Lee Angelo’s Pizzeria is a growing pizza brand with 2 locations (soon to be 3), led by owner Angelo Gonzalez. After decades in corporate America, Angelo took a leap of faith to pursue his passion: pizza. As a vibrant family-owned establishment, Lee Angelo’s planted their roots in West Akron/Highland Square, crafting delectable dishes that soon captivated hearts. Starting with handwritten orders and a local point-of-sale system, Angelo quickly realized his vision for growth required a more powerful solution. “I had a little green guest book, couldn’t read the letters or the numbers,” Angelo recalls of his early days. As he began acquiring more restaurants, he knew he needed a system that could handle the demands of a high-growth business.
From Disorganized to Data-Driven
Angelo was a successful operator before finding FoodTec, but he was doing all the hard work himself. He was manually calculating customer lifetime value, churn rates, and ad campaign ROI—a process that would take him weeks. “The math is there and I’ve got to be careful not to turn it too much,” he explains. With FoodTec, he gained a platform that provides the data he needs to make strategic decisions. The system allowed him to develop new skills as an operator, moving from working in his business to working on his business. He found that the deeper he went into FoodTec’s tools, the better he became.
Driving Revenue with Seamless Customer Experience
For Angelo, every customer interaction is a sales opportunity. He uses his phone system as a funnel, with automated messages that guide callers to his online ordering platform. The seamless integration with FoodTec is crucial. “I can keep track of the customer from click to close,” he says. The system has also helped him master delivery, with a feature he calls “delivery IQ.” He now monitors his 2,500 deliveries per month with a heat map that shows him where his most profitable territories are.
Customer Loyalty as the Engine of Growth
Angelo understands that customer acquisition is the first step, but loyalty is the key to long-term profitability. He’s seen the difference firsthand. While his average customer shops 1.5 times a month, his loyalty members are shopping at a higher frequency of 2.7 times per month. He’s so confident in his loyalty program that he’s willing to buy a new customer’s first order for a $40 value. “I’m going to eat the cost up front,” he says. He knows that his loyalty members have a customer lifetime value of 33 months, so the investment pays for itself.
A Partner for the Future
Even as a highly skilled operator, Angelo knows he has more to learn. He loves that FoodTec’s team is a partner in his journey, not just a vendor. “I would love to be a part of calls or even if you’re in beta or pilot…I don’t know what I don’t know.” He is fully committed to building his brand with FoodTec as the foundation. “I’m all in. I mean, I got four stores. I got FoodTec in them. I’m not going anywhere. I want to build within the ecosystem, you know, that you guys are developing and building internally.”
The ROI of a Strategic Mindset
Angelo’s story proves that the right technology is the foundation for a high-performance business. He’s not just using FoodTec to take orders; he’s using its tools to build a repeatable, scalable model. He spends roughly $400,000 a year on marketing, but by leveraging FoodTec’s data, he’s able to achieve a 30:1 ratio on his ad spend. This level of precision has allowed him to grow his business without relying on third-party aggregators that withhold customer data.
Want to Run a Smarter Pizza Business?
Angelo Gonzalez’s story is proof that with the right system in place, a dedicated pizzeria owner can turn a passion into a scalable, data-driven brand. FoodTec has helped him streamline operations, improve his marketing ROI, and build a foundation for continued growth.
Ready to make a similar leap?