From left, Nozzleman Pizza cofounder Robert Powells, ‘Battalion Chef’ Gustavo Velasco, Brand Ambassador/Manager Savannah Petersen and cofounder Jesse Corletto at the new Nozzleman Pizza in the north Douglas County Walmart on March 17, 2025.
Photo by Scott Neuffer.
A bit of surrealism entered the conversation when Snooki was mentioned. The reality TV star from “Jersey Shore” owns 4 percent of a new pizza chain poised to sweep the nation from the corner of the south Carson City Walmart.
“She is a friend of mine, her and her dad,” explained Robert Powells, cofounder of Nozzleman Pizza. “She grew up in a firefighting family. Her dad’s (been) a firefighter in New York for 47 years. He’s still a firefighter.”
Powells was with fellow cofounder and retired firefighter Jesse Corletto. The Reno residents met the Appeal inside the Walmart at 3770 Highway 395 (technically north Douglas County) during the finale of a late winter storm on March 17. On the outside of the superstore was a sign for the new pizzeria, which had opened two weeks earlier. What had started as a concept shared among friends was now open for business at the entrance of the world’s largest retailer.
“The challenge, for us, is we’re a young company. We’re not McDonald’s,” said Powells. “We don’t have this long, excessive track record, so they’re really taking a risk with us. It’s a calculated risk … and I think we’re going to perform beyond what they expect, so that’s why they gave us 17 leases.”
To some, the two men might seem an odd pairing. Powells had a directness that was intense, a cerebral manner. When asked about the current state of the American Dream, he professed his faith on a grand scale:
“We live in the country, the best country in the world,” he said. “I’ve traveled all around the world in many countries. I’ve lived in other countries. There is nothing like America. And with this country, the opportunities that we have to better our lives, to improve our lives through business, through everything … it’s all here in the United States.”
Powells knows about success. He was the cofounder of Rocket Fizz Soda Pop and Candy Shops and oversaw growth of 84 franchise stores nationwide before selling his share in the company. He even appeared on the CBS show “Undercover Boss.”
But he also talked about failure, candidly.
“You’ll never know all the answers,” he said. “There is going to be risk involved. If you fail, failure is actually good as long as you learn from it. I’ve failed many times in my life, gone broke a few times in my life. It’s the way life is, but you learn from it.”
Corletto seemed relaxed. He maintained a big smile and the kind of affability one imagines comes from growing up in Yerington. He graduated from Yerington High in 1996. In high school, he worked for Pizza Factory.
“That’s where I first kind of dove into the pizza restaurant business,” he said, remembering Pizza Factory’s motto was, “We toss ’em, they’re awesome!”
“I used to spin those pies,” he said. “The owners at the time entered me into a competition. It was pretty neat — went to the competition, had a good time.”
But firefighting became Corletto’s primary calling. His first full-time firefighting job was with Clark County Fire Department. Returning to Northern Nevada after more than a decade, he got hired by Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District, from which he retired in 2023 as an engineer.
Before retirement, Corletto was known for his cooking skills in the firehouse. And he’d been developing those skills in other ways for years. Powells and Corletto got to know each other from Corletto’s first venture, Record Street Brewing in downtown Reno. Corletto started the business in 2015 and later sold it, but the location (now Lake Tahoe AleWorx) had devoted customers.
“I used to go to his restaurant with my wife,” said Powells. “He was cooking a lot, and so we would go and eat — and he was making great pizzas — so we just started talking…”
It turns out Corletto and Powells were neighbors in south Reno. Their friendship soon involved discussions of a firefighting pizzeria concept.
“So, we would always go into his garage and meet in his garage,” Powells said of the company’s formative days.
Powells remembered it freezing outside, but they would meet in the garage and hash it out. This was around 2022. The men believed they had something.
“I just knew the story had to be about the firefighter,” said Corletto. “When you get hired in the fire service, your first position is a nozzleman. That’s what you do. You’re the nozzleman.”
A nozzleman will be supported by a senior firefighter, teaching him what to do, Corletto said. It made sense for a new business.
“As soon as he said firefighter theme,” Corletto remembered, “I was like, ‘I know the brand: It’s Nozzleman Pizza.”
In Nozzleman, the partners found their experiences and skills complementing each other.
They opened their first pizzeria in Sparks in 2023 but closed it and transferred some equipment when a different opportunity came their way.
That opportunity was on full display this March. The interior of the Walmart restaurant had been fashioned to resemble a firehouse, down to the mock lockers bearing the names of the business partners’ sons.
The menu was straightforward, the foot traffic steady. Walmart is the perfect place for a built-in customer base and a turnkey operation, the partners contended.
“We had to go through a lot of interviewing, a lot of committees every Wednesday, just a lot. Walmart’s a great brand — a huge brand — so they’re not going to take just anybody,” said Powells. “There are 750,000 restaurants in America that are different, that are independently owned… I’m sure half of those would want to be in a Walmart if they could do it. And we got in.”
At the time of the interview, Nozzleman was in the process of setting up 17 Walmart locations in six western states, with plans for hundreds nationwide.
Northern Nevada residents can expect to see Nozzleman in Gardnerville, Fallon and Reno Walmart stores this year.
At one point during the interview, Gustavo Velasco, the franchisor “battalion chef,” and Savannah Petersen, brand ambassador and manager, joined the conversation on rolling out the brand.
“I think it’s very important to maintain that quality,” said Petersen, describing a balance between affordable pricing and quality products.
Petersen said the goal is to make Nozzleman easy to replicate, while offering support to franchisees.
Velasco, who has years of experience in the culinary arts, said the business partners wanted something family-style, “with joy in every bite.”
“Jesse is a foodie too, so we kind of speak the same language,” Velasco said.
Part of the brand is supporting firefighters through customer donations. Each location will be set up to support the local fire department. Customers can round up their bill to donate the difference. Powells gave the example of spending $13.18 and rounding up to $14, sending 82 cents to a fire department.
It's a worthy cause, voluntary on the part of customers, but the product still has to be good, the partners agreed.
Corletto, who has Italian family and a history of recipes, broke it down by sauce, dough and cheese. The sauce, he said, is Corletto sauce, the dough a specialty dough and the cheese a not-too-oily tri-blend.
“A couple of things we have to think about when we’re developing a pizza that translates to the Walmart customer as well as to the public in the area … and that’s great-tasting pizza, right?” Corletto said.
The brand has received celebrity endorsements. Movie star Jeremy Renner is a friend and fan. Besides supporting fire departments, the pizza chain has partnered with Renner's RennerVation Foundation to support foster kids and at-risk youth.
Snooki is also listed on the Nozzleman website with a brief biography. Other investors not named include firefighters, Powells said.
“We’re not taking money from just anybody. We want them to have a reason to have something to kick in. If you’re a firefighter and you want to invest, we’ll work with you,” he said.
For information go to nozzlemanpizza.com.
Powells can be reached at rob@nozzlemanpizza.com.