TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abo's History / Vision
Abo's Nostalgia
Anatomy of an Abo's Pizza

Between 1972 and 1977, Boulder, Colorado was a scenic college town, heavily influenced by the tastes and finances of 20,000 college students who populated Boulder on a part-time basis. Enter Steve Abo, a college student at the University of Colorado (CU) who did not fit the typical student mold striving to become a doctor, lawyer, or corporate stuffed shirt. Rather, he enjoyed the more casual approach to academics, dabbling in generic 101 studies while hanging out with free-spirited Ivy League grads who loved their guitars and fought regular cravings for foods from back East, specifically, New York.

At that time, there was not a place to be found in Boulder to appease the appetite for a slice, a slice of New York Pizza that is. Abo and his friends often complained that there was no place in town to "fill the munchie." After one too many complaints from the group, Abo decided he was going to do it. He was going to bring the first New York Pizza to Boulder, both literally and figuratively.

Shortly thereafter, Abo dropped out of CU and went back home to New York City for six months where the seeds of a Boulderite entrepreneurial success story began. Through a family connection his father had with Rocky Graziano, the 1947-1948 Middle Weight Boxing Champion, Abo had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work (for free) as a pizza business apprentice to Graziano. Graziano owned his own successful pizzeria chain in New York City, a pizza place to not only to satisfy the New Yorker's addiction to the proverbial slice, but also a spot with a legendary past in fronting for the mob.

Fueled with the desire to learn everything about the pizza business from scratch, Abo worked for Graziano for six months. To the eager-to-learn Abo, Graziano's head pizza chef Frankie would say "just watch." After "watching" for five months, Abo decided he "got it" and started making pizzas and filling ovens. He was ready to move back to Boulder to begin bringing a slice of New York to this once ordinary food town.

But what Steve Abo "got" during his apprenticeship was more than an authentic technique for hand tossing a crust or building a superb tasting pie with a secret Graziano family sauce recipe. He got a really big bug for a business venture that would grow into a 27 year-old entrepreneurial success story. In 1977, Abo opened the first Abo's Pizza on University Hill.

Only Pizza Will Pave the Road to Success

In its humble beginnings, Abo's Pizza offered a full menu of Italian fare complete with calzones to lasagna in addition to pizza. But Abo quickly realized that offering too many menu options was a death sentence to quality control because there were not enough quality employees available with back-East experience. So, he decided to capitalize on the one thing he knew how to do really well - make New York Neapolitan pizza. By specializing in pizza, Abo's entrepreneurial strategy opened new doors, literally. When Greenbay Packer's star quarterback Bart Starr offered to buy out Abo's pizza business in 1981, Abo really knew he had a good thing going. Abo saw an opportunity and wanted to establish his position as the only game in town for New York Neopolitan pizza by the slice. He declined Starr's offer and consequently became ever more driven to succeed in the Boulder market, which meant he needed to keep out the competition. Abo scaled back his menu, regained control over quality, and embarked on a mission to open as many stores in Boulder as the market could support, owning as many as five stores at one point. He succeeded, and for 27 years Abo's Pizza has remained the definitive source for New York pizza in Boulder. Though the Boulder locations have changed somewhat, there are still three Boulder Abo's. Since 1977, an entire generation has grown up on Abo's in Boulder.

Fast Forward to Licensing

In 1991, the Abo's business model began to change. Abo grew his own learned culinary talent and unstoppable drive to succeed into an attractive business venture and licensing opportunity. He was in a business partnership with his existing stores that he wanted to dissolve. He was ready to move on but needed a way to give his partner an opportunity to keep his Abo's Pizza location and maintain control over the day-to-day operations. After considering his options of franchising versus licensing, Abo favored the decentralized strengths of the licensing model, and chose to license the first stores. In 1997 and 1998, licensing built momentum and over the last seven years, Abo has extended his licenses from the original three locations in Boulder to fifteen stores across the Front Range extending from Fort Collins to Highlands Ranch with 12 total owners. Abo has now divested himself of all personally owned stores and is developing future licensing agreements.

Abo's current licensing vision includes 25 or more stores along the Front Range, each with generous boundaries. The licensing approach allows individual Abo's Pizza store owners to do their own store marketing and advertising with entrepreneurial opportunities, but gives stores the economies of scale that result from centralized purchasing, control over precise product consistency and recipes, and centralized managerial know-how from Abo. Abo supports the licensing model that allows a greater degree of individual store nicheing and some of the licensees are bringing back other menu items and add-ons to round out the core pizza menu. The new Abo's Commissary in Boulder is now Abo's Inc. headquarters which serves as a central location for strictly making and delivering dough and sauce to the stores.

Throughout the company's 27 year history, Abo's philosophy and core values on product quality have maintained the same. Abo credits much of his success to adhering to strict standards of product quality as evidenced by not sacrificing high quality ingredients in favor of a bargain prices while also keeping an eagle's eye view on the company's finances at any given moment. Abo's continues to offer an exceptional product and friendly service with each store location- a pizza that is easily discernible for its quality taste and texture that is not to be confused with other pizzerias and the large, impersonal chains.

In 1977, Boulder was also becoming a flutter with other notable food and beverage ventures namely Celestial Seasonings, Alfalfa's Market, and White Wave.

From an economic standpoint, inflation was rampant and mortgages were at 12 to 14%. Abo remembers how he could not raise prices fast enough to keep up with the cost of living. You could only get so much for a sandwich and he struggled with not wanting to be considered a Capitalistic gauger.

1977 was also the year that Star Wars hit the screen, after which many loyal Abo's customers referred to Abo as Abo One Kenobe.

Abo's Pizza on the Hill was a frequent stop by singing legend Carole King.

Led Zepplin's lead singer Robert Plant signed the wall at the Pearl Street location while in town for a gig.

The ingredients used in every Abo's Pizza today maintains the original quality ingredients of the first pie to hit Boulder in 1977:

The Crust

The dough is made fresh daily and hand tossed according to the authentic Neapolitan New York tradition. The crust is classically thin. Its texture is bumpy, bubbly, pliable and crimped yielding a great taste and firm fold over. The dough is flour dusted and baked in the Vermont Bakers Pride Ovens.

The Sauce

The Abo's Pizza Sauce is a proprietary blend fashioned after the legendary Rocky Graziano family sauce recipe. The sauce is herby, light, and sweet, but not too sweet with a hint of tartness. The sauce does not detract from the toppings.

The Cheese

Only 2% skim milk 100% mozzarella is used in generous quantities. Skim mozzarella yields a moist and chewy consistency without the oil-slick effect. Abo's cheese won't slide off the crust with the rest of the toppings!

The Tomatoes

While less expensive varieties and sources abound, Abo continues to use high quality tomatoes from the same supplier year after year.

The Vegetables

The freshest vegetables are delivered and chopped fresh daily.

Quality of Ingredients Philosophy

Abo believes in using better quality ingredients and looks for cost savings elsewhere. When it comes to making a great pizza that is consistent time after time, Abo believes in regularly using the best quality ingredients regardless of price increases.

Freshness

Dough is made fresh daily and is never frozen. Preservatives are not used. The freshest onions, green peppers and mushrooms are cut daily.

The Oven

Abo's Pizza uses the famous Vermont Baker's Pride Ovens which consist of high quality baking bricks that ensure and even bake over the entire surface area of the pizza. No conveyor belts here.

Size Matters

Here is where the real value is visible to the hungry eye. Abo's slices are bigger. While other pizzeria's offer 14 to 16 inch diameter pies that yield 10 to 12 slices, Abo's pies have either an 18 inch or even 20 inch diameter, use more ingredients for the toppings, and yield 8 slices per pie.