Pittston residents Joe and Tiziana Mazzarella prepare pretzels at their Auntie Anne’s store in the Wyoming Valley Mall. They will celebrate National Pretzel Day on April 26.
Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
Local Auntie Anne’s franchisees mark National Pretzel Day, mall anniversary
Joe and Tiziana Mazzarella stand in front of their Auntie Anne’s store in the Wyoming Valley Mall. Auntie Anne’s will celebrate National Pretzel Day on Sunday, April 26. Loyalty members will receive a free original or cinnamon pretzel. You can get a free pretzel at any of their two other locations inside Walmart in Wilkes-Barre Twp. and the Viewmont Mall in Dickson City.
Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
WILKES-BARRE TWP. — Who doesn’t love freshly baked Auntie Anne’s cinnamon pretzels? Just walking past their storefront or kiosk, the aroma is intoxicating. And yes, there really is an Aunt Anne.
The chain was founded in 1988 by Anne Beiler, an Amish woman from Lancaster who turned a pretzel recipe into a worldwide business.
If you frequented the Wyoming Valley Mall for decades, no doubt you would have purchased one of those mouth-watering pretzels. Auntie Anne’s is one of the longest-standing stores at the mall.
Currently, there are more than 1,000 locations of Auntie Anne’s nationwide and over 2,000 around the globe.
The Wyoming Valley Mall location, established in 1991, was just the 55th franchise sold in the company’s history, and that makes owners Joe and Tiziana Mazzarella of Pittston very proud.
This year, the Mazzarellas are celebrating the mall’s 35th anniversary and kicking off the festivities by taking part in National Pretzel Day, celebrated each year on April 26.
According to Joe, on Sunday, April 26, if you are an Auntie Anne’s loyalty member, you will receive a free original or cinnamon pretzel by stopping by any of their franchise stores: the Wyoming Valley Mall, Viewmont Mall, or inside the Wilkes-Barre Township Walmart from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The Mazzarella’s locations at the Mohegan Sun Arena and Bryce Jordan Arena, State College, will not be participating in free pretzel day. They also noted the giveaway is for pretzels, not nuggets.
Joe Mazzarella is a Wyoming Area graduate, while Tiziana is a native of Harrisburg. They are both Penn State University grads and purchased the Wyoming Valley Mall store from a family member in 1997.
The Mazzarellas formerly owned Auntie Anne’s franchises at the Crossings Outlet in Tannersville, The Marketplace at Steamtown in Scranton, the Stroud Mall in Stroudsburg, and the Schuylkill Mall in Frackville.
The Mazzarellas are ramping up to open an Auntie Anne’s location at the Laurel Mall in Hazleton in the next few months.
“We love our affiliation with Auntie Anne’s, and Anne is a wonderful person,” Tiziana said. “She would visit us here, and we have pictures of her with our kids; she’s a great lady. She since sold the business and is now on the lecture circuit tour.”
“We still keep in touch with her,” Joe said. “A few summers ago, we met up with her at her Sarasota (Florida) home and had dinner.”
The Mazzarellas, through their affiliation with Auntie Anne’s, said they are proud to be part of the community and have hired thousands of people over the decades.
“We are a small business, and we are a part of the community,” Joe said. “Each year, Auntie Anne’s partners with Alex’s Lemonade Stand to raise money for childhood cancer research, and last year our Viewmont Mall location was in the top three in the country in money raised.”
The Mazzarellas said they also offer fundraising opportunities for schools, scouts, or any business, civic, or private organizations.
“We also do field trips by going out to the community to teach people how to roll pretzels,” Tiziana said. “We are actually going to a nursing home soon.”
If you are interested in a fundraising project, catering, or would like a demonstration on how Auntie Anne’s pretzels are made, you can reach the Mazzarellas at 570-407-7170.
