Stripe Shop to close its doors; Villa Pizza takes over

By Rachael Conley
Staff Writer

With the entrance of Villa Pizza in the Union this summer, the Stripe Shop will be closing its doors.

Though the shop sells approximately 400 orders of breadsticks a day and has been here since 1982, cash operating manager Gary Goldberg said it is "time to move on to something bigger and better."

Goldberg said the shop wants to get into the "mall trend" by bringing in a franchise company. Villa Pizza will be the first franchise company to be in the Union, and students hold mixed views on its coming.

"If one comes, there will be more from outside Purdue," said Edna Driskel, a senior in the School of Liberal Arts and an employee of the Stripe Shop.

Other students at Purdue don’t see a problem with it being a franchise store.

"I don’t care as long as they have good pizza," said Olga Shebanova, a freshman in the School of Liberal Arts.

Villa Pizza topped the list of the nation’s best pizza shops with 100 units or less around the country in Pizza Today’s June issue and is found in many shopping malls and airports. The shop will have a lot of seating due to the combination of a few areas that were previously used for separated seating sections.

No students will lose their jobs to this change. Catherine Davis, supervisor of the Stripe Shop, said, "Workers will have first consideration."

Kasey Wiley, a junior in the School of Liberal Arts, said, "It doesn’t phase me any because I can get a job at the other place."

The construction has been a concern for some people working at the shop because it has caused them to lose storage space and creates a somewhat unpleasant working environment.

"It’s a little tough since they already started construction and we had to make changes," said Ian Pappas, a sophomore in the School of Computer Science. "It’s a pain — construction, the workers coming in, and the smell," he said. "I’m looking forward to it when it’s all done."

However, there is one thing that helps the employees deal with the changes. One wall of the shop has been dedicated to employees. They are allowed to write or draw on the wall to commemorate their employment in the store. Davis started the wall. She said "It was something for us to do before we closed. We knew it was going to be torn down and it was a way for us to say goodbye to the Stripe Shop."

Wiley said, "The wall makes the day go better, especially when we get to draw on it." All the employees enjoy the wall that is filled with symbols and phrases ranging from Wu Tang to "Stripe Shop 4-eva!"

Driskel said she wishes there were some way they could keep the wall. "We did all this, but it’s going to be torn down anyway," she said.

The shop is set to close in May and Villa Pizza is set to open in July. The area now used for the Stripe Shop will be remodeled and another restaurant will occupy the space.

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Stripe Shop to close its doors; Villa Pizza takes over

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Campus editor: Laura Pelner

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