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About Dillon Tribune (Dillon, Mont.) 1989-current | View This Issue
Dillon Tribune (Dillon, Mont.), 12 Nov. 2014, located at <http://montananewspapers.org/lccn/2015269516/2014-11-12/ed-1/seq-7/>, image provided by MONTANA NEWSPAPERS, Montana Historical Society, Helena, Montana.
Dii i*' limo%F . - Wednesday November 12. 2014 Page 7 Tm BUSINESS Pita Pit opens near Dillon campus By J.P. Plutt Dillon Tribune staff Ashly Cottom and her hus- band Travis enjoyed their col- lege years at the University of Montana in Missoula. The couple regularly dined at Pita Pit and when they spent three weeks in January at the neonatal intensive care unit watching over their young son, they began calling Pita Pit for deliveries to the hospital. \I wanted to try something different,\ said Ashly, who at the time was the manager at Wells Fargo Bank in Dillon. \We started thinking it would do really well here in Dillon. This building came up for sale shortly after that so we decided to go for it.\ In planning their business, the Cottom's reached out to a friend who worked at Pita Pit's corporate headquarters in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. They eventually made a trip to Coeur d'Alene and made the com- mitment to become franchise owners. The building is the former home of the Dairy Queen, on Atlantic Street near the Univer- sity of Montana Western. After a major remodel, the fast food business opened Nov. 4. The Cottoms hired Ashly's father, Doug Banks of Vintage Construction out of the Bitter- root Valley, to do the contract- ing. The major rebuild added more room inside the store as well as an expansive deck for outdoor eating. There is now seating for 14 under shelter and 30 on the distinctive deck. \It was fun working with him every day and learning construction,\ said Ashly of the construction project and her dad. \I can put that on my Healthy fast food Dillon's Ashly and Travis Cottom have opened Pita Pit, a fast food restaurant, near the Uni- versity of Montana Western at the former location of Dairy Queen. In the photo above, Ashly stands outside the newly remodeled Pita Pit restaurant. J.P Plutt photo resume now.\ The proximity of the store to the campus appealed to the Cottom's. Ashly says the col- lege crowd is Pita Pit's main demographic group. To fit the schedule of young adults, the store is open 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. Ashly says they are in the final stages of acquiring a beer and wine license and will be adding delivery service and catering service in the near future. She says call in orders are welcome and there is an Ap available to place orders via a telephone. To reach the store call 683-3494. The company was founded in 1995 in Canada, and Idaho -based Pita Pit USA acquired the entity in 2005. The company now has 500 locations in 11 countries and plans to expand to 1,000 loca- tions by the end of 2015. A Pita Pit press release says their growth has been made possible by \offering a healthier and tastier alternative to tradi- tional fast food, Pita Pit's fresh, made-to-order pita sandwiches feature a variety of lean grilled meats, fresh vegetables, flavor- ful cheeses, and zesty sauces all rolled up in a unique and convenient package.\ Cottom has hired 18 employ- ees and is looking for \a couple more\ to fill out her crew. New Dillon upholstery business opens By M.P. Regan Dillon Tribune staff Upholstery by South LLC's \we've got you covered\ not only constitutes one of the more clever business mottos you'll ever come across, it's also one of the more appropriate. \I can work on pretty much anything with material and thread,\ said Upholstery by South proprietor Mark South, who held his grand opening two weeks ago at his business's workshop at 1500 Hwy 91 N, next to Dillon Diesel. \I do work on upholstery for airplanes, boats, RVs, motor homes, -quads, snowmobiles, wotorcycles and cars. And also office and home furnishings, like couches, chairs, that sort of thing. I just recently refinished an old baby high chair,\ added South. who lives in Dillon with his wife, Melanie, a student majoring in horsemanship and business at the University of Montana Western. \Just bring in what you want worked on to me or give me a photo of it and I'll take a look at it. I can probably do something with it. I haven't come across anything yet that I haven't been able to work on,\ said South, who has recently done jobs on a wide range of items, big and small, from a door handle, to bar stools, to the full interior of a 1972 Barracuda automobile. South said he prides himself on taking as long as necessary to do a job right, even if the process costs him some money. \My customers have all been happy with the work I've done, but I'm usually never happy with the job. I always think: this could have been better,\ admitted South, a Marine Corps veteran. \Maybe it was my time in the Marine Corps that convinced me to do anything I do to the best of my ability.\ South came to his new profes- sion by an unlikely route. After serving as a military police- man in the Marines from 2005 to 2010, South had intended to follow his father's career path into law enforcement. \I was going to join on with the state troopers in Montana. But they weren't hiring until the following year, and I didn't want to sit on unemployment. So I went and got a job on the oil rigs in North Dakota, where I ended up losing my leg,\ said South, whose leg was crushed beyond repair in a work acci- dent several years ago. \After that, Melanie and I spent time in Dillon to recover, and then I went for job re- training. I didn't really know what I wanted to do, so I ended up going to WyoTech and getting into their collision refinishing program,\ added South, who studied on the tech college's Laramie. WY campus. \I did their trim and uphol- stery program after that. From there I was one of 16 people selected to go down to the BMW program and learn how to repair BMWs. While I was there I decided that I really did enjoy doing upholstery work,\ laughed South, who after finishing his WyoTech course work moved back to Dillon in April so Mela- nie could finish her course work at Montana Western. \It was never my dream to be an upholstery guy — it just happened,\ commented South, who said his previous experi- ence with a needle and thread consisted largely of sewing up tears in his Marine uniform. \I ended up getting outstand- ing student for trim and uphol- stery at Wyotech. I was just good at it. And it was something I enjoyed doing, so I've decided to continue with it.\ South said that while a ca- reer in upholstery work was unplanned, he never approaches his upholstery work without a detailed agenda. \You need a plan before you dive in, and you need to do a lot of things in order to make that plan,\ said South, who recognized the importance of planning on his first large-scale upholstery job — the refinish- ing of the interior of a 1965 Mustang. \We did a lot of drawings and figured out what we wanted to do with that car. I did that job with a fellow Marine vet,\ recalled South, of the classic Mustang refinishing, which was assigned to him while at Wyotech. \We put in new high back seats and did a bunch of foam work to bring out the bolsters more. We built new door panels and put armrests into the door panels. We redid the rear seat with more foam work, put a new dash cover on and made a center console for it. It was a lot of fun,\ said South, who, along with his wife, manages a local ranch in the winter, and likes to fish and ride motorcycles in his spare time in warmer weather. \They ended up taking that Mustang around to military bases to show Marines and tell them: this is the kind of thing you could learn how to do af- ter you get out of the Marine Corps,\ said South, who also does custom work for clients. \If you want to change a design completely, I can do it. I charge the same rate for custom work as regular uphol- stery work, it just takes a little longer,\ said South. who won't charge a customer more than his original quote for a job, even if it takes him many hours more than he estimated, as was the case with a chair he recently spent 30 hours working on after quoting the customer a price based on Just 15 hours of labor. Upholstery by South LLC, 1500 Hwy 91 N, is open Thesdays through Fridays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays 10 a m. to 3 p.m. For more information about Upholstery by South LLC, per- sons may call 683-6271 or visit www.upholsterybysouth.com. 2015 ServeMontana Awards Nor late uutstanding volunteer or organization to be recognized at the Montana State Capitol! * IMMVIWYKNISOF10 Now accepting applications at www.serve.mt.gov servemontana GOV40101/1100INCI 00 COMMIrrer$ smoci • Wiii)* Property Visits Property valuation staff may be visiting your property during the upcoming tax year to conduct an on -site review for property tax purposes. You or your agent may want to be present. For an appointment or further information, contact the local Department of Revenue office. 011 SUCe Since 1933 e kt Montana Livestock Ag Credit, Inc. Quality Financial Products, Consistent Philosophy, Confidentialii with Prompt, Reliable Service to Your Doorstep \Prompt Reliable Service to Your Doorstep\ 420 N. California Helena, MT 59601 800-332-3405 www.ag-credit.com Billings Livestock Commission Horse Sale Eitflings, MT ONE DAY November 22 LOOSE HORSES SELL SAT 8 AM A HE SELLS! www .bill ings I ivestoc k corn 406.245.4151 Bu y -if•S' OIL ACREs (tvvrter., I A/1y potprits FE 701-4-60-03 6 7 907-830-2222 LEs Latta 2E PI IT'S JUST NOT WORTH IT DYED DIESEL IS rOR orr-Roxo USE ONLY SMALL SAVINGS AT THE PUMP COULD COST YOU SS 000 IN FINES REPORT FUEL TAX EVADERS BY pan* CALLING I 888 -FUEL -LAW r - wDe Or OrAlISPOIPTA , Oh / fAst Friday (A'id's Night) Nov. 21st • 5-8 P.M. Photos with Santa 5:30 - 8 pm it the Talking Christmas Tree, Kiddie Grab Bags, Cookies & Cider. Homemade Candy Admission: $1.00 Children 7 & tinder FREE. 44 A AA Agt A rg i lk i s % va to: I reed, i pyr i Areveather 21 k22 `Dam Elle& Cod Supporting Kiwanis and Jackson Fire Department 4 4 6 4 4 it AS i* hik 46 Saturday Nov. 22nd Silent Auction 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm. Wine & Hors d'oeuvres 6:30 pm. Live Auction 7:30 Themed Trees & Specialty Items Admission: $10.00Iperson Ati
