2 Friends Open Philly Pretzel Factory On Main Street In New City

NEW CITY, NY — Rob O’Malley and Bobby Miller talked about how they hated commuting during their respective careers — O'Malley having served as a federal law enforcement officer at the World Trade Center and Miller having a background in inventory and merchandise planning.

They each retired. Then they got bored.

They're not bored now — Saturday is the grand opening of their Philly Pretzel Factory franchise at 98 S. Main St.

"We loved the idea of building something together and can’t wait to become more involved here in Rockland County," Bobby Miller said. "We are excited to work with local schools, businesses and charitable organizations in our home community to raise funds and help lift up the people around us."

Philly Pretzel Factory is the largest Philly style pretzel franchise in the world, marketing officials said. The opening of the New City location marks the next step in the company’s continued expansion into new markets throughout the country.

The brand has 25+ pretzel creations and menu items, hand-twisted and baked fresh every day, including a brand new one Pretzel Pizza.

O'Malley chatted with New City Patch about the new venture.

Patch: How long have you known each other? How did you decide to go into business together?

O'Malley: We have known each other and have been residents of New City for 25 years. Like most people who reside in Rockland, we grew up in more urban locations, O'Malley is from the Bronx, while Miller is from North Bergen, NJ. Both commuted into the city for over 20 years and often spoke of how it would be nice to be to work locally and have the time to be more involved in the county that we both grew to love and call home. Both are retired, and were successful in our respective careers, but retirement proved to be boring. We spoke of starting our own business but didn't know what type of venture to pursue. As animal lovers, we looked into dog day care operations, but then we attended a party and were introduced to the products of the Philly Pretzel Factory. Knowing that there was nothing similar in our area, we jumped at the opportunity to bring the franchise to New City.

Patch: Sounds like being an active part of the community is important to you. What are the first ways you plan to do that?

O'Malley: Even in advance of the store opening, we have been actively involved in the Chamber of Commerce. We have supported local High Schools with homecoming and sporting events and look to further our outreach by providing ways to assist local sports teams with their fundraising endeavors. We have also engaged with the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Rockland. As we develop brand recognition in Rockland, we hope to be able to do more.

Patch: What's been the biggest challenge getting started?

O'Malley: Starting a small business is never easy. You go into it with a misconception of "it can't be that difficult." From finding the perfect location to the perfect contractor, every step you take will influence and will determine the outcome.

Once we had the perfect location, right on Main Street in beautiful downtown New City, the next step was the right contractor. After several failed attempts at securing one, I passed the establishment of a friend and saw that renovations were being done by M&M Management and Construction. I called them and the owner Steve Milello was on site the very next day.

Interestingly enough, we had gone to the same gym in Rockland years earlier, we knew all the same people in the county, and the rest is history.

The community of Rockland County has been so enthusiastic about our venture, we knew that we had made the right choice.