his father before him, Jim Jr. began playing the game in grade school. During a football game in college his father, who never missed a game, said, “How could you have dropped that ball?” That would have been Jim Jr.’s third interception of the game. “My friend told me after the game, ‘I love your dad, but he is tough!’ I wouldn’t want it any other way then the way it went down. You can never push yourself too much in life. It’s the challenges that make life interesting.” Also like his father, in high school Jim Jr. suffered a severe spinal cord trauma from the game that required a spinal fusion surgery in his teens to stabilize his vertebrae. Years later, a shoulder injury took him out of Lake Forest College and put Jim Jr. behind a desk at his dad’s development company. By then Jim Sr. was developing shopping malls and sent his son to the Carolinas to oversee construction on a K-Mart project. “I found out that I loved developing,” says Jim. “I started buying homes and making them into duplexes in the Mon Valley. I bought old buildings to refinish and sold all the ones there.” He eventually finished his degree in Accounting with honors, and acquired a minor in Finance. He then went to work with Arthur Anderson to work on tax strategies and family wealth planning
after graduating. “That’s the irony of life, taking the bitter and making it sweet. I never get bogged down with struggle or strife. I expect it.” he says. Incidentally, he recently met his fiancée, Judith, in Arizona when he was recovering from the effect of extensive arthritis from his 13 surgeries. He says he will never complain about the pain again because it brought him to her. Jim had only cooked in his father’s restaurant when he and Ron Molinaro, owner of Il Pizzaiolo in Mt Lebanon, decided to bring an authentic New York slice of pie to Pittsburgh. “Ron is a culinary artisan of epic proportions,” says Jim Jr. as he explains that he agreed to open the first store with Ron. He and Ron parted ways after a year and Jim renamed the store Pizza Sola, which translates to ‘only pizza,’
to track and adjust sales, and control expenses. However, wearing too many hats didn’t allow him to focus on Pizza Sola until he decided to devote 99 percent of his time on the chain. “It was obvious to me that I wasn’t involved enough. To warrant my time, I wanted the business to be bigger.” Thus, he worked hard to expand the chain he started to its current size and is working harder to further expand and diversify the brand. “My family did well. They take bad situations, make quick decisions, that helped make us stronger going back,” he reflects. “Some people get rattled by failure, I don’t like that word, and neither does my father. The only failure in my father’s house was a ‘fear of failure’ that would prevent you from trying something challenging and new…Sometimes you just don’t
the one menu item that started the business. Despite the name, the restaurants now offer salads, sandwiches, and chicken wings, as well as beer sales at their Oakland location. “When we made the change from one to two stores and on, we made significant investments in technology,” says Jim. “From surveillance systems accessed from a laptop to a point of sale system so we can access real time sales and spending with labor versus sales reports.” Using innovation to build a better business is part of the Aiello family tradition. Another part of it is figuring out how to use your failures and come back stronger. “You can always count on the pitfalls in life; that makes me appreciate the good things when they come,” he says of how life and his role models have shaped him. “Failures are better opportunities for success. You break down the problem into all of its working parts, and then stand back and access how to rebuild the model using the conflict and problems to come back stronger.” “I exhaust people. Everybody needs a rainmaker,” says Jim Jr. noting that he would take command of meetings and introduce ways
get your desired result when you push yourself to excel in uncharted territory. I would describe myself as more wise than possessing sheer intelligence, wisdom comes through experience and I am proud to say I have had many.” He concludes by quoting his favorite person, his father, “There are no dress rehearsals for life. Regret is usually over the things we never try in life. In our house, lessons were learned but few were with regret.” With that spirit, Jim welcomes feedback from the patrons of the store as additional opportunities to improve and perfect his stores and pizza. Stop in for a slice or visit the website at www.pizzasola.com for more information about the restaurants and employment opportunities. (Above) Jim Aiello Jr. with his grandfather Ross Aiello. (Above left) Jim Aiello Jr.’s father, Jim Aiello Sr.
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