Franchisee Spotlight: David Glista of Famous Toastery

David Glista is bringing a growing ‘better breakfast’ concept Famous Toastery to the West, opening the first Colorado location in Fort Collins. The former aerospace engineer is bringing the brand, which hails from his native East Coast, to his adopted community.

David and his wife Lisa Boesch fell in love with the Fort Collins lifestyle during frequent visits to see their daughter, who attends Colorado State University there. Last summer, they decided to make the move to Colorado, trading their corporate careers for business ownership with Famous Toastery.

The two will open the state’s first location at the new Harmony Commons  retail center late summer 2017 and have signed a multi-unit deal to continue to expand the brand along the northern Front Range .

What were you doing before partnering with Famous Toastery?
I am originally from Central New York and went to school at the University of Buffalo where I earned a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering and then a master’s degree in mechanical engineering. For the last few decades I’ve worked for various aerospace engineering and manufacturing companies, including GE, in Boston, Cincinnati and New Hampshire, working my way up from engineer to director of program management. My wife is a pharmacist and has worked in retail pharmacy for many years who currently works as a pharmacy manager at Walmart.

We have two adult children, a son and a daughter. We downsized since we’re empty nesters now and after twenty years in New England we turned our focus to where we’d like to spend the next twenty years.

Our daughter is a junior at Colorado State University in Fort Collins and as we traveled back and forth these past few years to visit her, we fell in love with the community because it’s bike-friendly, has a growing craft beer scene and is an amazing place to live.

Last summer, Lisa and I left our jobs and moved out to Fort Collins.

How did you learn about Famous Toastery, and what made you ultimately decide to commit?
Last summer when we were moving out here we took some extra time and visited friends and family along the East Coast. We were in North Carolina waiting to meet up with friends and started talking to a couple sitting next to us at a restaurant.

That couple was Bill Bingham and his wife Patty, who are Famous Toastery franchisees. They were so excited about the brand and the lifestyle the business provides.

We weren’t planning on becoming restauranteurs, but with my wife’s retail experience, and my food service and waiter experience in high school and college, we are excited for the challenge.

A few weeks later we flew back east to visit with franchisees and the corporate team in North Carolina. We loved the brand’s fresh, healthy food, great menu and saw a real demand for such a breakfast spot in Fort Collins.

What’s next for you and your business? Do you have any development/expansion plans?
We’ve signed a multi-unit deal with Famous Toastery and are looking at sites from Fort Collins to Denver.

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