PizzaExpress Global Slice Q1 2023

Global Slice

Let there be air!

01 Hello from CHRIS

A Happy New Year to you all, and for our PizzaExpress family in Asia, sending you best wishes for the Year of the Rabbit!

As you will have seen during our recent international webinar (thank you to everyone who joined us), 2023 is going to be a year of Bold Moves for Team PizzaExpress as we take bold steps towards becoming the most lively and upli ing pizzeria brand, from Soho to Singapore!

We’ve got it all to play for, following a remarkable 2022 which saw us opening a brand new market in Macau (our second site opening there is also now well underway), launching 10 new sites outside of the UK, and achieving our best ever year for franchise sales, totalling over £32.8 million.

Over in the UK – last year we sold a spectacular 3 million Margheritas, 2 million Peronis and 3 million portions of Dough Balls, whilst our retail business sold around 27 million pizzas in supermarkets. It’s easy sometimes to forget that we are all part of a system with brand sales of almost half a billion GBP (nearer £0.6bn including retail). That’s a lot of pizza! You can watch our ‘2022 Wrapped’ video again here

Thanks again for all your e orts in 2022 and I can’t wait to see you in April.

Wishing you peace, pro t and pizza! See you soon.

Chris

So how are we bringing air to 2023?

We want to get our passion for pizza to the planet and must start thinking di erently about how we show up around the world. We will be resetting our ambition to grow our international and franchise business tenfold to 1,000 restaurants across the globe. We want to dance to the B.E.A.T of our own drum!

You will start seeing B.E.A.T. – our 4 Bold Moves – a lot! In a nutshell, it’s our journey towards our ambition of becoming ‘The most lively and upli ing pizzeria brand, from Soho to Singapore’. More about that from Stephen Taylor later.

What does this mean for international? To create a distinctive “Brand” we will work together to bring the best of our evolved brand world, look and feel, menu layouts, point of sale, photography, packaging design etc into play in a phased way across the world. As part of this we’ll build fame by focusing on our powerful common assets that represent the very best of PizzaExpress (our ‘House of Brands’) – be that in décor such as marble tables and our famous logo or product – be that American, Dough Balls, Sloppy Giuseppe; the things we are known for wherever you are in the world. We will be scaling resources and brand assets, driving a global and by-market menu vision, creating hubs of expertise in the UK, Hong Kong and UAE, evolving our restaurant design and refreshing our communications model.

In order to enliven the “Experience” we will be sharing best practice tools and systems, creating clear brand standards (eg those systems that we would expect our franchise partners to adopt and those which we would simply recommend to help improve your businesses), providing a clear “policy manual” which will feature operational and

training guidelines as well as set out how we will show up as a world class franchisor. We’ll be testing and developing future labour models and equipment to drive ROI and power-up our restaurant air through our teams and all the touch points that matter – music, POS etc, to name a few.

A is for “Access”. Getting our pizza to the planet! To do this we need to rapidly accelerate our pace of development, in both existing and new markets – which means nding ways to enhance the unit economics of our franchisees and demonstrate the potential of our brand across di erent customer locations and asset formats. We will be piloting smaller units with a more streamlined menu and labour set up, and are investing into the design of these in order to bring “proper pizza at pace”, grow convenience and to do to the Pizza QSR competition, what Shake Shack have done to burgers! We’ll also be looking to “double delivery” around the world and consider ways to expand our retail footprint in selected markets.

In the spirit of real-time sharing of best practice, I have also just come o the most inspirational business review call with the Alshaya team in Kuwait, who have opened a new concept “kiosk” restaurant version of PizzaExpress in a high footfall sporting location – where sales are thriving and cost of sales and labour are at game changing levels. Hats o to Mark and the team there for innovating and for their results to date.

We can’t do any of this without empowering our “Teams” By using world class and innovative training tools, making clear leadership growth opportunities part of our DNA and embracing best in class culture models (more coming soon) - we simply want to be the best place to work, in the world! However good our strategy, nothing beats a powerful and positive culture for driving results.

And that is why we can’t wait to share more and continue this conversation IN PERSON! We hope to see as many of you as possible at our UPBEAT International Conference, on 27 & 28 April, in Birmingham UK.

The rst day will focus on our bold moves and give you a avour of the investments (and opportunities) we are making and see across the UK business – as well as a deep insight as to how our brand world is evolving, whilst day 2 will focus on our international growth plans and our routeto 1,000 restaurants.

02PEOPLEINTRODUCTION

the Development Finance Lead, he supported the implementation of franchise policy, development agreements and the appraisal of new asset types to help grow access to the brand across the UK and Ireland.

Ben’s support in designing best-in-class franchise agreements, policy manuals, systems and processes will be invaluable as we accelerate our international and franchise footprint around the world, to be become a world class franchisor.

Many of you will have already chatted with Ben, so here’s the quick PizzaExpress inside track!

Why PizzaExpress?

The chance to bring the best starter (Dough Balls) to the world!

What do you do in your spare time?

Chase my toddler around the park!

What is your favourite pizza?

Pollo Ad Astra (no onions!)

proven track record achieving aims that align with PizzaExpress, including resurrecting the fortunes of a famous brand, and retail collaborations for Findus Group with Jamie Oliver and a new Gastro pub range.

The Chief Marketing role in the UK now extends across Digital & Loyalty, Brand & Marketing Communications, Strategy and Insight, Food & Beverage and also Music. Stephen is particularly passionate about all things sustainable and driving a Responsible Brand. In a few words, Stephen explains …

Why PizzaExpress?

Lots of brands use the word iconic, but PizzaExpress really is. It’s an iconic brand and one which has remained close to my heart throughout my life – from when I was young, to taking my kids when they were young. This connection through life stages is something we hear time and time again and gives us a great opportunity - combining our heritage with fresh and distinctive brand-building.

What do you do in your spare time?

Outside of work I enjoy spending time with my wife Hilary, three kids and two dogs – as you can imagine there’s never a dull day. In my spare time you’ll occasionally nd me trotting around a triathlon – burning o the pizza! Like many who work in hospitality I enjoy trying new restaurants.

What is your favourite pizza?

The iconic Calabrese! I’m a regular at my local PizzaExpress Putney (London) and three months into my role I’m still enjoying trying all the di erent pizzas!

BRAND JOURNEY

How did we nd our North Star?

We took a good look at when PizzaExpress was at its best. Back in the UK in the 70’s and 80’s, PizzaExpress was a pioneer in the casual dining category, o ering a stylish, sophisticated experience that was accessible to all. Our pizza was considered ‘special’ and we were known for our open kitchens, aring and quality ingredients. The Soho Experience showed up in our pizza with the marble tables, and enlivening theatrical moments such as pepper grinding etc.

We want that back! We want to move towards a relevant, distinctive, vibrant and famous brand that people are drawn towards.

We want to build on those Soho moments and encapsulate

The Soho Spirit, which means

There is style in all we do, we are laid back yet con dent

We bring energy to every occasion and keep people interested

We are inclusive and here for everyone and every moment

We are creative with a air for art, interiors and the odd experiment

We are upli ing and create joy for anyone who walks through our door

The Soho Spirit is the air we bring to every meal and every occasion.

In summary, PizzaExpress ‘Let there be air’.

Thanks to Stephen Taylor, the new UK Chief Marketing O cer, for a snapshot of the direction that we are heading towards and how we are putting the pizazz back into pizza!

04GLOBALHIGHLIGHTS

New Restaurants

The Springs Souk, UAE

This contemporary, perfectly planned oasis is one of the best malls in Dubai, home to more than 100 retail outlets and now an exciting new restaurant environment for PizzaExpress Dubai.

Neighbourhood Pizzeria, Hong Kong

The rst smaller concept ‘Pizzeria’ PizzaExpress restaurant serves small sharing plates, pizza (no pasta) and a bottomless food & drink o er. Positioned on the ground oor of new o ce building, AIA Tower, in a bustling o ce and residential community on Hong Kong Island named Fortress Hill.

Science Park, Hong Kong

A large, full-scale restaurant, accommodating 190 pax, including 70 outside, opened in a busy commercial o ce location, right next to the waterfront, attracting workers during the weekdays and local residents over the weekend. This new location in the New Territories of Hong Kong has already become the second highest revenue earner for PizzaExpress Hong Kong.

Orion Mall, Bengaluru, India

Bengaluru is the 2nd fastest growing metropolis and is known as the ‘Silicon Valley of India’ (previously known as Bangalore). The India team have launched their rst outlet at Orion Mall at Brigade Gateway which is Brigade Group's agship mall surrounded by luxurious hi-rise apartments, corporates and residences.

New Restaurant Opening Process

We are introducing a revamped ‘new restaurant approval’ process which goes live from February 2023. A new timeline will allow us all to provide early input into opportunities and ROI. New templates will be provided to help guide your evaluation of the project, supported by a market plan exercise, commencing with high priority markets. We hope the new process will assist us to review and re ne strategy collaboratively, share best practice and innovation, explore new business models, provide post-learning for improvement in the future, and allow for e cient time management. More details will be provided by Ben Lawrence on your regular calls.

The Livit Speke Trial

The UK is currently trialling the new innovative Livit approach to hiring sta and allocating roles and responsibilities. It is temporarily called the ‘Speke’ model, as the rst trial site is in Speke, Liverpool, UK. The main principal behind the model is that sta are cross-functional and are recuited by ‘level’ rather than by job title. For example, those at Level 1 could be utilised for hosting, pot wash, defrosting, storage or queue management. Sta will move up Levels to achieve new pay grades and responsibilities. By Level 3, sta could be handling all drinks, payments, the full service journey and all kitchen stations. See table for more insight.

MARKETS NATIONAL INTER-

UK

Snowball Dough Ball Day

This event is iconic to PizzaExpress and enables customers to get a portion of the festive Snowball Dough Ball dessert for £1 with all pro ts going to charity partner, Nordo Robbins

These tasty bite size treats are smothered in smooth, creamy vanilla dip and dusted in cinnamon

Nordo Robbins is a charity that provides music therapy to those who su er with disabilities, illness, or social exclusion

This year the sales were 29% above the forecast and the campaign raised £9,238 for Nordo Robbins!

Christmas Menu Launch

The new Christmas Menu put indulgence at the forefront of these festive creations with the return of the Carbonara and Mushroom and Tru e Pizzas. The Mushroom and Tru e Pizza out-performed all predictions, selling a third more than anticipated

Dough Balls were given a Christmas twist with Tru e and Gran Milano Cheese to create a salty and creamy starter

Two new delicious drinks – the Prosecco & Pomegranate Mimosa and the Ginger & Pomegranate

World Cup 2022

UK launched a #TouchOfClass campaign for World Cup, to create brand buzz and drive customers to choose PizzaExpress for dine in, takeout, delivery or at-home

Delivery Exclusive Pizzas were given a shake up and saw the Double American Cheese and Quattro Formaggi Picante launch for the occasion

The incredible o ers for World Cup drove record breaking sales on delivery and the Double American Cheese Pizza became the 6th best selling pizza on delivery, a huge achievement as the core pizzas are always the best sellers.

HONG KONG

Going Pink for Breast Cancer Awareness

Exclusive Pink Menu, throughout October, to drive education and more donations, supporting our long-term relationship with Hong Kong Cancer Fund.

New LTO dessert dish, Dough Ball with Strawberry Mascarpone, and Strawberry Tea

HK$5 donated for each sale of new sweet Dough Ball dish (in additional to existing HK$8 donation for Giardiniera pizza)

Exposure for campaign created by Cancer Fund

Christmas Wonderland

New Festive Menu, launched in-store from 15 Nov for dine-in

Re ecting a luxurious and celebrative mood, new dishes included duck con t, lobster and clam chowder

Additional festive dishes t for social media, included the popular Dough Balls Christmas Tree, a new Wreath Pizza and Christmas Pavlova.

All sets were o ered with a complimentary bottle of new eco-friendly Prosecco, Sea Change

Christmas Premium; PizzaExpress socks in a delivery box were created as premiums for key stakeholders. Individual sock ‘slices’ also available upon ordering Festive sets.

going until dinner!

Available from 3-6pm, weekdays, o ering one dish and a drink

New dishes include freshly made Italian style sandwiches and three sweet treats

This forms part of the Hong Kong daypart strategy, where PizzaExpress can o er distinctive dining experiences for breakfast, lunch, tea time, Happy Hour and dinner

UAE

The Springs Souk Opening

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Two campaigns were launched to celebrate the grand opening

Week 1 – Vouchers in Jars

• Vouchers were placed inside a jar at the restaurant's entrance. Each message contains a gi : a free portion of dough balls, free dessert, 20% o and 50% o

• This discount is used on the spot to increase engagement

Week 2 – Kids Eat Free

• Purchase any main course and receive a free kid's pizza or pasta

Suppliers and macro in uencers were invited to the grand launch event

FIFA World Cup

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Chatfood Delivery bundled o ers were introduced for FIFA World Cup 2022:

• FIFA World Cup ‘KICK OFF’ Bundle – 2 sharing starters, 4 mains, 4 drinks

• FIFA World Cup ‘G.O.A.T.’ Bundle – 3 sharing starters, 6 mains, 6 drinks + World Cup Merchandise

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Live matches were screened at Jazz@PizzaExpress JLT and PizzaExpress Live restaurants

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Licensed restaurants featured FIFA props and t-shirts for waiters/waitresses

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A Golden Doughball Contest gave away free tickets to FanZone + free meal for the winners

Outdoor Events

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Winterfest/FanZone pop up stall in Media City Ampitheatre

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Rugby 7s featured two PizzaExpress kiosks

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Menus at the pop ups included vegan options

CYPRUS

‘Eat Like a Champion’ World Cup Delivery Bundles

Two bundles promoted to order for delivery during the period of the world cup

• Striker Deal, includes 2 classic pizzas, 1 side salad and 1 Garlic Bread or Dough Balls

• Hat Trick Deal, includes 2 classic pizzas, 1 pasta, 1 Chicken Caesar Salad and 1 Garlic Bread

This campaign saw a 900% increase in Bundle Sales over the period of the World Cup!

Festive Specials

Following the positive response of last year's introduction of individual Christmas specials vs set menu, Cyprus took the same approach, introducing Festive specials and cocktails

Available both in store and for delivery on all platforms

The menu took the form of a special card that clipped onto the front of the main menu

Festive Specials saw a 27% increase in sales

2021 v 2022

INDIA

New City Launch @ Orion mall, Bengaluru

Orion Mall is Brigade Group's agship mall surrounded by luxurious hi-rise apartments, corporates and residences

Extensive branding across Orion mall - 50+ inventory in-mall, 30+ catchment branding

• Static branding inside the mall – standees at entrance, pillar branding in parking, drop down, milestones (directional branding)

• Digital branding – 30+ screens (food court + in-mall)

• Outreach to tap into the immediate catchmentbranding in 30+ screens in Brigade apartments, standees @WTC o ce, etc

Marketing activities for Restaurant Re-openings

Three restaurants have undergone renovations and re-openings; Vasant Kunj, Gurgaon and Thane

Extensive branding across malls - 40+ sites across malls

• Static branding – standees at entrance, backlit and pillar branding in parking, drop down

• Digital ads on cubes, pillars, etc to catch customer attention

Pizza Box installation with food sampling to induce brand trials

Consumer engagement

• Spin the Wheel for immediate conversions

Relaunched Dine-in Combo Promotion

• Created a fresh new campaign look with liquor upgrade to ride on success of combos launched in Aug

• Aggressively promoted across existing and new channels (OOH and Digital Platforms)

• Business generated:

• Contribution to overall dine-in mix (MoM) - 13%

• 2% increase in avg. combo sales post relaunch with liquor upgrade options

GIBRALTAR

Gib Sams Charity Family Fun Day

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Ocean Village held “Gib Sams 5th Anniversary Charity Family Fun Day” on Saturday 15 October

“Kids Eat Free” campaign launched in most venues in Ocean Village, including PizzaExpress

PizzaExpress was fully booked with successful sales

Halloween at PizzaExpress Gibraltar

• •

PizzaExpress was fully booked for Halloween Party

Special Edition Halloween Doughballs and Set Menus available with Halloween Costume Competition and Face Painter

Pizza Express recognised as Travellers Choice 2022

In October, PizzaExpress was recognised by Trip Advisor as Travellers Choice 2022

Based on millions of reviews and opinions from travellers from around the world, this annual award recognises the very best tourism establishments in terms of service, quality, customer satisfaction and more, across a range of categories.

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One of Gibraltar’s largest gaming companies treated their employees to nearly 100 pizzas

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Probably PizzaExpress Gibraltar’s biggest order of pizzas to date!

Charity

Support

for #Clock2Rock Cycling Challenge

Gibraltar team supported Ben & Mark in their #Clock2Rock challenge, cycling over 2,200 km from London to Gibraltar in just 8 days, with a big ‘Welcome Home’ celebration at PizzaExpress Ocean Village

Christmas Set Menu and new video

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Christmas Set with new promo video and relaunch of SnowBall Doughballs for dessert

INDONESIA

Mimolette Pizza

• First ever red cheddar crust pizza o ered by PM Indonesia

• Funghi and ‘Nduja options

• Base used for LTO Halloween & World Cup Special due to its vibrant crust

New Delivery Bundle Packages

• In anticipation of high season/holiday festive mood, Indonesia selected their best-selling pizza items into bundle packages

• Result: 45% contribution to Q4 Delivery sales, 12% contribution to Q4 overall sales

MACAU

Christmas Specials

PizzaExpress Macau welcomed its rst Christmas with Christmas Specials, throughout December

Three new dishes on the menu: Dough Balls Christmas Tree, Clam Chowder with Cheese Crouton and Wreath Pizza with Pumpkin Kale

Clam Chowder with Cheese Crouton proved to be the most popular dish

Supporting GROW Oxfam

The GROW Festival is a campaign about reducing carbon footprint and is hosted by OXFAM in Macau. It aims to reduce climate impact, reducing plastics, encouraging low-carb diets and fair trade

29 brands and 51 restaurants joined this campaign and their logos are featured on the GROW Festival website and promotional materials

PizzaExpress Macau selected one (out of three) vegetarian dishes to support this campaign, plus promoted three low-carbohydrate dishes

Plastic straws are only provided if customers ask and the restaurant is a free public water re lling spot for anyone who brings a bottle

Student Promotion

To celebrate International Students’ Day students received a special treat

Free soda drinks were o ered on 17 November

Students were invited to share PizzaExpress Macau’s social media posts to claim their free soda

Feedback was positive and more student targeting will be considered in the future

PHILIPPINES

New Holiday Gourmet Dishes

A selection of luxurious holiday dishes launched to celebrate the festive season

Dishes included Dough Balls Christmas Tree, Pollo Toscano con Burro (chicken llet), Smoked Salmon

Tru e Honey Pizza, creamy seafood Pasta

Gamberetti e Capesante, Tortellini Foie Gras con Panna, Lobster Ravioli and two new risotto dishes

The Smoked Salmon pizza, chicken let dish, Pasta Gamberetti and Risotto ai Funghi were best-sellers and will be considered for the regular menu

World Pasta Day Promo

Special Pasta Bundle to celebrate World Pasta Day on 25 October

Choose any 2 pizzas and save up to 45% o , one week only

Encouraged trial of new varieties of pasta and helped to drive slow moving pasta avourss

Average increase in sale by 15% from September to October, partly driven by this promotion

GREEN06 BITES

Every Drop Counts

There are a few simple measures we can take to reduce water-usage across operations. If your water is charged by volume, this will also impact overheads. Good news all round!

• Don’t defrost under a running tap. Defrosting overnight in the fridge is better for Health & Safety as well as for water conservation!

• Install water-reducing sanitation systems, such as half- ush toilets

• Upgrade to newer low- ow pre-rinse spray nozzles in the back kitchen

• Fully load the dishwasher, as they can use up to 5 gallons of H2O per cycle. Consider an upgrade to an eco-friendly model. Train sta in e cient loading protocol.

• Opt for air-cooled ice machines, which are just as e ective as water-cooled

• We’re proud of our ltered water, but only serve to guests that ask for it

Adopt any of these measures and help support the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal, #6 ‘Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.’

What’s your lifelong inspirational motto?

“Live in the present.”

07 SAMPSON Take Two with CHEN

Regional Director, APAC

What attracts you to F&B?

Sampson joined PizzaExpress Hong Kong in 2018 as Operations Director, following a far-reaching career in F&B which has taken him from his hometown in Guangzhou in South China, to Switzerland, Florida, Rhode Island and Boston, then back to Asia, building brands across the region including Papa Johns and The Hard Rock, in Japan, Korea, China and Mongolia! Today, Sampson is responsible for the development of the equity business in Hong Kong and for supporting the growth of the franchise markets across Asia. If he’s not super busy, he’s not happy!

What is your morning routine to kick start the day?

Always breakfast with my daughter. Because of long days, I rarely get to see her in the evening, so this is special time together. It’s usually cereal, but as an occasional treat, I’ll knock up some Eastern noodles!

What is the best part of your job?

Being part of a great team that is going to change how PizzaExpress operates in APAC. Every day brings something new!

How would you describe PizzaExpress in 3 words? Forward-thinking, lively, passionate!

What’s your favourite dish, and drink, on your local PizzaExpress menu?

It’s always been the Leggera Superfood Salad, but more recently I can’t resist the Roasted Chicken Breast, it’s delicious. Sparkling water or a fresh iced tea are my go to drinks!

F&B is not a job it’s a lifestyle! The hours are long, there’s a lot going on behind the scenes in order to deliver excellent cuisine. You’ve got to like the job, be passionate about food and passionate about people – guests and sta

What is your earliest PizzaExpress memory?

In 2016 I took my two kids to PizzaExpress in Kwun Tong, Kowloon-side (now closed), well before I joined the company in 2018. It was our rst experience of Dough Balls and Lava Pizza – the kids loved it, but it was de nitely di erent to the pizza style they were used to!

What do you like to do in your spare time?

I don’t seem to have much spare time these days! Trying to be healthy, visiting the wet market to nd delicious ingredients to cook at home, spending time with my daughter (age 12) if she’s got time for me (!) and catching up with my son (age 15) who is at boarding school in the UK.

What is your guilty secret?

For a moment of peace, there is a quiet little local restaurant on Hong Kong island, where I go to order simple food and watch a bit of TV, all to myself!

Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?

I’d hire a private kitchen (in true HK style, not enough space at home!) and I’d invite all my friends and family to join me for a big, Italian style feast. Everyone’s invited!