John wooley austin tx

Schlotzsky's, Sketchy local lore recounts that Alvin Ord's Sandwich Shop, another Austin native, was born of a falling out between the Dissmans and a former business associate, which evolved into a bitter feud over who held the rights to the beloved bread recipe.

Schlotzsky's won the argument, and now the early-day sandwich rivals couldn't be more different. Alvin Ord's operates a handful of sandwich shops in small towns outside of Austin, while Schlotzsky's went from a hole in the wall to Wall Street to more than outlets to About this time, a brash young trio of Austin real estate investors had begun putting the moves on Schlotzsky's.

They had just made a fortune off the Rob Roy residential development in West Austin and, with a little money to burn, followed up on a banker friend's suggestion to pursue the little sandwich chain.

At the time, the only thing the three partners knew about Schlotzsky's was that the Original sandwich held an important place in their diets during their years at UT. They also introduced whole wheat bread, and a turkey sandwich. In , they went through a nasty divorce, with Bradley taking most of the real estate holdings and the Wooleys hanging on to Schlotzsky's.

With Bradley out of the picture, the Wooley brothers invested all the sweat equity they had into learning the business, expanding the menu choices and, of course, continuing to tinker with new and existing menu items. Along the way, the deli chain extended an exceedingly generous hand to local charities and nonprofit organizations, and generally established itself as an Austin-centric institution while continuing to expand its global reach.

From its one-sandwich beginning, Schlotzsky's has grown to nearly 20 menu offerings and expanded many of its hole-in-the-wall stores to spiffy "fast-casual" restaurants. But in Schlotzsky's current bankrupt state, many old-timers find themselves longing for a return to the days of "One Sandwich.

It's That Good. Now more than ever, we need your support to continue supplying Austin with independent, free press. Support the Chronicle. Wooley began his career as a geotechnical engineer with McClelland Engineers in Houston in His assignments included directing offshore vessel, crew and drilling operations. He also had several overseas assignments including directing a major field exploration project for a NGL plant in Dubai and a management position in Berri, Saudi Arabia overseeing quality control for a NGL plant under construction.

A veteran of the U. He is a registered professional engineer in Texas, Arkansas, and New Mexico. John Wooley. John A.