Look to Ledo's for pizza, pasta and pizazz
Today is Spirit Day at Ledo's for Floyd T. Binns Middle School
By Ray Finefrock
Special to Culpeper Times
Growing up in Northern Virginia, Tony Edwards developed a liking for Maryland-based Ledo’s pizza. Then, as a distributor with Anheuser-Busch he got to know some of the franchise owners.
“I did my research on Ledo’s,” said Edwards, who opened a Culpeper franchise in April of 2008. “One of the things that impressed me was that I never saw one for sale."
“I wanted to get into the restaurant business and this was a good fit. I didn’t want fast food and I didn’t want to run a fine dining restaurant. Ledo’s is something in between.”
Edwards said that in addition to liking the products offered at the restaurant, he enjoys being his own boss and being around people every day.
“I get to interact with folks on a daily basis,” Edwards said. “I like to make sure that people have a good experience when they come here. I like to think that our customer service is a little better than what you might see somewhere else. I’m real big on customer service.”
Like so many other business owners, Edwards said he has been affected by the recession.
“People don’t have the disposable income that they once had,” Edwards said. “Our lunch business is way down. More people are bringing lunch to work instead of going out to eat.”
To counter that, Edwards said he is being “very aggressive” in offering lunch specials such as a sub-sandwich, fries and a drink for $5.99.
“That price represents about a 35 percent discount,” said Edwards. “It’s a good deal and we’ll be doing it for a few months. We will offer it Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.”
Edwards said that while being the owner of a Ledo Pizza store brings benefits, it also has its challenges.
“Everything starts and ends with me,” he said. “My people are only as good as I train them to be.”
The Culpeper store has about 25 employees, Edwards said, and he opened a Ledo’s in Warrenton about two months ago with a cousin as partner.
Ledo’s menu includes a wide variety of pizza and pasta, of which Edwards said the deluxe pizza is his favorite. He said that there are certain products that all Ledo’s carry but “the company can authorize other products and I can add to my menu.”
Ledo’s is a third generation family-owned company based in College Park, Md. It currently has 87 stores.
“I like that it is family-owned,” Edwards said. “They are really good people to work with. And we’re family-owned and operated here, too.”
In addition to sit-down dining,” Ledo’s in Culpeper has a room for parties and does catering. Edwards said he needs at least one-day notice before an event, but would prefer to know as early as possible.
“We cater what we sell,” Edwards said. “We can serve a lot of people inexpensively. We can do large parties for about $5 person.”
Another key aspect of owning Ledo’s for Edwards is the community service aspect of helping to raise funds for organizations.
“I knew I’d need to get involved with the local schools and youth sports programs,” Edwards said. “We advertise here and the group advertises and a portion of the sales goes back to the group. A good part of my advertising budget is spent in giving back to youth activities in the community. That way I know the money is going to the right places.”
Today Ledo’s is sponsoring a Spirit Day for Floyd T. Binns Middle School all day long.
Edwards said that he determines the amount of money to give to the school or group by taking four weeks of sales for the day of the week on which the event is held and finding the average for that day.
“What is above and beyond the average amount I give to the schools,” Edwards said. “But I always estimate the average on the low side so I can give a little more back to the group.
“I enjoy working with the community and giving back to this community. Last year, through youth sports alone, we donated more than $5,000.”
Ledo Pizza Info Box
Ledo Pizza
Owners: Tony and Dana Edwards
Address: 15335 Creativity Drive (Culpeper Colonnade near Quiznos and Tropical Smoothie)
Phone: (540) 825-8880
Hours: Monday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday noon to 9 p.m.
Web site: Ledopizza.com