Donatos franchise partner Bill Aseere, along with business partners Mike Ash and Mark Halpin with Space Cowboys Restaurant Group, have taken ownership of 15 Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky-area Donatos locations. This move makes Aseere and Space Cowboys the second-largest franchise partner group in the Donatos system with 17 total locations, according to a press release.
Bill Aseere, provided |
“I have always wanted to be a business owner,” Aseere, who got his start in the pizza business at the age of 14 washing dishes at a local restaurant, said in the press release. “My grandpa, Tom Aseere, took me under his wing at a young age and taught me about what it takes to be an entrepreneur. He started two different pool companies in the Cincinnati market that are still successful to this day.”
Aseere quickly moved up through the ranks from being a dishwasher to being a district manager of three locations for LaRosa’s Pizza, where he served in a leadership role for 17 years. However, even while he was working for LaRosa’s, he admits that there was something special about Donatos and their Edge to Edge thin crust pizza loaded with premium toppings.
“My wife and I used to sneak out on Wednesday afternoons for our lunch date while the kids were in school,” Aseere said in the press release. “I was still working at LaRosa’s, but we would go to a Donatos restaurant outside of my store district to not be seen ‘cheating’ on my job when we ordered the best pizza out there with our favorite being the Chicken Mariachi pizza.”
Aseere became a Donatos franchisee in 2018.
“Our main focus will be to continue investing in our staff and ensuring we have the right people in the right places to offer a work environment people want to work at,” Aseere said in the press release “We also want to be even more visible in the community as we find creative and fun ways to be engaged with the communities we live in and care for. I’ve always wanted to make a difference with my business opportunity, so being able to give back is something that fulfills my investment in the brand.”
Donatos operates 455 locations in 27 states. With 455 locations in 27 states, Donatos and its franchise partners operate 173 traditional restaurants in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, South Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Florida. Donatos’ products are also served in 282 non-traditional locations.
