Essay contest winner could get bagel shop as prize

Want to own a bagel shop? Write an essay (300 words or less), pay a $100 entry fee, and you might.

That, in a nutshell, is Mike Pizza’s plan for transferring ownership of Blue Ridge Bagels in Bedford, a business he started nearly four years ago.

There is one catch: The contest website says a minimum of 1,500 entries are needed. If the minimum is not reached, entry fees will be returned.

If the contest proceeds as planned, the winner would get the shop on Fourth Street, $10,000 for operating expenses and two weeks of training.

Owner Mike Pizza said he got the idea of transferring ownership of the store in November, when he and his wife watched the movie “The Spitfire Grill,” which has something similar in its plot.

He said it is a way to give someone who does not have the money to invest in starting a small business a chance to gain ownership of one.

With 1,500 entries at $100 each, Pizza would make $150,000 in the transfer of ownership. He hopes to recoup what he invested in the store along with giving $10,000 to the new owner and 10 percent to the National Breast Cancer Foundation.

 “I don’t want to sell it for less than I invested in it,” he said.

Pizza said using an essay contest to transfer ownership is legal under Virginia law since the judging the essays renders it a skill competition, not a game of luck.

“I must conclude that the element of skill, rather than chance, is the predominant factor in the talent contest. Accordingly, I am of the opinion that the talent contest does not constitute illegal gambling,” reads part of an opinion from former state Attorney General James Gilmore III that Pizza quotes on the contest’s website.

Pizza, who already has a construction business, said he planned to sell the store earlier.

“It’s always been my business plan to sell after three years,” he said.

He said he started the business because when he moved to Central Virginia from Florida, he missed the bagel shops available there.

The winner will receive all the equipment, furniture, fixtures and decorations along with the store. The only part that doesn’t come with the store is the building and property itself, which Pizza said he leases.

Bedford Area Chamber of Commerce President Susan Martin said she’s heard of similar contests on a national level, but not here.

“I was very surprised to see something like that taking place in our own community,” she said.

Martin said the idea is creative and gives an opportunity for someone to take ownership of a local business that is already doing well.

Pizza cited his other business as the reason for giving the store to someone, not a lack in sales.

“At this point, I’m more of an absentee owner of the bagel shop,” he said.

Want more information?

The deadline for entries is March 15, but Pizza said he has the right to extend the deadline if the minimum number of 1,500 entries has not come in yet. The winner will be announced April 15.

People can enter the contest by going to http://winblueridgebagels.com or by mailing entries to P.O. Box 906, Bedford, VA, 24523.