When Karim El-Gamal MBA’11 and Michael Kasseris MBA’11 arrived at Babson, they bonded over a mutual appreciation for pizza. Typical grad school chit-chat, right? Little did they suspect that a simple conversation about lunch would spawn a food empire.
Today, Rail Trail Flatbread Co. in Hudson attracts wood-fired, sourdough pizza fans from around Massachusetts. Meanwhile, their sibling business, New City Microcreamery, is a foodie favorite, known for scratch-made ice cream in adventurous flavors, freezing with liquid nitrogen for extra denseness.
During an icebreaker session at orientation, El-Gamal mentioned his application essay: an entrepreneurial concept for a delivery truck that would cook pizzas en route for maximum heat. Kasseris perked up. He’d grown up around the business, helping his dad run pizza and sub shops across Massachusetts.
“In class, we had the chance to work closely together; we’d pick each other for groups. Michael would push me in areas where I wasn’t strong, and there were areas where I’d help him. We complement one another.” — Karim El-Gamal MBA’11
Michael Kasseris MBA’11 (left) and Karim El-Gamal MBA’11
Above: Michael Kasseris MBA’11 (left) and Karim El-Gamal MBA’11
The classmates became friends, bonding over accounting projects, entrepreneurship classes, group presentations. Kasseris then asked El-Gamal a pivotal question: “Are you still serious about pizza?” He was. The two decided to forge a business, using Kasseris’s dad as a mentor and Babson as a testing ground to assess their compatibility as business partners. El-Gamal is detail-oriented; Kasseris is a big-picture thinker.
“In class, we had the chance to work closely together; we’d pick each other for groups,” El-Gamal says. “Michael would push me in areas where I wasn’t strong, and there were areas where I’d help him. We complement one another.”
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While course work was helpful, the memories they shared outside class shaped their success. “We were part of a core group in our class who did a lot of social activities,” Kasseris says. “It’s telling that we got into hospitality, because we were such party planners.”
Simple chemistry often gets lost amid business plans and balance sheets, he says. But compatibility is the key ingredient in any successful partnership.
“You can’t figure out which people in your class could be potential partners if you don’t spend enough face time with them,” Kasseris adds. “Get outside of the classroom, outside of your comfort zone, and just be yourselves. Our class did a great deal of that.”
Today, their partnership has grown into a thriving hospitality group that includes Rail Trail Flatbread Co., five branches of New City Microcreamery, and two Hudson bars: Less Than Greater Than Speakeasy and Finnegan’s Pub. Today, the businesses generate close to $20 million in revenue and maintain 300 to 400 employees depending on the season, with ice cream distributed in more than 500 grocery stores.
Says Kasseris: “I always tell people who are interested in getting into business: Yes, you should study. Do the best you can. But the relationships you’re making are equally as important.”
Babson Alumni Are…
The Babson alumni network is the strongest in the nation because of the unique bonds that connect them. In the Spring issue of Babson Magazine, we highlight nine examples that illustrate the varied types of relationships. Click the photos below to read each one.
