Vocelli Pizza

Vocelli Pizza is an American pizzeria and pizza-chain brand headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The business began in 1988 in Mt. Lebanon, a Pittsburgh suburb, under the name Pizza Outlet. Founded by the Ablak family, it initially developed as a local shop and then expanded across the Pittsburgh tri-state area during the 1990s. The early concept emphasized affordable pizza and delivery, making the chain particularly familiar to college students, including students at the University of Pittsburgh. Its early advertising used the delivery-oriented slogan “Delivering Great Taste to Your Door,” while a shorter-lived alternative positioned the product around freshness. During the 1990s, Pizza Outlet moved beyond its strongest Pittsburgh-area market and entered selected Southern states. Those markets did not initially perform as well as the company had expected. Rather than abandon the Southern locations, the company used a substantial rebranding program to reposition them. In 2002, 73 Southern stores were renamed Vocelli Pizza and received an Italian-themed restaurant identity, new pizza boxes, and a new marketing campaign. The conversion reportedly cost approximately $1 million. Although the consumer-facing name, décor, packaging, and marketing changed, the underlying pizza product remained substantially the same. The Southern stores reportedly experienced a sharp sales improvement after the rebrand. The success of the Southern conversion led the company to extend the Vocelli Pizza identity to its Pittsburgh-area operations. In 2003, the remaining Pizza Outlet stores were rebranded, making Vocelli Pizza the chain-wide name. This transition is the central strategic turning point in the brand’s history: the company converted a locally oriented, value-focused pizza outlet concept into a more unified Italian-themed regional chain without relying on a fundamental product overhaul. Vocelli’s offering is centered on delivered and carryout pizza, supported by other pizzeria and quick-service items. Its competitive proposition has historically combined convenience, accessible pricing, delivery, and an Italian restaurant theme. The chain has operated primarily in the United States, with locations reported in Alabama, Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia. It reached approximately 100 locations in 2012, and it was described in industry coverage as one of the faster-growing pizzeria chains in the country. The brand also achieved visibility through local and national-style promotional activity. An early commercial featured professional wrestler Kurt Angle alongside animated pizza-topping mascots. The advertisement later received additional pop-culture attention when The Rock referenced it during an episode of WWE Raw is War in Angle’s hometown. Vocelli’s earlier Pizza Outlet identity was also associated with college-oriented affordability and delivery marketing. Pizza Today ranked Vocelli Pizza among its Top 100 pizza franchises for 2007, using the chain’s reported 2006 sales of $55 million as part of the ranking basis. That figure is historical rather than a current financial disclosure. Publicly available reference material provides limited information about the company’s present ownership, corporate structure, leadership, exact store count, and current financial performance; those fields are therefore left unspecified.

Vocelli Pizza traces its origins to 1988, when the Ablak family established a pizzeria in Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh. The original business operated as Pizza Outlet. It grew from a local shop into a regional chain during the 1990s, expanding through the Pittsburgh tri-state area. Its early identity was practical and value-oriented: the company promoted delivery, used the slogan “Delivering Great Taste to Your Door,” and developed a reputation as an affordable option for students, particularly those living in University of Pittsburgh residence halls. The chain also experimented briefly with a freshness-focused slogan before returning to its established delivery message. Pizza Outlet’s growth eventually took it into selected Southern markets. These new territories initially underperformed relative to the company’s established Pittsburgh business. In response, management chose to test a brand transformation rather than retreat from the markets. In 2002, 73 Southern stores were converted from Pizza Outlet to Vocelli Pizza. The new name introduced an Italian restaurant theme that had not previously been consistent across the Pizza Outlet system. The rebranding included redesigned store presentation, new pizza boxes, and a coordinated marketing program, with the total conversion cost reported at approximately $1 million. The rebrand changed the presentation of the business more than its core product. The pizza itself remained essentially the same, but the new identity gave the Southern locations a more coherent and distinctive proposition. According to the available account, sales at the converted stores rose dramatically after the change. This result persuaded the company to abandon plans to maintain Pizza Outlet as the name for its Pittsburgh locations. In 2003, the remaining Pizza Outlet stores were also converted to Vocelli Pizza, completing the chain-wide transition. The change from Pizza Outlet to Vocelli Pizza was therefore both a naming decision and a strategic repositioning. Pizza Outlet communicated a straightforward, possibly value-led outlet concept, while Vocelli Pizza supplied a more Italianate identity that could be applied consistently across different markets. The episode illustrates how a restaurant chain can use naming, packaging, décor, and marketing to improve market reception without making a major change to the food itself. Vocelli continued expanding as a regional pizza chain. By 2012, reference material stated that it operated approximately 100 locations. Its reported footprint included Alabama, Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia. The brand’s geographic pattern remained concentrated in the United States, with its historical base in Pennsylvania and a presence in nearby Mid-Atlantic, Appalachian, Midwest, and Southern markets. Marketing has been another notable part of the brand’s history. During the Pizza Outlet period, a commercial featured professional wrestler Kurt Angle and animated pizza-topping characters wrestling on top of a pizza he had ordered. The spot later became the subject of a humorous reference by The Rock on WWE Raw is War after Angle had become established in WWE. This promotion connected the local chain to recognizable sports-entertainment personalities, although the available material does not establish the size or duration of the campaign. Vocelli Pizza was recognized by Pizza Today in its 2007 Top 100 pizza franchise ranking. The ranking used reported 2006 sales of $55 million as a basis. This is the principal publicly cited financial figure in the available reference material and should be understood as a historical industry-ranking datapoint, not a current company valuation or revenue disclosure. Public sources provide little verified information about current executives, ownership, corporate parentage, current store count, or present-day financial results. Accordingly, the brand’s historical development and rebranding are better documented than its contemporary corporate structure.

• 2012

  Reported network of approximately 100 locations

  [1]Vocelli Pizzaen.wikipedia.org

  Available reference material stated that Vocelli Pizza operated about 100 locations.

• 2007

  Included in Pizza Today's Top 100 pizza franchises

  [1]Vocelli Pizzaen.wikipedia.org

  Pizza Today ranked Vocelli Pizza among its Top 100 pizza franchises for 2007, drawing on reported 2006 sales.

• 2003

  System-wide transition to the Vocelli name

  [1]Vocelli Pizzaen.wikipedia.org

  After the Southern rebranding showed strong results, the remaining Pizza Outlet stores, including those in the Pittsburgh area, adopted the Vocelli Pizza name.

• 2002

  Southern locations rebranded as Vocelli Pizza

  [1]Vocelli Pizzaen.wikipedia.org

  Seventy-three Southern stores changed from Pizza Outlet to Vocelli Pizza as part of an Italian-themed rebrand involving new packaging and marketing.

• 1990

  Expansion across the Pittsburgh tri-state area

  [1]Vocelli Pizzaen.wikipedia.org

  During the 1990s, the local pizzeria expanded into a broader regional chain serving the Pittsburgh tri-state area.

• 1988

  Pizza Outlet founded near Pittsburgh

  [1]Vocelli Pizzaen.wikipedia.org

  The Ablak family founded the business in Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh, under the Pizza Outlet name.

A regional American pizza chain positioned around convenient delivery and carryout, accessible pricing, an Italian-themed restaurant identity, and familiar pizzeria food.

• Pizza · 1988

  Vocelli Pizza

  The brand’s core offering is pizza sold through delivery and carryout channels. The product platform originated with the Pizza Outlet business and remained substantially unchanged during the 2002–2003 name conversion. Vocelli’s consumer proposition centers on familiar pizzeria food, convenience, and an accessible price point rather than a documented premium or highly specialized culinary position.

• Foodservice · 1988

  Pizza delivery and carryout

  Delivery was a defining part of the original Pizza Outlet identity and remained central to the Vocelli Pizza concept. The chain historically marketed the ability to bring pizza to customers’ homes and served customers through takeout and delivery-oriented restaurant locations. Public reference material does not provide a complete current menu or confirm the availability of every channel at every location.

• 1990Delivering Great Taste to Your Door

  United States · Pittsburgh tri-state area

  The Pizza Outlet business used a delivery-centered slogan emphasizing convenience and home service. The message reflected the chain’s positioning as an affordable, accessible local pizzeria.

  Outcome. The slogan was later retained after the company briefly tested an alternative freshness-focused message.

  Source
• 1990Kurt Angle pizza commercial

  United States

  A Pizza Outlet commercial featured wrestler Kurt Angle ordering a pizza while animated topping mascots wrestled on top of it. The advertisement used sports-entertainment humor to give the local chain a distinctive promotional identity.

  Outcome. The commercial later received an additional pop-culture reference when The Rock joked about it on WWE Raw is War in Angle’s hometown.

  Source

• 2003

  Complete the conversion from Pizza Outlet to Vocelli PizzaStrategy

  Background

  The Southern name change reportedly improved sales, while the company’s original Pittsburgh-area stores still operated under the Pizza Outlet identity.

  Action taken

  The remaining Pizza Outlet locations were rebranded as Vocelli Pizza, making the new name the chain-wide identity.

  Aftermath

  The business continued operating as a unified Vocelli Pizza chain and expanded its regional footprint.

  Source

• 2002

  Rebrand 73 Southern Pizza Outlet stores as Vocelli PizzaStrategy

  Background

  The chain had expanded into selected Southern markets, but those locations initially performed less successfully than its established Pittsburgh-area stores.

  Action taken

  The company changed the name of 73 Southern locations to Vocelli Pizza and introduced an Italian-themed identity, new packaging, and a new marketing campaign.

  Aftermath

  The available account says sales at the Southern stores increased sharply after the rebrand, encouraging the company to apply the name to the rest of the chain.

  Reported rebranding cost. $1 million (2002)

  Source

1. 1Vocelli Pizzaen.wikipedia.org