A Slice of History
Giovanni’s Celebrates 60 Years
Lora Parsons
The Ashland Beacon
If you’re from around here, you know there are nights when you want pizza, and there are nights when you ONLY want Giovanni’s pizza. It’s in a class of its own. As iconic as Snyder’s chips, Heiner’s bread, and Crisp’s Dairy Treat are to our area, so is Giovanni’s a true local legend. Entering its 60th year this spring, it’s no wonder we measure all other pizza to this local staple. Giovanni’s has been around for multiple generations and has become our measuring stick for good Italian food.
In 1964, Jim Lemaster, the original owner, established the first of today’s 103 franchises when he sold for $300 a 1930 Model A Ford he’d been restoring. This money was used to purchase a pizza oven to help him and his wife, Nancy, open their first restaurant in Wheelersburg, Ohio. At that point, he worked the midnight shift at Detroit Steel in New Boston and drove there to work after having spent all day at the restaurant. With business limited by the small population of Wheelersburg, the Lemasters decided to relocate their home and restaurant to Ashland, opening on the corner of 13th Street and Carter Avenue. At the time that was only the second pizza place in town. Current owner, Tom Lemaster, Jim and Nancy’s son, was five years old at the time and fondly recalled “Dad selling pizzas out the front door and supplies out the back door.” Selling their family-made sauce recipe and supplies in bulk birthed the idea of starting a chain and offering franchises to the many family, friends, and customers who expressed an interest in getting a piece of the pie, after falling in love with the recipe the Lemasters had perfected.
Those who knew Jim Lemaster would tell you that the success of his business was due to his hard work and dedication to quality food. And, while those were certainly driving forces behind his many years of success, it’s also apparent in the continued work of his son, Tom and daughter, Vickie. They have taken over the family business and continue to focus on the people and communities they serve. Tom takes great pride in the fact that local franchise owners are all encouraged to invest in their local area--from Little League Baseball teams to teachers. Lemaster’s father ingrained in him the idea that, “the community takes care of Giovanni’s, so Giovanni’s needs to take care of the community.” The mutual affinity between the business and its customers can easily be seen in folks who have moved away from this area and return for visits. Over and over, the Lemasters and local franchise owners hear stories of Giovanni’s being at the top of the list when out-of-towners come back home. Lemaster said, “In this area, we’re just dominant because it’s what we all know. It’s one of those things you’ve known all your life, so it becomes part of home.”
Spanning six decades, four generations, six states and over 52,000 square miles, the Giovanni’s brand has far-exceeded what Tom imagines his dad must have envisioned back in 1964. He attributes the company’s success to continuing what his dad practiced during the years he was running the business: a willingness to grow and adapt. Part of that growth recently has been the development of an app for online ordering. It also includes a customer incentive program offering rewards for purchases--and double points for purchases on Tuesdays. Streamlining the customer experience with technology of this sort attempts to ensure that what happens at one location also happens at another. Giovanni’s gift cards, for example, are now able to be used at any franchise, not just at the issuing location. It also enables the company to move forward with plans to make gift cards available at retail locations like Walmart and gas stations, alongside other gift cards from larger chains. The company has also recently hired a social media manager whose creative posts rival the advertising campaigns of the largest of pizza companies. (Follow “Giovanni’s Pizza Inc.” on Facebook to find out just how entertaining pizza can be!) Growth and adaptability have been commonplace guests at the Giovanni’s table, and the Lemasters have no intentions of stagnating now.
Another reason for the company’s continued success under Tom’s leadership is the fact that he has experienced both sides of the business--retail and corporate--in addition to having been present nearly his whole life to observe what his parents did daily at the corporate office. He also owned and operated his own restaurants for over 30 years. He acknowledges that this has been a real asset to franchise owners who run into issues or have questions: “There’s nothing a franchisee could ask that I couldn’t answer,” and his experience allows him to back that up. While the truth of that can’t be argued, there’s another element to the company’s success that can’t go unmentioned: Tom’s cousin, David Grant. Grant’s childhood also consisted of being raised by a family in the pizza industry and his more than 40 years of dedicated work to the company are equally responsible for its long-term success. Grant, who recently retired, “was responsible for opening up new stores, talking to franchise owners that sort of thing. He did that side of it while I did the office side,” Tom explained. It’s clear, in trying to pinpoint the success of the corporation, that this isn’t just a one-man show. While someone has to steer the ship, many hands are required for true success, and Tom knows this well.
Though his experience and expertise regarding all things Giovanni’s have been something he’s proud to have earned over the more than 40 years that he’s also been in the business, he acknowledges that it’s time for him to start slowly turning over the reins to his sister, Vickie. She’s worked by his side, learning the ropes and as time goes, finds herself with an ever-increasing list of responsibilities, handed down most directly by her brother, but also passed down indirectly from her father and mother.
While the Giovanni’s brand has seen many twists and turns over the past six decades, the adaptation and growth has been steadied by one consistent thing: the strength of its franchisees and the loyalty of its customers. The entire Lemaster family readily acknowledges that their efforts would be entirely in vain if not for those groups of people: “Franchisees were willing to take a chance on getting into the business, and our customers have been there to support us for 60 years. We’re only as successful as our customers who are willing to buy our product.” As easy as it would be to give credit to savvy business decisions and tasty recipes, the Lemasters know that the lion’s share of credit for Giovanni’s success rests with the loyalty of the folks who have partnered with them over the years and with the communities they’ve been privileged to serve. Sixty successful years isn’t an accomplishment they could have earned on their own. The real celebration is not about what the Lemaster family has achieved for the company but about what the company has received through the loyalty of franchisees and customers who over the years have become more like family and friends. The community is certainly grateful for the 60 years Giovanni’s has been around for birthday parties and church events, but the Lemasters would claim that they’re truly the ones who should be grateful for being invited to share in those celebrations along the way. Here’s to another 60 years!
