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Ready to serve
Belleria’s Liberty risk – playing the waiting game
By Karl Henkel
LIBERTY
DAVE MORGAN TOOK A gamble when he decided to open a Belleria Pizza along the rural stretch of Belmont Avenue in north Liberty — well outside the core Belmont business strip.
The location is the newest of 15 Mahoning Valley Belleria locations. It opened about a year-and-a-half ago.
There’s one problem, however, according to Morgan, store owner, and his son, Josh.
Few people know the Liberty location, which features pizza, pasta dishes and hot sandwiches, exists.
Morgan said he’s tried nearly everything, from radio promotions to newspaper ads, to get the word out about the pizzeria at 5718 Belmont Ave.
“We thought we’d get more customers from Liberty than we have,” Josh Morgan said.
The pizzeria has fallen victim to being in an uneventful section of Liberty.
Or, as Josh Morgan puts it, “a minute north” of Church Hill.
“If you say it that way, it makes it seem as though it’s not as far,” he said.
Both father and son say business from the north — from Vienna — has prospered, but so far, business from Liberty hasn’t been as successful as they had hoped.
Another problem: The business district at Belmont and Church Hill stops at the Giant Eagle just north of Church Hill.
“They think the world stops there,” Dave Morgan said.
The obvious question — Why did Morgan and Belleria decide on a location in a slow part of town? — provided an obvious answer. Belleria restaurants can’t invade one another’s territory, said Frank Frattaroli, franchise and marketing director for Belleria.
He said the general rule is to space the restaurants at least 3 miles apart. With locations in Hubbard, Cortland, Girard and Youngstown on the East side, the Liberty location was restricted on its placement.
Morgan said he looked at structures closer to the Belmont and Church Hill intersection, but was “shied away” from that area.
“This location kept us within the rules,” Dave Morgan said.
Frattaroli said there are a few ways the Liberty store can turn itself into a highly-profitable location such as Belleria’s in Boardman and Struthers, either through targeted advertising or a billboard in downtown Liberty.
He said they can also hope; hope that business in North Liberty starts to grow.
He said the same thing happened at the Boardman location, 8485 Market Street, which opened about eight years ago.
Other restaurants such as Los Gallos and Antone’s, along with St. Elizabeth’s Boardman Health Center, slowly grew near the Belleria location and brought with them a better business atmosphere.
“Now it just kicks,” he said. “The growth is out there.”
Help could be on the way.
Pat Ungaro, township administrator, said last month that the north side of Liberty is set up for more growth by installing water and sewer lines in 2006 on the north border.
“The stage is set with the infrastructure and there’s a lot of interest now,” Ungaro said. “That area will be the big growth area in the future.”
Until then, Dave Morgan said he and his 10-person staff will continue to push the business forward.
“There’s nothing out here at this point,” he said. “We just keep hoping someone will follow us out here.”