Close to Homemade

Grandma's on 9NEWS with Greg Moss

Grandma's earns recognition from AEDA

By Neda Raouf
Arvada Press

Business News
November 03, 2005

In a well-lit, modern kitchen, Moni Piz-Wilson checks out a plate of noodles she prepared.

"Before I send it out to anybody, I want to see how it looks ... and how it tastes," said Piz-Wilson, who has been busy doing some test cooking for her company's primary product — noodles.

Piz-Wilson is the president of the 44-year-old company Grandma's Frozen Pasta, a name that may invoke images of an older woman with graying hair.

Piz-Wilson is anything but.

Youthful, vibrant and energetic, Piz-Wilson, along with her husband and two teenage children, bought the company in 2002. She had been an owner in past years.

Since taking over, she and the company built a new manufacturing facility and moved from the Denver location to Arvada. Last month, she and the company received recognition from the city for the local investment.

'We make quite a few noodles'

The Arvada Economic Development Association recognized the business at its 11th Annual Business Appreciation Awards as one of the businesses of the year for business expansion, purchase and capital investment.

The 19,000-square-foot building, located at 4752 W. 60th Avenue in Suite A, was built two and half years ago and now houses the production area, offices and the test kitchen, where Piz-Wilson tries out recipes.

Grandma's was formerly located at Interstate 70 and Colorado Boulevard in Denver, but the space was not big enough for the growing company.

So two and a half years ago, the company invested in constructing a new building in Arvada and moved over.

The building was built to be light and airy, with skylights and windows in the production area, Piz-Wilson said.

There are a total of eight people in the company, with five usually in the plant area.

"But as you can see, we make quite a few noodles," she said.

The hum of machinery fills the plant, where fresh frozen eggs and flour are mixed into a large machine, which presses it out a long, wide roll of dough "so it's one big fat noodle," she said.

Rollers then cut the large noodle into thin, cream-colored strips that immediately roll through a freeze tunnel turned down to 45 degrees

That means the noodles are fresh frozen.

"Unless you make it at home, you're not gonna get a fresher product," she said. "That's as close to homemade as you can get."

Noodles galore

The 44-year-old company started in Denver by Robert Piz, a native of Italy and Piz-Wilson's former father-in-law.

She was part owner of the business in 1984. She was bought out but returned to purchase it in 2001. She now owns it with husband Robert Wilson and children Porsche Piz, 18, and Dex Piz, 14.

Grandma's is distributed and sold across the West in 19 states. It is carried in three major supermarkets, Wal-Mart and smaller stores.

And the business' hometown of Denver is still their biggest market.

Through the years, sales have been steady.

"We sell approximately 73,000 cases (12 per case) of noodles a year," she said.

A nearby freezer stretches 3,500 square feet and holds the packaged noodles.

The peak time for business is September through April or May. Things slow down during the summer, and that's when production stops temporarily, she said.

Then things pick up in the fall, and business has been more than just steady.

"It's like we can't quite keep up with demand," she said.