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Brianna Pirro Interview
(Pirro’s Sauce)
It all started in her family’s restaurant, pasta sauce that brought a smile to the faces of everyone who tasted it.
And today that pasta sauce is available in almost 2000 stores in 44 states.
The sauce we are talking about is Pirro’s.
Brianna Pirro spoke with us about Pirro’s sauce.
Q – Brianna, I see your sauce made its way onto the shelves at Price Chopper in Syracuse, New York. Now, how is it determined what stores you’ll sell your pasta sauce in? How do you know what store is a good fit for Pirro’s?
A - Well, I guess there’s two answers for that. One it’s kind of trial by air especially in the beginning. I’m so new to this business I’m just trying to figure out where our price point is for the premium product and what sells at that store, especially in New York where Price Chopper is. It’s going to be pasta sauce. Everybody loves pasta sauce over there. Just trying to figure out the right fit for a premium product that’s going to be new to the shelves. It takes time to get everybody to try it and the trial and building a customer base. So, I was really grateful to get into Price Chopper. It’s been great so far. It takes time. Just trying to figure out where you fit, where you fit on the shelf with all the other sauces. So, it’s been fun. (Laughs).
Q - Now, your father had the restaurant Pirro’s , but, was that his idea to bottle the sauce or was it yours?
A - It was the customers (idea). We had customers that would buy pints and quarts of our sauce at the restaurant. They would come in and pick it up for holidays. Pick up massive amounts of sauce to make lasagna at home. So, it was definitely a customer-based decision and we just figured out how to do it. We went forward with that.
Q - Did he live long enough to see his sauce on the grocery shelves?
A - Yes. He was here for a lot of it. He didn’t see getting in on the East Coast. He didn’t see how big we are now which I wish he could have, but I think he’s proud of me. He did get to see us go into the Midwest region of Whole Foods which was very exciting. But, he battled cancer for about five years. So, it was a long time fighting for him. We were more focused on getting him better than building a business. We were 100% trying to get him to his appointments, try different medications, try different things to make him better. But, he saw a little bit.
Q - Do you still have the restaurant?
A - No. We closed that 2011, 2012 I think 2012, the end of 2012. Right after we started Pirro’s started here really.
Q - Where do you make the sauce if not in the restaurant? A commercial kitchen?
A - Yes. A manufacturing facility, 10 minutes away from where our restaurant used to be actually. So, we just transitioned to a larger facility. We actually always made it there. We never made it at the restaurant. We didn’t have the proper equipment to make the large enough batches we wanted to make at the restaurant.
Q - Are you personally making the sauce or is someone else under your supervision?
A - Someone else’s making it under my supervision.
Q - Running a restaurant is one thing. Marketing pasta sauce is another. Where did you learn your marketing skills?
A - Just by experience and talking to other people in the industry not necessarily the pasta sauce industry. I’ve developed a lot of great relationships within this industry. People have either showed me what they did or I just made a ton of mistakes and figured out what not to do. So, it’s been a process I didn’t have any formal education with a business degree. I just kind of figured it out.
Q - You doubled your sales two years in a row and you expected to do the same in 2019. Did you achieve that goal?
A - Yes, we did. It was very awesome. Three years in a row going for a fourth year in a row.
Q - Here’s where I think is the uphill battle for Pirro’s sauce-the price. It’s selling for $8.49 a jar at Price Chopper. Who determines what you’re going to charge?
A - So, that’s going to be determined by the retailer. Different retailers have different price links they need to hit. For Pirro’s were going to be on the premium side which is next to Dave’s Gourmet or Rao’s or Michael’s of Brooklyn. All those sauces are going to be on the premium set. They’re very similar price links to us. Our quality of product is very high. So, that comes with a high price link. I wish it could always be at $7.99. That’s my ideal retail price. But, I can’t always get that with my freight costs going to New York or other areas going in the United States.
Q - How do you compete when the very store you’re in, markets their own sauce, puts it on the shelf next to Pirro’s and undercuts you in price? How do you compete with that?
A - I wouldn’t say the store is undercutting us. I’m just grateful to be in their store. There’s going to be a different customer base who will buy a $.99 jar versus an $8.99 jar. I’m one that picks up everything I eat and drink and look at what the ingredients are. If you’re someone who is health conscious or want to know everything you’re putting in your body you’re going to look for something that has wholesome ingredients. Sadly, those are more expensive than products that are going to be $.99. So, I think it just depends on the customer. You have every customer possible that walks into a grocery store. Everybody needs to eat, right? So, I think it’s smart that the store has that price range. But, for us, I wish that we could make it at that cost but we can’t because of the ingredients we put into it. So, it just depends on the customer. If they can purchase that if they can then hopefully they enjoy it and they continue to purchase Pirros . If they can then a $.99 jar of pasta sauce is still available.
Q - Have you heard from any celebrity that have bought your sauce?
A - Not that I have heard from. I really haven’t done a lot of PR or celebrity outreach to see. We just really have to be focusing on just trying to get our brand out there and grow a little bit like that.
Q - How much growth is there in the pasta sauce marketplace?
A - It is a growing market. So, the pasta market overall is not a huge growth but it is projected to be a 3% growth in 2020, or 2023 which is still a great percentage for growth. It’s better to have a little bit of growth then decline. So, yes I definitely see some growth and ability to take a little bit more out of the category and grow Pirro’s overall.
Q - How far and wide would you like to take Pirro’s?
A - I want to be known as a household name. I would love for people to have Pirro’s sauce in their home and be able to create memories and have amazing food from Pirro’s . That’s our number one goal. I would love to be international one day, but first I would love to develop the US. And really saturate the market in the US and develop other products.
Official website: pirrossauce.com
© Gary James All Rights Reserved
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