Fall 2012 Issue - Archmere Academy

Young Alumnus SpotlightQ&A with Entrepreneur Jason Nista ‘04Jason Nista ’04 celebrated the two-year anniversary of his self-serve frozen yogurt shop, The Fuzzy Peach, located inWilmington, North Carolina, this past July. Since opening that first store, he and his partners have opened four additionallocations, have created a strong brand (and a delicious product) and currently have four more stores under construction andfive under contract. So where did “The Fuzzy Peach” come from? Jason shared with us the story of his sweet success.Q: After graduating from Archmere in 2004, you wenton to UNC Wilmington where you met your now businesspartners, Rocco Quaranto and Wells Struble, correct?A: Yes, I met Rocco Quaranto and Wells at UNCW where wewere all members of the track team freshmen year. Theywere both business majors as well.Q: Were you always interested in entrepreneurship?A: Well, I started as a pre-dental major but realized quicklythat I hated most of the subjects you needed to excel into continue on that path. I was taking a required businesscourse at the time and really enjoyed it and did well in it,so I decided to switch my major to accounting and finance.I was a member of the entrepreneur club and the idea ofowning my own business was always appealing.Q: What led you to open “The Fuzzy Peach”?A: After graduation, I took a job at Citigroup in Delaware,and was doing very well, but wasn’t happy in the corporatesetting, and my friends weren’t happy in their jobs, either.I started researching different industries and learned aboutthis up-and-coming frozen yogurt store called PinkBerry inCalifornia, and was interested to see what it was all about.I could see that it was an expanding industry. I quit myjob and moved to California for two months to learn moreabout the business, before moving to North Carolina towork on building our model.Q: When did your first store open?A: “The Fuzzy Peach” opened on July 15, 2010. We wereactually one of the first self-serve yogurt shops on the eastcoast, and its popularity grew quickly.Q: Were you surprised by the success of the store,and were you looking to expand from the start?A: We weren’t surprised, actually. We knew that we werehitting the industry at a good time and our plan was alwaysto expand.Q: Where did the name, “The Fuzzy Peach” come from?A: My business partners and I were throwing aroundnames, combining nouns and adjectives, fruits and colorsand tastes for days, and finally the time came wherewe had to put the businesses’ name on the lease andpaperwork, and it just came together. It sounded catchyand memorable to us, and luckily we’ve been able to brandit pretty well with our logo and our promotional materials.Q: What’s next for “The Fuzzy Peach?”A: Our goal is to have 100 stores by 2014 and to continue tofranchise (“The Fuzzy Peach” team has sold 9 units to date.)Q: How has your Archmere education impacted you?A: I loved my experience at Archmere; I have returned tocampus almost every year since graduation to visit withfriends at Homecoming. I wasn’t always the best studentin the classroom, but the teachers, and Father Collinsespecially, were always encouraging me to do better and Iwas challenged by both the faculty and by my peers.Q: Any advice for the budding entrepreneurs atArchmere? A: Read! The way I made it was as simpleas reading books. Being self-motivated to learn aboutbusiness practices and picking up anything I could to learnon my own was even more beneficial than some of mycollege classes.27