Smart50 rank: 16 Revenue: $18.14 million
Growth: 75.16%
Founders: Costa Anastasiadis, 30; Michael Logos, 35
Based: Victoria
Employees: 236
Industry: Retail trade
Website: www.crust.com.au
In 2001, Costa Anastasiadis (pictured) and Michael Logos saw that the Australian pizza industry was made up of big chains that focused on high volume and fast delivery at the expense of product quality; or independents that offered high quality products, but with limited or no delivery service.
Crust was created to combine the best of both worlds; a higher quality, healthier pizza delivered quickly and efficiently. Anastasiadis was only 22 when he started the business as a stand-alone store, so he had to work hard to earn respect in the industry and the respect of suppliers, he says. His strategy was to make sure he paid all his suppliers on time, week-in week-out, to build his professional reputation. "Being a good payer gets you a long way," he says.
The pair took the business to the next level by developing a costly franchise system. "We became a franchise in July 2007 and now have 18 stores operating in NSW, Victoria and Queensland," he says. Revenue is $18.1 million, up from $9.8 million in 2006-07.
To raise the funds required to develop the franchise, the pair put their own stores on the line as collateral, risking everything. Now the pair regret not developing the franchising model earlier. "It's easy to say with hindsight, but we should have had confidence in our vision earlier," he says.
The future of Crust lies in expansion to further territories in Australia and overseas. By the end of 2008, Crust aims to have 40 established stores on the eastern seaboard, and is negotiating operations in South Australia and Western Australia to take Crust to 50 stores by the end of 2009. Development of sub-brands, additional revenue streams and international expansion are longer term goals, with growth forecast at over 100% by 2012.
