Curb Appeal

Bruce Reed's total immersion into his first family business was about as subtle as plunging an arm into a deep fat fryer. "I took over Jerry's 32 years ago at 17," said Mr. Reed, noting the business baptism by fire came after he was kicked out of high school in the 11th grade for what he described as being a class clown and goofing off. Instead of being a high school student, Mr. Reed found himself behind the counter of his parent's Jerry's Curb Service, a carhop restaurant that opened shortly after World War II, survived a boom in fast food restaurants, and would live on into a new millennium. "My Dad and I didn't see eye to eye," acknowledged Mr. Reed, explaining how he came to operate the restaurant. His father stepped aside when his more easygoing approach to business didn't jibe with his son's more youthful, hard-charging ways. Today, Jerry Reed and his wife, Donna -- who both died within six months of one another four years ago -- are still well remembered for helping to make Jerry's Curb Service into a Beaver County institution. Meanwhile, Mr. Reed and his colleague, Dave Guido, are taking Jerry's Curb Service from its early Main Street origins onto a well-worn franchising trail. After his early start with Jerry's, Mr. Reed and Mr. Guido are both now far better known for starting the Bruster's Real Ice Cream Inc. chain. Mr. Reed started Bruster's with one store next door to Jerry's in Bridgewater in 1989, eventually opening four of his own in the region. Then Mr. Reed, with the help of Mr. Guido, began franchising, growing Bruster's to more than 190 locations throughout much of the eastern United States in the past 12 years. "For years, Bruce and I talked about the Jerry's concept," said Mr. Guido. "We kept looking at Jerry's as a diamond in the rough." Jerry's Curb Service is a concept that Mr. Reed would've never considered for franchising with the original restaurant, given the struggles it had over the years. "It was pretty complex, and Bruster's was simple," said Mr. Reed.

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