Domino’s Pizza Inc. reported some pretty sauced up results on Monday, as the fruits of its collaboration with Uber Eats, revamped loyalty program, and marketing initiatives drove global sales up more than 5% at its 20,000+ global locations. The results bucked the wider trend of weaker sales at fast food chains, sending DPZ shares up 8% on the news.
Domino effect
The largest pizza company in the world has reinvented itself again and again since its founding in 1960s Michigan, from its infamous 30-minutes-or-less guarantee in the 90s, to the hotly debated "pizza tracker". So, you wouldn’t think there were many new ways to advertise pizza to the American public, but Domino’s found one with its latest initiative: the “emergency pizza” promotion, which gave customers a free pizza… as long as you were signed up to the company’s all-important loyalty program.
The pie maker also completed its nationwide roll-out of its partnership with Uber Eats, a step that execs had been reluctant to take — presumably because they felt they had a large enough footprint with nearly 7,000 stores in the US alone and more than 20,000 globally, as well as wanting to control the delivery experience. Of course, the allure of serving a few extra slices is hard to resist, with Domino’s reportedly grabbing 19% market share among pizza chains on the platform.
Peak-za?
For the last decade, Domino’s has been adding to its pizza store base at a ferocious pace, pulling clear of Pizza Hut in 2021. But, any notion of “peak pizza” would be laughed out of Domino’s expansion meetings, with plans to add ~6,000 stores by 2028… and one eye on 50,000 stores in the long-term.
Elsewhere in fast food land: Wendy’s is thinking about dynamic pricing... but consumers don't love the idea.
