Flying Pie will close for a week as the whole operations heads to Costa Rica

Katy Moeller - kmoeller@idahostatesman.com

Published: 01/09/09


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Imagine an employer who would shut down his business so his employees could spend a week relaxing on the beach in sunny Costa Rica.

That’s what Howard Olivier, owner of Flying Pie Pizzaria in Boise, is doing. And that means the pies won’t be flying at the two local pizzerias for a week, starting Tuesday. The restaurants will re-open Tuesday, Jan. 20.

The trip has been 13 years in the making. About 10 percent of workers’ tips have been set aside for what was originally conceived as an excursion to Hawaii.

Some regular Pie customers who divide their time between Boise and Costa Rica convinced the staff that the Central American country was a better destination.

“We decided we didn’t want to spend our entire time in a hotel where it’s $30 a sandwich and where it’s hot and humid,” said Lesley Juel, marketing director for Flying Pie.

There are 62 people going on the trip, including pizzeria staff, some family and one former employee.

The total cost of the trip will be $116,000, all of which is covered by the tip money, Juel said.

Olivier is paying for a week's salary for the employees, some of whom could not afford to take the week off without pay.

Participants will get the opportunity to visit a volcano, ride a zipline through the rainforest canopy or just spend the week laying on the beach near their hotel at Ocotal Beach Resort.

Juel said the timing for the trip is perfect because January is a slow month for business, and staff members who are college students will be back for the start of classes at Boise State University.

“Our guess is that we’ll be able to make it up in later in the quarter,” Juel said.

The group flies out at 7 a.m. Tuesday.

Katy Moeller: 377-6413

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