Pizza Perfekt

Wednesday 09 January 2019

Have you heard the one about the Scotsman who worked in an Irish bar in Germany, did a stint in Soho vodka bars, went to Italy (via a short stint in finance) to learn about dough, and now runs arguably the funkiest pizza parlour in town?

You certainly couldn’t accuse Nick Perchard-Rees of standing still, but, thankfully for the Island’s pizza lovers, that voyage – coupled with the good fortune of meeting a Jersey girl – has landed him here and culminated in the Pizza Projekt.

His career has come full circle back to hospitality, with a team marrying the best of basic Italian flavours with something a bit more eclectic and attention-grabbing.

Express went to meet him, and find out why he believes now is the right time to invest in St. Helier…

It is difficult to see how the timing of the Pizza Projekt in Market Street could be any better. It is one of a number of new – and mainly foodie – businesses which have opened in the surrounding area and there is definitely a new, fresh ‘eco’ and very tasty vibe running from Mini Mall down to the Sinful Vegan, and then nipping across the precinct to Relish and down to the Central Market gates.

Pictured: Pizza Projekt is located in the heart of St. Helier on Market Street.

As gloomy as the outlook has seemed in St. Helier in recent years, it is fair to say that this corner of town is on a different trajectory, as a result of good ideas, a dollop of determination and a few spoonfuls of investment.

The Pizza Projekt is the fruition of a nugget of an idea which began with wood-fired pizzas cooked for family and friends, graduated to a cheap pizza oven from Amazon, and escalated into the movable feast that is event catering.

“Over that time I was honing the dough, essentially, and was coming to understand that it is a living thing and that there are so many little factors that go into getting it right,” said Nick.

Pictured: More than just a pizza parlour, retro games are also on offer at the quirky eaterie.

And then came the next step in the pizza journey – an en famille trip to Italy. “My wife, Lauren, had always wanted to go to Italy and I had always been a bit resistant; but when we did decide to go she was great and actually she planned it all. We flew into Genoa and then travelled through five different provinces. We knew we would fly out of Naples but, apart from that, we would just see where we went.”

Unsurprisingly, they ate a lot of pizza. “Yes, we did eat pizza for 70 to 80% of the time but there were a couple of real take-aways for me from the trip. Do what you do well was one and also the simplicity of things and the freshness. People know when you are not making things for yourself.

“The sense of family was the other thing. Everywhere that we went our son was just welcomed. There is a real family ethos and no cut-off time for children. The assumption is that they can always be with you."

Pictured: Nick prepping a pizza.

He continued: “I have to be honest and say that not all the pizzas were good; but some were amazing and because I knew something about it, I was confident in speaking to people and we got invited into the kitchens. I learned that it is about the processes that you use."

These processes have been central to the success, first of the event catering side of the business and then of the Market Street café. And, as relaxed as the atmosphere might be, the fact is that it has been produced with effort, attention to detail and a desire to ground the business in skilled processes and good flavours.

While this extends beyond the food to the ethos of the business, the best example of the standard that the business is trying to set is represented, says Nick, by their most basic pizza.

Pictured: Each pizza is made the traditional way.

“It’s a bit of a pizza education! So if anyone comes in for the first time and doesn’t know what to have, I always say they should try a Margarita.” It might be the least showy of the pizzas on offer but that means there is nowhere to hide flavour-wise. It has to be good and it has to be fresh.

The Pizza Project café was the next step on from the alive and thriving outside event catering part of the business, Artisan Anywhere.  The opportunity to branch into something static came up at the end of 2017 with a ‘pop-up’ in the former market tea room. And since then the business grown very rapidly.

“We had three-and-a-half weeks as a pop-up and the one question people kept asking was ‘are you going to do this going forwards’.” And the answer? “Well it was just too much fun not to do it!”

Pictured: An outdoor sign entices passionate pizza eaters inside.

In those three-and-a-half weeks the project covered itself financially and so, after much discussion, a lot of work and time and “a very understanding wife” the decision was made to give it a go and the company held its first Board meeting in January. Once they had the lease and were properly installed, they made other investments to make sure the property and, particularly the kitchen, were up to the standard they needed to make it work over the longer term. 

Nick’s business partner (and friend) is fellow entrepreneur Tim Evans. It is a good partnership which brings together their business talents. “We do have a cross-over in ideas; but we also have different traits that we bring to this. I just need to call Tim and he will be there – he is my emergency ‘go to guy’.” It is a close-knit team, which also includes Lauren, and together the team have created a business model which taps into current culture on a number of fronts – which, in many ways, is a modern take on going ‘back to basics.’

That is, back to using fresh ingredients, back to sustainability and reduced packaging and waste and back to the 80s with a Pac-Man inspired logo. Reuse runs through the business, from the décor and furnishings to the choices made about napkins, straws and plates.

Pictured: The mouth-watering final product.

These are all important business decisions but they also reflect back the mood of a population that is aspiring to live and eat in a better, healthier way which has less impact on the environment. “We try and make little differences and speak to our suppliers about it all the time so that we can reduce our impact. We serve the pizzas on wooden boards and our homemade dips are in jars recycled from Ransoms.”

Despite the hard work and the hours, the vibe of the business and consequently the café, is that it is effortlessly light-hearted and fun, and this translates across to the company’s digital promotion and social media. There is nothing studied or self-conscious about it – which is how social media works best, and this is because they are confident enough to use the platforms instinctively.

Nick is also able to draw on the marketing experience that he has gathered in previous roles to spot the methods that are going to work best for his audience at any given time and the result is that they have built a solid and growing following of pizza-passionate patrons.

Pictured: The man behind the pizza magic, Nick Perchard-Rees.

“Social media is not a ‘one size fits all’ product and we don’t really have a set demographic. We are pretty savvy as consumers and I was quite clear on how I wanted to drive the business. The social media, particularly Instagram, is integral to the business. We try and keep it current and real and to remember that it is a bit of fun!”

Good timing, solid instincts and tapping into the zeitgeist have certainly all played their part in the success of the Pizza Projekt so far. But what is even more evident is the passion and authenticity with which the business is run. The reason that it works is that Nick believes in what he is doing; he loves doing it.

This feature appeared in Connect, which you can read by clicking here.