Point Cook’s Varun Goswami owns the local Industri Pizza restaurant, and also recently opened his second restaurant Landing Point in Williams Landing. He chats with Alesha Capone.
What do you like about Point Cook?
Point Cook is a great place to live. I have been fortunate enough to make connections with amazing people in our community all through the act of doing what I love, serving and cooking. Point Cook has some of the best schools, restaurants and outdoor parks. With such a wide range of communities, you get to experience so many traditions and cultures.
How many people do you employ across your two restaurants?
I own Pizza Industri in Point Cook and Landing Point which is opening soon in Williams Landing. Industri Pizza in Point Cook has 15-20 staff and this was 25 pre-COVID-19. Landing Point has five-10 staff and will hopefully grow from there.
What changes have did your business experience during the COVID-19 lockdowns?
I was worried Industri Pizza would suffer from the closure, but the community was very supportive online through our Facebook page. We increased our takeaway capacity straight away because a lot of people started ordering takeaway. We will usually sell 400-500 pizzas on a Friday night. The Williams Landing community was already supporting the new Landing Point Facebook page even before we opened.
Does your business sponsor any local sports teams or help with local fundraising?
Yes, last year we sponsored clubs such as Point Cook Junior Football Club, Salt Water Coast Netball Club and many more. We do fundraisers with most of the schools in Point Cook – this year our Kids Isolation Pack for Stella Maris Catholic School was a big hit. We also delivered 40 freshly cooked meals to health workers at Sunshine Hospital in collaboration with the United Sikh Community.
Why did you decide to expand your business into Williams Landing?
Customers from Pizza Industi were wanting us to deliver to Williams Landing because there wasn’t any Italian food local. Industri Pizza does stone-cooked pizzas and customers kept telling us they wanted a woodfire pizza option, so I decided to open Landing Point in Williams Landing. It is a great place to make connections but there isn’t much open in Williams Landing after 5pm. My friends in the area complained there wasn’t somewhere to go for after-work drinks. Williams Landing has great growth potential and I believe it will be the next city in a few years’ time. I would even consider moving there from Point Cook, it is a great community.
