As the dough rises

E.L. Fox Jr. runs a successful high-tech manufacturing firm in Fort Myers called Fox Electronics.

So what's he doing in the pizza business?

Fox and friend Lori Vitello-Summers recently acquired one of Tony Sacco's Coal Oven Pizza restaurants in Fort Myers. Vitello-Summers is a restaurant and food-service veteran, including a stint as accounting manager at Germain Arena. She runs the restaurant seven days a week.

It turns out that Tony Sacco's operation has been engineered for efficiency and productivity, which immediately appealed to Fox's engineering-oriented mind. “This is a burgeoning franchise and we'd like to be a part of that,” he says.

Based in Estero, there are now 18 Tony Sacco's restaurants and more in the planning stages. Fox says the restaurant has potential to post $1 million in annual sales.