Franchisee Spotlight: Robert Esteves and Steve Pearce of Your Pie

Local Richmond brothers-in-laws, Robert Esteves and Steve Pearce are teaming up to bring five Your Pie restaurants to the Richmond area. Having diverse backgrounds and a desire to own their own business, Robert and Steve found franchising to be a great way to combine their strengths as project managers and bring a perfected product to the neighborhood.

This won’t be your typical pizza parlor, they are hoping to regularly team up with local breweries for beer tastings and Pint Nights!

What were you doing before partnering with Your Pie?
Robert- Since graduating from University of Michigan I’ve had a variety of jobs. I was a high school math/science/physics teacher for 10 years. I spent five years with ISO 9000 doing consulting and auditing. I also spent many years as a project manager for the nation’s largest residential energy conservation project in Manhattan and Brooklyn. I really enjoyed being a project manager, which is why I am so interested in owning my own business and franchising was the best way to do that.

Steve- I also graduated from University of Michigan, which is where I met my wife Irene who is Robert’s sister. I recently retired as a defense contractor with the U.S. military. I was a narrator for training modules and worked with other 3D computer based training simulators in the Army.

How did you learn about Your Pie, and what made you ultimately decide to commit?
We were looking for something that already had an established trade and support system. Since we were interested in owning our own business but had difficulty knowing where to start, franchising was a great way to have support and provide a service that was already perfected. Robert’s wife and two kids stumbled upon a Your Pie and were impressed with the service and experience so told us to look into owning a franchise.

After connecting with the corporate team, we were really impressed with how the company was run and their goals. There isn’t a Your Pie in the area so we thought it would be a great opportunity.

What’s next for you and your business? Do you have any development/expansion plans?
We signed a five store deal so we have a lot going on in the future. We have not pinned down any locations but are in the process of doing so right now. Since we have five locations we expect to have different types of locations (i.e. residential area, shopping malls and centers etc.)

Visit the International Franchise Association’s @OurFranchise website for more stories of passionate local franchise owners, employees and their communities.