FAST TRACK TO PROFIT

$50 million a year for nation’s fastest growing quick-casual Mexican restaurant.

ONE-TWO PUNCH

Association with Legendary Boxing Trainer Taught Salsarita’s CEO Important Life Lessons

Cus D’Amato was a legendary boxing manager and trainer who handled the careers of champions Floyd Patterson, Jose Torres and Mike Tyson. He was also one of the biggest influences in the life of Paul Mangiamele, the recently named president and CEO of Salsarita’s Fresh Cantina.

D’Amato took Mangiamele under his wing when Mangiamele attempted to make the U.S. Olympic boxing team for the 1972 Munich Olympic Games. Mangiamele was still a youngster when he first got to know D’Amato.

D’Amato—who died in 1985—ran the Gramercy Gym at 14th St. and Irving Place on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. Mangiamele lived on 10th Street and boxing ran in his family. Mangiamele’s uncle, Alfred Caruso, was an amateur who went pro and later owned a small trattoria in the city. Mangiamele’s father, Joseph, was “just a tough guy,” according to his son.

“Cus was like a grandfather to me, my uncle and my father,” Mangiamele said. Joseph once had a street fight with famed middleweight champ Rocky Graziano, considered one of the greatest knockout artists in boxing history.

“He had a wicked right hand,” Mangiamele said of his father. “My father was the champ of 9th Street and Graziano was the champ of 10th Street. In those days, every gang had their turf on the Lower East Side.”

An outstanding student, Mangiamele was appointed to the U.S. Naval Academy, but the allure of training with D’Amato and the opportunity to box for an Olympic gold medal was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that Mangiamele couldn’t refuse. He spent almost three years training with D’Amato at his gyms in Manhattan and Catskill, N.Y. A middleweight who won several Golden Gloves titles and Police Athletic League competitions, Mangiamele boxed in the U.S. Olympic Trials and was named an alternate to the U.S. team. The association with D’Amato, however, was life-changing.

“That was my transition to manhood,” Mangiamele said. “It was also my defining moment. It took me from being a belligerent teenager and turned me into a man.”
Mangiamele went on to become the first in his family to attend and graduate from college, earning a bachelor of science degree from the College of New Jersey and a master’s degree in education from Springfield College in Massachusetts, with honors each time.
“In those days, you were either going to get into a lot of trouble and be a wise guy or work on getting out of the neighborhood,” Mangiamele said. “After boxing, I went back to school—in Cus’ image—because of my respect and love for this great man, I wanted to replicate his service to kids where I could help teach and coach to shape the lives of the next generation. I was going to be a college professor, put patches on my elbows, smoke a pipe and lead a life of academia.”

Paul Mangiamele was raised in the restaurant business. His uncle owned a small trattoria in New York City and Mangiamele started working for quarters there as a kid.

He stayed in the business through high school and college, washing dishes, bussing, serving, bartending and learning the front, as well as the back-of-the-house operations. “Without really intending to, I learned the business from the ground up,” Mangiamele recalled.

And he learned it well, which formed the foundation for his recent naming as president and CEO of Salsarita’s Fresh Cantina, one of the nation’s fastest-growing, fast-casual Mexican restaurant chains.

Mangiamele has an extensive background in the restaurant, hospitality and franchising industries and is charged with directing Salsarita’s marketing, operations and franchise development efforts and will lead the brand in fueling the company’s aggressive expansion plans.

Founded in 2000 in Charlotte by Bruce Willette, Salsarita’s has 78 restaurants in 18 states and expects to end 2008 with about 100 locations. It expects to grow to 200 restaurants by 2010. In 2007, the chain topped Restaurant Business’ list of The Future 50, which ranks the fastest-growing restaurant chains in America.

At Salsarita’s Fresh Cantina, guests can create a delicious, made-to-order meal from a flavorful Mexican menu that offers burritos, tacos, quesadillas, nachos, enchiladas, pizzas and salads with a wide selection of meats, fresh vegetables and homemade salsas in a lively, family-friendly environment.

“Our mission is to be a legendary restaurant brand known for its people, food and world-class hospitality,” Mangiamele said. “I’ve been involved with restaurants and the service industry for the last 30 years and can truly say that I’ve never been more excited.”

Mangiamele’s experience is diverse, including work in operations, franchise development, broker and distributor networks, while also building and leading teams in start-up, growth and Fortune 500 environments.

His background includes serving as president and CEO of Dalt’s Classic American Grill and Diner, chief development officer of Value Place Hotels and vice president of business development for Carlson Companies, Inc., franchisor of Radisson Hotels, Country Inns and Suites and T.G.I. Friday’s. He also was a franchisee in the Pizzeria Uno system, now known as Uno Restaurant Corp.

Mangiamele most recently spent four years with Austin, Texas-based Sport Clips, Inc., in various senior management capacities, including chief operating officer.

Willette, who previously served as Salsarita’s president, will assume the role of chairman, focusing on the chain’s expansive non-traditional development opportunities, which include strategic alliances with HMS Host and Compass Group North America, which between them operate thousands of facilities at airports, colleges, universities and institutions around the world.
Willette founded Salsarita’s after having built a history of success in franchising. After the success of its first location in Charlotte, he and director of operations, Thang Nguyen, began expanding the concept.

A business associate, cognizant of Mangiamele’s skills and experience, was responsible for introducing him to the Salsarita’s ownership group, which also includes Vas Lahanas and Charles Ratterree. As Salsarita’s closed in on the benchmark of 100 restaurants, Mangiamele’s history of success meshed well with Salsarita’s future ambitions.
“I have to give Bruce a ton of credit,” Mangiamele said. “At this still very early stage of growth, it takes a lot for the guy that gave birth to the concept to say, ‘I need to have somebody else take this to next level.’ I’m looking forward to writing the second chapter of the Salsarita’s saga.”

Mangiamele, who also has an ownership stake in Salsarita’s, is focused on controlled growth. “I really believe that if you can’t live it, you don’t believe it and that, in part, is demonstrated by having skin in the game. I’m not just a hired gun,” he said. “I’m not going to be deal driven as much as I’m going to be strategy-driven, marketing-driven and product-driven so we can deliver at a superior level in every market we enter.” Mangiamele is impressed with the executive team, managers and the franchisees. “I am of the school of thought that believes your front line is your bottom line and the operational execution within the four walls of the restaurant is paramount to delivering the highest degree of hospitality to our guests.”

Salsarita’s had 2007 sales of approximately $50 million and same-store sales growth for the first five months of 2008 is up 7.7 percent over last year—a significant figure given that many in the restaurant industry have experienced flat to negative numbers in the current economy.

“We’re interested in individuals or groups, preferably in food service, who know franchising and already have the infrastructure in place to grow the Salsarita’s brand in markets they already know and understand,” Mangiamele said.

For more information, contact Salsarita’s Inc. at 2908 Oak Lake Boulevard, Suite 205. Charlotte, NC 28208. The phone number is: 704-540-9447.