Jet’s Pizza: Serving Pizza to Berkley for 27 Years
By Ingrid Sjostrand
Photos © 2021 Bill Gemmell
THERE ARE MORE THAN 78,000 PIZZA RESTAURANTS IN THE U.S., and in 2019 Michigan had the eighth most in the country with 2,718 pizzerias. With those numbers, it should come as no surprise that on any night of the week an average of one-in-eight Americans is eating pizza.*
Roy Sera, and his wife Christine, wanted to help feed that pizza craving in the Berkley community, so they opened their Jet’s franchise location in 1994 at 2823 Coolidge Hwy. The Jet’s Pizza brand alone has over 400 locations throughout the U.S., but Sera likes to think his employees, their dedication, and the residents of Berkley they serve make his restaurant stand out from the rest.
“I chose the location in Berkley because my brother-in-law had a location in Madison Heights and Berkley happened to be just outside of his territory,” Sera said. “I am so glad I went west of his store and settled in Berkley. It has been a wonderful experience because of the people, the residents.”
It probably comes as no surprise that the most popular item on the menu is the classic large, square, cheese-and-pepperoni. But even as a franchise, Sera says there are menu items that are lesser known.
“We have two kinds of pepperoni: the normal pepperoni and an old-fashioned pepperoni that cups up,” he said. “A lot of people don’t know we have them, but once they do they normally order them again.”
Sera credits much of the past 27 years of successful business to his employees. Two of his delivery drivers, Kyle Kleckner and Lester Jones, have been working at his Jet’s basically since the beginning, employees for over 25 years.
“They both are staples of our fast delivery service,” he said. “My general manager, Matt MacDonald, has been with me for over 19 years and has been incredible, especially during the pandemic. All of his brothers and his sister have each worked here at one time or another, too.”
SERA’S OWN FAMILY HAVE ALSO BEEN AN ASSET TO THE BERKLEY JET’S SUCCESS; having helped keep the store staffed when the COVID-19 pandemic was at its height.
“On many occasions, I had Christine, my son Ryan and my daughter Alexandria all working on the same shifts to get through the dinner rushes,” he said. “Having my family all working together during the pandemic was a great feeling.”
Despite the positive family-bonding opportunities, much like other businesses, the past two years haven’t always been easy for Sera and Jet’s Pizza.
“The pandemic has really been hard on our work staff. Working with masks and gloves next to a 500-degree oven was challenging,” Sera said. “We have been fortunate with sales but have struggled to have a workforce to support the sales.”
Sera also owns the Southfield Jet’s location at 30120 Southfield Rd., just north of 12 Mile Rd. For anyone who loves pizza and wants to work in a supportive, family-oriented environment, Sera encourages them to join his team.
“We are hiring! Full time, part-time, inside or delivery,” he said. “Apply within!”
Roy Sera; roysera@gmail.com
2823 Coolidge Hwy, Berkley, MI 48072
jetspizza.com
(248) 547-9880
*Pizza statistics from AltoHartley.com & Statista.com
