PMQ Pizza Magazine December 2016

DECEMBER 2016 | WWW.PMQ.COM

Your Food.

Our Box. Packaging Matters.

2017 STATE OF THE INDUSTRY ANALYSIS PAGE 38

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Your Food. Our Box. Packaging Matters.

At WestRock, we deliver pizza boxes that are made with as much care as the pizza that goes inside. Our pizza boxes are manufactured to meet the highest quality and food safety standards. Continual testing at WestRock ensures that only safe materials go into our food packaging containers.

• • • •

Raw materials certified suitable for food contact Liner, medium, and finished products routinely tested by independent, certified laboratories Finished packaging meets FDA requirements for food contact 17 dedicated manufacturing plants

We offer a full line of foodservice packaging.

For more information, contact us at 470.328.6155 or PizzaBoxes@westrock.com. westrock.com/pizza ©2016 WestRock Company. All rights reserved. WESTROCK and the WestRock logo are trademarks of WestRock Company and its subsidiaries and affiliates.

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PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | December 2016 | Volume 20, Issue 10

DECEMBER 2016 | WWW.PMQ.COM

The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly | PMQ.com

2017 STATE OF THE INDUSTRY ANALYSIS PAGE 38

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Now On AB Mauri: Passionate About Baking “Passionate About Baking” isn’t just a corporate slogan for AB Mauri, maker of Fleischmann’s Yeast and other baking ingredients. It’s a way of life for these bakery professionals, and their enthusiasm for their work showed in every face during PizzaTV’s recent visit to the company’s North American headquarters in St. Louis. Our crew toured the state-of-the-art bakingHUB and pilot fermentation center, where AB Mauri baking scientists and their clients work together to create and test a wide range of baked goods, from high-quality yeasts to dough improvers, leaveners, mold inhibitors, malts, syrups and enzyme blends. Watch our video at PizzaTV.com to learn more about one of the world’s premiere baking research facilities!

Exclusively On PMQ.com A High-Tech Tattoo That Really Delivers

The Wall Street Journal says the United States has been undergoing “one of its biggest restaurant shakeouts in years,” with chains like Ruby Tuesday planning to close stores and other smaller chains filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. What’s behind the wave of closures? Find out more at PMQ.com.

Pizza Hut UK has developed a temporary tattoo that lets you order a pizza through your smartphone.

It attaches to the skin like a lick-and-stick tat, but it’s tricked out with Near Field Communication technology and a QR code. Read more about it at PMQ.com.

Will Papa John’s New Pan Pizza Be a Game-Changer?

Executives Say Nasty Politics Hurt Restaurant Sales in 2017

Papa John’s unveiled its first-ever pan pizza, and it’s made with “cleaner” (nonartificial) ingredients. The company hopes the new style will draw away customers who eat only pan pizza, which has long been available at other independent and chain pizzerias.

Get more details at PMQ.com.

Restaurant sales have been flat this year, and some industry leaders—including Greg Creed, CEO of Yum! Brands, say the epic battle between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are to blame. But the truth may be more complicated than that. Read what they have to say at PMQ.com.

Goodbye, Ruby Tuesdays

6

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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PMQ PIZZA MAGAZIN E | Decemb er 2016

PMQ.C 2016 | WWW.

OM

| Volume 20, Issue 10

Contents

DECEM BER

ON THE COVER ’s Busines Industry s Monthly

The Pizza Power Report

The Pizza

38

AN ALY SIS

m | PMQ.co

Technology and third-party delivery reshaped the pizza business in 2016. In our state-of-theindustry report, we take a closer look at the changes, both good and bad, and explain how you can thrive in the coming year. By Rick Hynum

VINNIE’S PIZZERIA

32

US TR Y OF TH EPAGEIND 38 20 17 STATE

FEATURES

32

Marketing Marvels: Vinnie’s Pizzeria A pizza box made of pizza. Hilarious daily menu boards.

National exposure on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Meet the mastermind behind the quirky marketing that made Vinnie’s Pizzeria a media favorite in 2016. By Liz Barrett

58

Seizing the Upside of a Downturn: Part 1 Metro Pizza’s John Arena explains how to fend off flat sales by changing the way you think about your business and your customers. By John Arena

64

The Third-Party Wave: Part 1 In the initial installment of a two-part series, a Tampa pizzeria owner weighs the pros and cons of using an outsourced delivery service. By Rick Drury

PRECINT PIZZA

64

72

Flavor Faves A relative rarity in pizzerias, flavored crusts can turn a bland pizza into a culinary superstar and appeal to customers searching for variety and novelty. By Tracy Morin

80

Wired for Success Venezia’s New York Style Pizzeria gives PMQ the rundown on using online ordering to save on labor costs and boost check averages. By Liz Barrett

PRIMO’S PIZZA

80

72 8

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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DEPARTMENTS

16

In Lehmann’s Terms: A Need for Speed Letting your dough rest after mixing leads to density issues that can interfere with the cooling process.

16

18

New York’s Finest: Pizza With Fresh Vegetables Head to your local supermarket and load up on fresh produce for this meat-free pie from Chef Bruno.

20

Accounting for Your Money: It’s Time to Reconcile Your Accounting Records With a new president taking office, record reconciliation can help you understand how new laws and tax code changes will impact your store.

30

22

The Think Tank: Will Online Ordering Make Phones Obsolete?

Some pizzerias do far more business through online ordering, so our Think Tank members ask: Do we even need phones these days?

30

Recipe of the Month: Red, White and Blue Pizza Berries, powdered sugar and hazelnut spread top this mouthwatering dessert pizza recipe from Nutella.

88

Pizza Without Borders Tyson in China uses a bit of skin to sell chicken to the Chinese marketplace in the aftermath of a disastrous bird flu epidemic.

114

114 IN EVERY ISSUE 6

Online at PMQ.com

12

From the Editor

14

From the Inbox

24

Moneymakers

86

Where We’ve Been & Where We’re Going

94

Product Spotlight

99

Advertiser Index

100

The Pizza Exchange

Check out our digital and tablet editions for bonus video content. Visit PMQ. com/digital to view the digital edition, or download our tablet app at iTunes, Google Play and Amazon.com.

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Pizza Hall of Fame: Mandee’s Pizza The Salem, Massachusetts-based pizzeria remains traditionally old-school while breaking new ground as a first adopter of emerging technologies.

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FROM THE EDITOR

Winner of 5 ASBPE Awards Winner of 4 GAMMA Awards ISSN 1937-5263

A PUBLICATION OF PMQ, INC. | 662-234-5481

Peace, Goodwill and Pizza

A

s I write this column, Christmas is nearly two months away, and I’m still basking in sunshine and temperatures in the low 80s.

Given my druthers, I’d skip winter altogether and move straight from fall into early spring, but my fervent prayers to that effect have gone unanswered for years. God seems committed to this whole fourseasons-a-year business. I guess He knows best.

As you read this column, however, Yuletide will be in full swing. We at PMQ never cease to be impressed by the generosity of the pizza industry, so most of you probably don’t need a reminder that some in your communities could use a helping hand this Christmas. Many pizzeria owners now open their doors every Christmas Day to the homeless and hungry and to needy children whom Santa would otherwise pass by.

Charlie Peterka, owner of Charlie’s Pizza in Little Falls, Minnesota, has thrown a Christmas party for these folks every year since 2001. Last year, Charlie’s gave away 10 new bikes, 100 plush animals and other toys to children and served free pizza, soup, milk and cookies. Peterka seeks to commemorate the life of his daughter, Donna, who died of suicide at 19.

He told Minnesota Public Radio that Donna used to donate her waitress tips to the Humane Society or a local senior center. “In her honor,” he said, “we’re opening our doors, and whoever is hungry or lonely or sad—or happy or breathing—come on in. Let’s have a nice day.”

Crispino’s Pizza in Morehead City, North Carolina, gives away pizza and soup to the hungry on Christmas Day and even offers delivery. Bada Bing Pizzeria in Dayton, Ohio, will throw its second annual community party this Christmas, and co-owner Jason Hague has plans to launch a nonprofit pizzeria with free slices for everyone!

Sometimes we look around and see, at least on the surface, an ugly, scary, mixed-up world. But take a moment to talk—and listen—to folks as individuals, and you’ll see it differently. Most want to do the right thing. Most people want to help other people. That’s certainly true of the pizza industry. “Our cash registers will be closed and our hearts wide open,” Hague posted on Facebook last Christmas. Happy holidays to you, Jason, and to all the pizza people who spread peace and goodwill in our communities.

VOLUME 20, ISSUE 10 DECEMBER 2016 PUBLISHER

Steve Green, sg@pmq.com ext. 123 CO-PUBLISHER

Linda Green, linda.pmq@gmail com ext. 121 EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Rick Hynum, rick@pmq.com ext. 130 ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Andy Knef, andy@pmq.com ext. 136 EDITOR AT LARGE

Liz Barrett, liz@pmq.com SENIOR COPY EDITOR

Tracy Morin, tracy@pmq.com INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Missy Green, missy@pmq.com ART DIRECTOR

Eric Summers, eric@pmq.com ext. 134 CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Sarah Beth Wiley, sarahbeth@pmq.com ext. 135 SENIOR MEDIA PRODUCER

Daniel Lee Perea, dperea@pmq.com ext. 139 IT DIRECTOR

Aaron Harris, aaron@pmq.com ext. 137 CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

Shawn Brown, shawn@pmq.com CIRCULATION MANAGER

Sherlyn Clark, sherlyn@pmq.com ext. 120 TEST CHEF/EVENT COORDINATOR

Brian Hernandez, brian@pmq.com ext. 129

ADVERTISING SALES DIRECTOR

Linda Green, linda@pmq.com ext. 121 SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Clifton Moody, clifton@pmq.com ext. 138 ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Tom Boyles, tom@pmq.com ext. 122 ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Ross Thorton, ross@pmq.com ext. 133 MARKETING DIRECTOR

Anna Zemek, anna@pmq.com ext. 140 SALES ASSISTANT

Brandy Pinion, brandy@pmq.com ext. 127

PMQ INTERNATIONAL PMQ CHINA

Yvonne Liu, yvonne@pmq.com PMQ AUSTRALIA-NZ

Tom Boyles, tom@pmqaustralia.com PMQ RUSSIA

Vladimir Davydov, vladimir@pmq.com

PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | December 2016 | Volume 20, Issue 10

ON THE COVER: DECEMBER 2016 | WWW.PMQ.COM

The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly | PMQ.com

2017 STATE OF THE INDUSTRY ANALYSIS PAGE 38

12

As evolving technology and social trends continue to impact the industry, this year’s Pizza Power Report explores new ways to make cold, hard cash selling the “great meal of the United States of America.”

Rick Hynum Editor-in-Chief PMQ Pizza Magazine

PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE

605 Edison St. • Oxford, MS 38655 662.234.5481 • 662.234.0665 Fax PMQ Pizza Magazine (ISSN #1937-5263) is published 10 times per year.

Cost of U.S. subscription is $25 per year. International $35. Periodical postage pricing paid at Oxford, MS. Additional mailing offices at Bolingbrook, IL. Postmaster: Send address changes to: PMQ Pizza Magazine, PO Box 2015, Langhorne, PA 19047.

Opinions expressed by the editors and contributing writers are strictly their own, and are not necessarily those of the advertisers. All rights reserved. No portion of PMQ may be reproduced in whole or part without written consent.

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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Andrew Nowlin Friendship Travel Center Friendship, MS FIND US ON SOCIAL MEDIA: 14

TZ

THANKS TO THE DOUGH DOCTOR I wanted to say thanks to Tom “The Dough Doctor” Lehmann for the help he recently gave me over a lengthy phone conversation and by email. I have no cooking experience or culinary background, other than cooking at home, but through connections I’ve made with Tom and PMQ, we’ve found everything we need for success in our new business, a fuel center in a rural but high-traffic area in Mississippi. In our first month, with very little call-in business (since our phones were messed up), we generated $12,000 in pizza sales alone. As we expand our marketing efforts to generate call-ins and foot traffic, and once we start offering delivery, I believe $30,000 per month is attainable within six months and, within a year, $40,000 to $45,000 a month. Our pizza could still use slight tweaks for some of our customers, but the masses sure do like it. Thanks again for your guidance, Tom. Let your wife know that we appreciate her as well for allowing you to keep your commitment and follow your calling as The Dough Doctor. It truly has made a difference for my family!

KLIM E

Jennifer and Andrew Nowlin have started a family business in a town called Friendship.

DAN N Y

ANDREW NOWLIN

LUSCIOUS COOKSTORE

FROM THE INBOX

GREETINGS FROM ZIMBABWE I’m getting set up in the pizza business here in Zimbabwe. I will start off by offering pizza making classes and pursuing the sale of utensils. Pizza is popular here, although to a lesser extent compared to fried chicken and chips. I wanted to thank you for the online resources you provide—I’m finding them to be helpful in my endeavors.

Buenos T. Muzanarwo Luscious Cookstore Harare, Zimbabwe We’re glad to be of service, Buenos, and we hope you’ll keep us apprised as your business evolves and grows!

E W F F U ST

longtime ban on rrier finally lifted his Je y Ja r ne ow o ss ly and for Cane Ro but for one night on e, uc sa g in pp di a ranch dressing as ired pie his a Hillary Clinton-insp , an om W y st Na e one pizza: Th Donald Trumpght, along with the Ni n tio ec El r fo d te team crea is is your ON E day,” e. “Ranch eaters, th br m Ho d Ba e Th d inspire . “The Banhammer posted on Facebook lo aio zz pi s lla Da e th hing and ay. We will be watc sd ne ed W on t ou comes back t long.” judging you all nigh

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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Bellissimo offers a full line of pan-fried and fullycooked chicken items. Visit bellissimofoods.com to contact a representative and request samples and pricing.

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IN LEHMANN’S TERMS

A Need for Speed Letting your dough rest after mixing leads to density issues that slow the cooling process.

By Tom Lehmann Tom Lehmann recently retired as the longtime director of bakery assistance for the American Institute of Baking (AIB). He is now an industry consultant dedicated to helping pizzeria operators make more money. Need more dough advice? Visit the Dough Information Center at PMQ.com/ dough.

16

Q

Why do you recommend always taking the dough from the mixer directly to the bench for immediate cutting and balling? Why not let the dough rest for an hour before cutting?

A

Keep in mind that, while your dough is resting after being mixed, it’s also fermenting, which causes it to change in density—that is, it gets lighter in volume just sitting there.

Also, as I mentioned in last month’s column, the yeast in your dough will typically exhibit a lag time of about 20 minutes before it begins actively feeding and producing the by-products of fermentation. By taking the dough directly to the bench for scaling and balling, we can get most or all of the dough balled before the yeast starts doing its thing. There is little change in dough density during this lag time, and the dough will be at its most dense right after the mixing process. Dense dough is easier to cool down than less dense dough. That’s because the improved insulating properties of less dense dough will impede the extraction of heat from the dough balls once they’re placed in the cooler.

This brings us back to a point raised in last month’s column, but it’s worth repeating: If the

C

dough balls can’t be efficiently cooled, the fermentation process will continue in the cooler for a longer period of time and at a faster rate than would be considered optimal for your dough quality and refrigerated shelf life. In fact, under certain conditions, you will very likely end up with blown dough by the next day because the cooler was unable to sufficiently retard the fermentation rate.

Q A

M

Y

CM

MY

CY

CMY

K

What’s the difference between enriched flour and high-gluten flour?

When we say a flour is high-gluten or high-protein, we’re really referring to the total protein content of the flour. Much of that protein forms gluten, so the higher the protein content, the stronger and more elastic your dough becomes. When we talk about enriched flour, we mean that a vitamin and mineral supplement has been added to the flour to restore it to the nutritional value it would have if it were a whole-wheat flour (minus the fiber content of the wheat bran). Aside from changing the nutritional value, enrichment has no other effect on the flour.

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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I ’s more th It t han han pas past asta ta.

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NEW YORK’S FINEST

Chef Bruno journeyed to Burlington, Vermont, to visit the Blodgett headquarters and his friends, Justin Klauder, the line manager for Combi products, and Blodgett corporate chef Jeff Pax.

Pizza With Fresh Vegetables Chef Bruno and his wife head to the supermarket for fresh produce and make a meat-free pie together.

H

ello, my readers! My wife asks me, “Why is there always so much meat and no vegetables on our pizza?” So we decided a veggie pizza would be a nice change of pace. She and I went to the supermarket together and picked out some vegetables—zucchini, asparagus, broccoli and more— that we thought would be good on a pizza. We had a very nice day making this pizza together and enjoying it on the veranda with a glass of wine. It was a very tasty meal! I recommend that you make it for yourself, your family and your customers. It’s also a great way to spend some fun time with your loved ones in the kitchen! Mangia!

Chef Bruno is PMQ’s culinary advisor, with more than 50 years of international pizza experience. He is the corporate chef for Marsal & Sons and the culinary coach of the U.S. Pizza Team.

18

INGREDIENTS: 16-oz. dough ball, rolled out 5 tbsp. olive oil 14 oz. fresh plum tomatoes, peeled 8 oz. fresh asparagus 2 small zucchini 8 oz. broccoli

1/3 c. frozen peas 4 scallions ½ c. mozzarella cheese, diced 10 basil leaves, torn 2 garlic cloves, chopped Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS: Preheat the oven to 500°F. Working over a bowl, puree the tomatoes with a food mill. Peel the stems of the broccoli and asparagus and blanch with the zucchini, then cut into bite-size pieces.

Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a small pan. Stir in the peas and scallions and cook for 6 minutes, then remove from the heat.

Spread the pureed tomatoes on the pizza dough. Leaving the edges uncovered, add all of the vegetables, spreading them evenly over the tomatoes. Sprinkle with mozzarella, basil, garlic and the remaining olive oil, plus salt and pepper to taste. Immediately place in the oven and bake for 8 minutes, or until the crust is golden-brown and the cheese has melted.

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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ACCOUNTING FOR YOUR MONEY

It’s Time to Reconcile Your Accounting Records With a new president taking office, reconciliation will give you a picture of how new laws and tax code changes could impact your business.

By Michael J. Rasmussen

Q A

How do I reconcile myself and my business to any new changes under a new president?

With a new president in office and the changes in Washington, we should anticipate changes to the tax code to pay for new programs, if any, that get implemented. Whether or not your party won the White House this year, you will need to become reconciled to this new reality—and its effect on your operations—while it lasts.

And reconciliation starts with your accounting.

In my world, we reconcile our bank accounts to bank statements; our credit card balances to credit card statements; our sales tax balances to our state taxing agency’s records; and our payroll tax liabilities to IRS records.

In other words, your restaurant operation’s accounting records need to agree with all these independent records.

Working with your accountant to reconcile these records gives you a snapshot of your operational profit/loss at the date you made the effort to reconcile. It also gives you a comparison between periods of time, such as day-to-day, month-to-month or year-over-year.

You should ensure that all of your accounting records are reconciled through November and before year-end as quickly as possible. This will give you a picture of how 20

current laws affect your operation’s profitability; then, if those laws change, you can better gauge their impact on your business. In addition, the new federal rule covering overtime pay means the minimum weekly salary threshold under which employees are eligible for overtime pay increased to $913 per week on December 1, thus potentially affecting your operational profit and tax obligations.

Too many restaurateurs fall into a holiday-season mentality: They’re slammed with extra business, catering and parties, employees keep calling in sick, and their back office starts bleeding money. Your pizzeria may be generating extra cash flow and seem overly busy, but if all of your accounts are not reconciled, that important activity from November to December will not be accurately measured.

Reconcile your internal records first. Next, reconcile your financial operations to the proposed business or tax law changes being introduced into our economy.

Finally, create lemonade out of lemons by reconciling your employees and customers to any changes you must make, such as price increases or employee scheduling.

Michael J. Rasmussen is the owner of Rasmussen Tax Group (rasmussentaxgroup.com) in Conway, Arkansas. He is also the co-owner of Eyenalyze (eyenalyze.com), a company that provides real-time profit analysis for restaurant owners.

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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W

THE THINK TANK

Will Online Ordering Make Phones Obsolete?

Some Think Tank members wish they could get rid of their phone lines entirely, but they’re not yet ready to take the risk.

P

izzapiratespp: My store averages about $4,000 on Saturdays—$3,500 on a slow Saturday and $4,500 on a busy one. Last Saturday, our phone lines were out for the entire day. We didn’t get one phone call. We still ended up doing $3,800 for the day, with $3,300 in online orders and $500 in walk-ins. There were no late deliveries, no complaints, nothing but peace and quiet. Do we even need phones anymore?

December: I wish all my orders came in online. It would be so peaceful. I’ve started having my employees ask customers, “Did you place your order online today?” This is a way to promote online ordering, because it’s the bomb.

Joe: I’ve thought about ditching the phones several times.

Lately, we’ve been getting calls from folks who ordered online. They were told by email the orders would take between 45 and 60 minutes on a busy night, but they still call 30 or 40 minutes into their wait time to ask about the status of their orders. I ask if they received our email confirmation explaining the 45-to-60-minute window, and they say yes. Then, I’m just dumbfounded as to what to say next while still being nice on the phone!

Using online ordering exclusively would save labor and stress, that’s for sure. Plus, when folks say, “This pizza 22

isn’t what I ordered,” you can check their online order and determine who’s at fault, meaning fewer scams and more accountability. With that in mind, I’ve started a box topper promo that gives folks 5% off if they use my website for online ordering, and traffic has nearly doubled on the site in the past month.

Steve: A while back, we were without phone service on a Monday at one of our locations, and we did the same amount of sales as we usually do. In fact, I think online sales earned us more than our usual sales that day due to a higher average ticket.

Georgiascp: I’d love to do away with phones. They interrupt the more important aspects of service. But I don’t believe this would be possible in our area, as we deal with a somewhat older demographic that’s not as tech-savvy as younger customers. We do get a good number of online orders, but it’s not enough to make a dent in labor costs.

Get answers to your most perplexing problems and swap tips and ideas with the experts in PMQ’s Think Tank, the pizza industry’s oldest and most popular online forum. Register for free at thinktank.pmq.com. (Member posts have been edited here for clarity.)

T

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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MONEYMAKERS

Keep Your Eye On the Slice

Blaze Pizza has been confounding its social media followers with a tasty take on the classic shell game in recent months. In the company’s inspired “Follow the Pepperoni” campaign, a brief 10-second video sets up the challenge, depicting a single slice of pepperoni hidden inside one of three Blaze Pizza cups. A pair of hands then quickly and deftly moves the cups around, and followers have to guess which cup conceals the pepperoni slice.

Fans who get it right have a chance to win a discount code that can be redeemed for free food with orders placed on Blaze’s app.

The campaign ran on Facebook in May, with the video earning more than 46,000 views. It also appeared on Instagram and, more recently, as a story on the company’s Snapchat account.

Prominently featuring its logoed beverage cup, Blaze Pizza put a pizza-flavored twist on the classic shell game in a video campaign on Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat.

Quick Tip 1: Less Is More in Direct Mail Marketing Your direct mail piece should cover all of the essentials, but don’t go overboard with too much information. You don’t need to list every pizza on your menu or describe the history of your store.

Keep it simple and get straight to the point.

Four Shots and a Movie

Pizzafaces call the shots on Movie & Game Night at Mikey’s Late Night Slice in Columbus, Ohio. Mikey’s downtown location launched the new tradition in October with a strong social media tie-in. Each week, customers choose the movie they want to watch at the pizzeria by engaging with the pizzeria’s Facebook page. For one recent post, fans were invited to “like” the post to vote for Dazed and Confused; to “love” it for Ferris Bueller’s Day Off; to give it a “haha” for E.T.; or to give it a “wow” for Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure. Guests can also play board games, such as Sorry! and Chutes and Ladders, and partake of the ironically named Family Meal Deal, featuring a pizza, a pitcher of Pabst Blue Ribbon and four shots of well liquor.

It’s all fun and games at Mikey’s Late Night Slice, where customers can while away their Wednesday nights watching classic flicks or gobbling up real estate in Monopoly.

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PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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MONEYMAKERS

Back-to-Back Benefits

Rapid Fired Pizza (RFP) raised funds for two worthy organizations with back-to-back Wednesday-night promotions this fall.

On October 19, the Ohio pizza chain’s six stores donated all of its proceeds, from open to close, to Pink Ribbon Girls, a nonprofit group that supports individuals and families affected by breast and reproductive cancers. The promo generated about $5,000 for the organization. RFP followed that event with a similar October 26 benefit for the Artemis Center, which helps victims of domestic violence and their children. RFP co-founder Ray Wiley said the company was proud to join Pink Ribbon Girls in the fight against breast cancer, adding, “It’s nice to know that there is a supportive community available to patients and survivors alike.” About the Artemis Center benefit, RFP co-founder Kelly Gray added, “Domestic violence is a serious and traumatic situation that needs more public attention. Our team will do our part to support this cause.”

y Rapid Fired Pizza created a custom delivery box to promote back-to-back fundraisers supporting breast cancer awareness and victims of domestic violence.

It Pays to “Love Your Place”

“Love Your Place” started out as the motto at Folino’s Pizza in Shelburne, Vermont, but it became the inspiration for a successful Instagram contest that drew hundreds of entries in 2016. The Folino’s Love Your Place promo asks followers to share and post images of the people, places and moments that inspire them, “with the hopes,” say owners John and Buddy Koerner, “that they will build a deeper connection not only with their surroundings but also with Folino’s.” Each month kicked off a new round of the contest, with two random entries selected as finalists; fans then voted on their favorite to determine the winner, who received a free dinner for four at Folino’s.

The grand-prize winner, to be determined this month, will win a pizza party for 50 at the pizzeria.

Quick Tip 2:

Gr of to Th

How to Make Your Pizza Box Interactive Your pizza box can be more than a mere container that gets immediately tossed into the trash. Attach a logoed box topper with word-search or crossword games or a coloring sheet for younger children. You can even top your box with a coloring page for grown-ups!

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PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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Let us part

be a

of

your story

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This is part of our story. Let us be a part of your story. www.GrainCraft.com 855-809-9089

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MONEYMAKERS

Donation Creation Promo Catches Fire

At Wild Tomato Wood-Fired Pizza and Grille in Fish Creek and Sister Bay, Wisconsin, the Donation Creation is one singular sensation, especially when it comes to raising funds for Door County nonprofits. Every month, owners Britt and Sara Unkefer dream up a specialty pizza and donate $1 of each pizza sold to a local cause. The company had its most successful fundraiser to date when it raised more than $1,000 for two local fire departments.

The fire departments encouraged their supporters to buy the signature pies, with a pizza party awarded to the department that brought in the most sales. And the Sister Bay Fire Department added another twist: When customers called in an order using the secret phrase “fire

Wild Tomato Wood-Fired Pizza and Grille raised more than $1,000 for a pair of local fire departments. The Sister Bay team even delivered pies to customers via fire truck as part of the promotion.

department,” their pies were delivered by fire truck, and they also received free smoke alarm and carbon monoxide tests with their pies. The Donation Creation program has drummed up more than $20,000 since it started. “In a small, tourist-driven community like ours,” says Britt, “it’s important to give back and recognize what makes our county not only a wonderful place to visit, but a wonderful place to live.”

Quick Tip 3: Customers Can’t Get Enough Great Recipes The foodie generation loves recipes, as the success of Buzzfeed’s “Tasty” videos attests. Share your favorite personal recipes (not the secret ones on which your business depends, of course) with your Facebook fans and make sure to answer their questions about ingredients and portions.

11-Year-Old Inspires Pizza Making Marathon for Diabetes

When Alec Weavel, the son of Anna’s Pizza & Pasta owners Brian and Stacy Weavel, was diagnosed with diabetes last December, he rose to the challenge with fierce determination, made the necessary changes to his diet and lifestyle, and inspired his parents in the bargain. To raise money for diabetes research, the Winnebago, Illinois, pizzeria churned out pizzas for 24 hours straight on November 12, with Brian Weavel and employee Zach Brierton handling the kitchen duties. During the 24-hour period, 10% of sales were donated to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation of Illinois, and a silent auction raised additional money for the cause. “I’m so proud of how my son is controlling his diabetes,” Brian says. “He has championed his new way of life and inspired Anna’s to take on diabetes.”

Alec Weavel, pictured here after receiving his diagnosis of diabetes last December, inspired his parents, Brian and Stacy Weavel, to host a 24-hour pizza making fundraiser for juvenile diabetes research in November.

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PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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Crispier Crusts. Quicker Times.

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RECIPE MONTH of the

Red, White and Blue Pizza INGREDIENTS: 1 12’ prebaked crust 3 oz. Nutella ½ c. mixed red berries (strawberries, raspberries, etc.) ½ c. mixed dark berries (blackberries, blueberries, etc.)

Powdered sugar (for garnish)

DIRECTIONS: Spread the Nutella over prebaked pizza base. Place the mixed dark berries on the outside, and then place the mixed red berries in a pile in the center. Sprinkle with powdered sugar for garnish and serve warm.

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Yields 8 slices Recommended daypart: Lunch, Snack/Dessert, Dinner

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and care is put into every step of preparation. The Nutella recipe is available in more than 200 countries across the world, so that countless families around the globe start their days off with a spread and a smile.

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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Be Inspired. Be Creative. Be Original.

Use Nutella® to create unique and delicious pizzas and other creative items your customers are sure to love.

Breakfast Pizza with Nutella®

15.8% more operators are offering Nutella‰ dessert pizzas today vs. Q3 2015.

Nutella‰ menu mentions on dessert pizzas have

20% since

grown last year.

* Q3 2015 - Q3 2016 - 116 Menu items | 88 Operators

For more exciting recipe ideas and to learn more about Nutella®, visit www.ferrerofoodservice.com, or call (800) 408-1505 for more information. © Ferrero 2016

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M A R K E T I N G

M A R V E L S :

Vinnie’s Pizzeria

Meet the man behind the pizza box made of pizza and the funniest specials board in the biz.

By Liz Barrett | Photos provided by Vinnie's Pizzeria

P

izza inside a box made of pizza. Mini pizzas on top of a larger pizza. A vast collection of more than 700 artistic boards featuring laugh-out-loud funny food puns and artwork celebrating American pop culture. Vinnie’s Pizzeria, in the neighborhoods of Williamsburg and Greenpoint in Brooklyn, New York, is quickly becoming recognized for its outside-the-box creativity that regularly garners media attention.

PMQ Pizza Magazine sat down with Vinnie’s co-owner Sean Berthiaume to learn about the inspiration behind his creative specialty pizza boards and what he believes every pizzeria must possess before media attention can create any real impact.

PMQ: HOW DID YOU GET YOUR START IN PIZZA? Berthiaume: My business partners and I all worked as managers in pizzerias in Massachusetts throughout college. We were always promised our own stores if we worked hard enough, but nothing ever happened. Shortly 32

after moving to New York, we had an epiphany that we should start our own place. We found a pizzeria in Williamsburg called Vinnie’s that had been there since 1960.

It needed some work and already had several different owners. We took it over in 2007 and kept the classic New York recipe but also brought in our own specialty, vegan and gluten-free items. Two years later, we opened the Greenpoint location.

PMQ: SPEAKING OF VEGANS, A LOT OF YOUR MENU IS VEGETARIAN- AND VEGAN-FRIENDLY. IS THAT DEMOGRAPHIC A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF YOUR CUSTOMER BASE? Berthiaume: Yes. Twenty-five percent of the pizza we sell is vegan. We saw a lot of vegans at the last pizzeria we worked at, and we didn’t have anything to give them except a pizza without cheese. We made it our mission to cater to them at Vinnie’s. We have a lot of vegan friends and ask them for advice—listening to what they want

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Vinnie's Pizzeria in Brooklyn spent a lot of time in the headlines this year, thanks to a mix of excellent food and amusing limited-time promotions.

“Twenty-five percent of the pizza we sell is vegan. We saw a lot of vegans at the last pizzeria we worked at, and we didn’t have anything to give them except a pizza without cheese. We made it our mission to cater to them at Vinnie’s.”

— S E A N B E RT H I A U M E , V I N N I E ' S P I Z Z E R I A

and miss. A lot of the special boards incorporate veggie and vegan specials.

PMQ: WHEN AND WHY DID YOU START CREATING THE DAILY SPECIAL BOARDS THAT HAVE BROUGHT YOU SO MUCH ATTENTION? Berthiaume: Once I wasn’t working 16-hour days anymore, I had a little free time to make the boards. I started in 2010, mostly for my own enjoyment and my customers.

I’m one of those people who is always thinking of puns, so the specialty pizza names just come naturally to me. No one really paid attention to them until after a couple of years, when people saw how many were consistently posted on Tumblr. Then people started to take notice. I’ve done more than 700 now, and they’ve helped to grow our social media presence. Sometimes, I do them every day; other times, just once a week. It ties into our whole esthetic—we have employees and customers who are artists, and my partners are also artists. We try to be as creative as possible.

PMQ: HAS ONE BOARD ATTRACTED MORE ATTENTION THAN THE OTHERS? Berthiaume: I did a board that showed the monkey from The Lion King holding up a pizza. People were sending me pictures from pizzerias and bars that were copying it all over the place. There were even T-shirts being sold with the picture. It was flattering, but at the same time, people were also making money off of us.

PMQ: WHAT’S THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THE BOARDS? Berthiaume: A lot of the time, I just want to draw something, and I create a special around it. Sometimes, it may be somebody’s birthday and I want to honor them, or I just feel like drawing a cartoon character from the '80s.

Other times, maybe we just bought a lot of steak, and we want to run some steak specials. Creating the boards takes about three hours at home each night and is meditative for me. Since I do make them at home and bring them

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December 2016 pmq.com

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Vegan pizzas comprise 25% of the menu at Vinnie's.

Vinnie’s Pizzeria Daily Specials To view the full collection of Vinnie’s special menu boards, check out the pizzeria’s Tumblr page at specialbored.tumblr.com. Here are a few of our favorite pizza puns from Vinnie’s: From the Ken Bone board: Penneth Bone (penne noodles, ground beef, garlic, extra marinara sauce, mozzarella and ricotta) From the David Schwimmer board: We Were On a Bake (vegan baked goods, peanut butter brownies and chocolate whoopie pies) From the Abraham Lincoln board: Penny alla Vodka (creamy vodka sauce, penne noodles, bacon and extra mozzarella on a white slice) From the Beatles board: Mac in the USSR (macaroni noodles, sautéed spinach, sundried tomato and cheddar cheese on a white slice) From the Bob’s Burgers board: Jimmy Pesto-Chicken Jr. (pesto chicken, fresh garlic, roasted red peppers and provolone)

to the pizzeria the next day, I have to be careful with the delicate nature of the boards. There have been some accidents over the years—including the time my cat jumped on my board and erased it.

PMQ: HAVE YOU CONSIDERED SELLING OR GIVING AWAY THE BOARDS? Berthiaume: We’ve auctioned off a couple of the boards for charity, and I’ve given a few boards away. From a financial standpoint, the dry-erase boards can get pretty expensive. Besides, I like the idea of starting fresh each day with a new board.

34

“We see more tourists coming in now. We’ve had people come in and say they saw us on a TV show in Germany.”

— S E A N B E RT H I A U M E , VINNIE'S PIZZERIA

PMQ: YOUR PIZZA ON TOP OF A PIZZA WENT VIRAL AND ENDED UP ON JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE!. HOW DID THAT HAPPEN? Berthiaume: I didn’t plan on the pizza-on-pizza to be a marketing hit. Some things catch on, and others don’t. We try not to take ourselves too seriously. If I think something is funny, I’ll try it and make it a special. The pizza-on-pizza was shared so many times on social media that I started seeing it in memes in different versions. People said they heard about it on a radio station in Czechoslovakia. Jimmy Kimmel’s team picked up on it from all of that, plus he’s from Brooklyn. I’ve heard that he’s, like, obsessed with pizza and has his own pizza oven in his backyard.

PMQ: YOU ALSO CREATED A PIZZA BOX MADE OF ACTUAL PIZZA. IT RECEIVED EVEN MORE MEDIA ATTENTION THAN THE PIZZA ON TOP OF A PIZZA. HOW DO YOU COME UP WITH THESE IDEAS? Berthiaume: Yeah, I was doing five interviews a week about the pizza-box pizza. The ideas really just happen naturally. I never stop working and moving. Whenever we get caught up, I like to try different things. I like to fool around and have fun. I’m so lucky that my business partners, Jacob Petrera and Henrik Toncic, let me run wild. They’re working their hardest, too; we all have our own strengths.

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When Sean Berthiaume got the idea to top a pizza with little slices of more pizza, he had no idea it would land him on Jimmy Kimmel Live!

PMQ: HOW MANY ORDERS HAVE YOU RECEIVED FOR THE PIZZA-BOX PIZZA? Berthiaume: We were getting dozens of orders in the beginning. Some people from other parts of the country just called to talk to me and ask questions about it. After a while, I was like, “OK, I need to get back to work now.”

We tell customers that it takes 30 to 60 minutes to make the pizza in a pizza box, because it consists of three different pizzas made from scratch. If they get the regular cheese with a pepperoni pizza inside, it costs $40. If they decide to customize it, it’s $2 to $3 per topping added on to the price.

PMQ: DO THESE COMPLICATED PIZZAS SLOW DOWN THE PIZZERIA? Berthiaume: Not really. We have great employees who stepped it up, made things right, and got everything out.

They’re all happy for the attention, too.

PMQ: WHAT KIND OF EFFECT DOES THE MEDIA ATTENTION HAVE ON THE PIZZERIA? Berthiaume: We see more tourists coming in now. We’ve had people come in and say they saw us on a TV show in Germany.

PMQ: YOU JUST STARTED WORKING WITH MARVEL. TELL US ABOUT THAT. Berthiaume: Marvel has a video series called Make It Marvel, where they’re going to restaurant owners and famous chefs to see what they can come up with that’s 36

Marvel-like. They approached me, and we filmed a cooking video. I’m hoping we can do more.

PMQ: DO YOU FEEL ANY PRESSURE TO KEEP REPEATING MEDIA HITS? Berthiaume: I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t feel a little pressure. Whenever I do interviews, they always ask me, “What’s new?” or “What’s next?” I feel pressured when they ask me that.

PMQ: IS THERE A SECRET TO GOING VIRAL AND GETTING THE MEDIA TO NOTICE YOU? Berthiaume: Being on TV shows for pizza is crazy. I’m proud when it happens for us. You have that feeling where you want to chase it and repeat it, but you can’t. It wouldn’t be happening if we didn’t already have a great product to start with. You have to have the food, experience and work ethic for customers to come back again after a big media buzz. We already have a great core pizzeria with loyal customers; we’re always busy. This is all just a fun bonus.

Liz Barrett is PMQ’s editor at large and author of Pizza: A Slice of American History.

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To survive in a fiercely competitive market, operators must adapt to a rising demand for delivery, ease of ordering and “cleaner” ingredients in 2017.

P

izza makes everything better, but the world’s greatest food had to work overtime in 2016, which will long be remembered as the year we’d rather forget. Atrocities, natural disasters, the Syrian refugee crisis and the nastiest presidential election in recent memory left us all crying out for comfort—and pizza, as always, was there for us, dripping gooey, melty cheese and salty, savory goodness over our woes and worries.

So it should come as a surprise to no one that pizza consumption this year climbed to its highest level in the past four years, according to research firm Technomic’s 2016 Pizza Consumer Trend Report. Forty-one percent of consumers polled say they now eat pizza once a week, a big jump from 26% just two years ago. And a Harris Poll found pizza is Americans’ No. 1 favorite comfort food, earning twice as many votes as any other dish. (Take that, chocolate!)

In other words, don’t let anyone tell you that you’re in the wrong business. The pizza industry, in fact, forged ahead in the past year, even though independents, bound to decades of proud tradition and slow to adopt new technologies, continued to lag behind the chains in market share.

All in all, the signs point to modest growth in the segment, with fast-casual chains leading the charge and online ordering technology and third-party delivery options fueling the engine. Now let’s take a deeper look.

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WORLD PIZZA MARKET $128 BILLION US PIZZA MARKET $44 BILLION NO. OF US PIZZERIAS 76,723 AVERAGE UNIT SALES $579,127 CONSUMER DEMAND 26% TREND COMPARED TO 2015

A NEW APPROACH TO CATEGORIZING PIZZERIAS First, we’ve got some explaining to do about this year’s industry numbers. After working closely with research firms CHD Expert and Technomic, we’ve come up with some figures that don’t quite jibe with last year’s report. In the past, our data on pizza industry sales and store counts has varied because pizza itself has often been something of a nebulous restaurant category, floating between Quick Service (QSR), Full Service (FSR), Limited Service (LSR) and Fast-Casual. This year we’ve worked with CHD Expert and Technomic to better define the overall pizza restaurant category for the purposes of this report. We include in our data both pizzerias traditionally categorized as LSRs as well as any other restaurants (such as FSRs) with the word “pizza” in their names (Example: The California Pizza Kitchen chain was left out of previous reports for a while because Technomic classifies it as a FSR, but, with our new classification method, we’ll include it in our reports from now on—it’s definitely a pizza restaurant in our book.) In short, if pizza features prominently on your menu, we’re counting you.

The upshot? This new, broader category has yielded substantially bigger numbers for overall pizza industry

40

sales—plus a couple thousand additional stores—for the year ending September 30, 2016, compared to the previous year.

TOP 50 CHAINS SHOW GAINS So let’s take a closer look at those numbers. According to CHD Expert, there were 76,723 pizza restaurants in operation as of the end of September 2016. A total of 5,377 new pizzerias opened their doors in the past year, while 6,066 closed down. But if you dig a little deeper, you find that independent pizza shops held their own compared to the chains in terms of opens and closes.

Independents opened 3,614 stores and closed 3,656 stores, for a net loss of only 42 units. Chains, meanwhile, opened 1,763 stores and closed 2,410, for a net loss of 647. The total impact on the industry was a net loss of only 689 stores—less than 1%.

But the chains, while closing more stores, still outsold the independents. Independents now comprise 55% of America’s pizza restaurants while bringing in only 42.5% of the sales. With a total of 42,455 units operating as of September 30, 2016, independents logged sales of $18,879,367,505 this year, while the chains raked in

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IND

IN

OPENINGS

INDEPENDENT PIZZERIAS VS CHAIN STORES (MORE THAN 10 UNITS)

(LESS THAN 10 UNITS)

C

TO

INDEPENDENTS $18,879,367,505

SALES TOTAL

$44.43 Billion USD

IN

CHAINS $25,552,998,951

CLOSINGS

INDEPENDENTS 42,455

UNIT TOTAL 76,723

TO

CHAINS 34,268

INDEPENDENTS

AVERAGE SALES PER UNIT TOTAL $579,127

$ 444,691

CHAINS $745,681 SOURCE: CHD EXPERT

$25,552,998,951 with only 34,268 units, according to CHD Expert. Independents averaged $444,691 in sales per unit, compared to $745,681 per unit for the chains.

Combined, the independents and chains—again, we’re counting both LSRs and FSRs with “pizza” in their names—generated sales totaling $44,432,366,456, according to CHD Expert.

To arrive at our estimate of overall industry sales growth from last year, we looked at a couple of different sources— Technomic and Euromonitor International. Technomic reports a 5% increase in pizzeria sales in 2016, while Euromonitor shows a 2.5% increase. By splitting the difference, we’ve arrived at an estimated increase of 3.75% in sales for the past year. All in all, these are encouraging numbers. A net loss of less than 1% of the country’s pizza stores, coupled with an increase in industry-wide sales of 3.75%, suggests the pizza industry has stabilized, at least for the time being.

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, we again attribute the pizza chains’ higher market share in large part to technology. Even the smaller chains have gotten wise to the power of online ordering, which also boosts ticket averages. As we’ll see later on in this year’s report, Domino’s and Pizza Hut have dedicated themselves to the proposition that convenience trumps quality these days, and smaller chains have no choice but to keep up if they 42

want to stay competitive. The chains are also quick to experiment with new styles, unique toppings and trending flavor profiles. Independent operators who continue to underestimate the power of quick and easy ordering— paired with the enticement of flashy new menu items with bolder flavors—do so at their own peril.

WEIRD, WILD AND LOCALIZED Speaking of flashy new menu items, would you like a little kangaroo meat on your thin-crust? How about cactus or grasshoppers? If that sounds good to you, you may not be from around these parts. Although Americans have gotten pickier about the quality and flavor profile of our toppings, we still mostly stick with the tried-and-true: pork, chicken, maybe the occasional anchovy and, if you really want to get all fancy-pants, the odd truffle or two. For a real culinary adventure, you’ll have to hop on a jet to India or South Korea, where pizza makers, including at global chains like Pizza Hut and Domino’s, are reinventing the classic dish with local tastes in mind. “In nontraditional markets—those in which pizza is not traditionally a common offering—operators need to find ways to make pizza more appealing to consumers who are relatively unfamiliar with the format,” says Stephen Dutton, a consumer foodservice analyst with Euromonitor International. “Adopting local ingredients is one way to do this.”

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ES

In some cases, the experimentation gets a little wacky, but not always foreign to American palates. Pizza Hut Middle East has rolled out pizzas with cheeseburger sliders embedded in the crust and cone-shaped removable crusts stuffed with cream cheese. A Pizza Hut Singapore creation boasts a “lava crust” style, with Parmesan and cheddar cheeses oozing out of holes pocked throughout the crust. Things get a little stranger in Australia, where Pizza Hut last year launched a meat lovers pie on a crust stuffed with Vegemite, a thick, salty spread made from leftover brewers’ yeast extract.

“Pizza Hut has had a lot of success experimenting with their pizza offerings in international markets, because that’s what consumers often want and expect from these chains,” Dutton notes. The same goes for Domino’s, which encourages local sourcing of ingredients through its master franchise model and gives franchisees “a lot of localized control in terms of format type and product offering because they, as locals themselves, know what works best in their markets,” Dutton adds. “In India, one of the world’s most lucrative foodservice markets and one in which pizza

After launching in 2008, MOD Pizza has already become one of the five fastest-growing restaurant brands in the country.

MOD PIZZA

INDEPENDENT PIZZERIAS VS CHAIN STORES (LESS THAN 10 UNITS)

INDEPENDENTS

OPENINGS

CHAINS 1763

(MORE THAN 10 UNITS)

asfasfasInciaspi enihilignam quamust arum, ulpa voloreptate 3614 vendi natur rerenis pratatecae si doluptquatectem rendebi tasperu ptatissim laut facia ipicimintur?

TOTAL PIZZA INDUSTRY 5377

INDEPENDENTS 3656

CLOSINGS

CHAINS 2410

TOTAL PIZZA INDUSTRY 6066

NET LOSS

42

647

689

INDEPENDENTS

CHAINS

TOTAL PIZZA INDUSTRY SOURCE: CHD EXPERT December 2016 pmq.com

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U.S. PIZZA SALES $44.43 BILLION (YEAR ENDING SEPTEMBER 2015) SOURCE: CHD EXPERT & TECHNOMIC

1.3 2.7

8

TOP 50 CHAINS: 24.75 BILLION

55.72%

INDEPENDENTS & SMALL CHAINS: 19.75 BILLION

44.28%

is a largely unknown offering, Domino’s has launched market-specific formats—a sort of fast food-style format rather than Domino’s typical delivery/takeout format—and offers an array of pizzas you can’t find anywhere else, including a wide variety of vegetarian specialty pizzas and pizzas at varying spice levels, from spicy to extremely spicy.”

Overseas independents and smaller chains have been dabbling with homegrown ingredients, too. A restaurant in Sydney’s Australian Heritage Hotel tops pies with kangaroo, emu or crocodile meat. In South Korea, the up-and-coming Pizza Alvolo chain serves a crust (LESS THAN 10 UNITS) (MORE THAN 10 UNITS) made from Korean black rice and topping combos like sweet potato and bulgogi. Closer to home, Pixza, an independent store in Mexico INDEPENDENTS City, builds its pies with dough made of blue corn, commonly used in $18,879,367,505 tortillas and known for its healthy nutritional profile. “Pixza incorpoCHAINS rates a wide variety of traditional Mexican toppings and ingredients, $25,552,998,951 including cochinita pibil, mole, Jamaica flowers (hibiscus), nopales (a type of local cactus), and chayito, which are grasshoppers soaked INDEPENDENTS in lemon juice,” Dutton says.

INDEPENDENT PIZZERIAS VS CHAIN STORES

$42,455

KEEPING CHAINS IT CLEAN Most Americans may not start$34,268 gobbling down grasshoppers anytime soon, but, according to Technomic, we’re increasingly likely to try bold new flavors, such as pizzas inspired by Mexican, Asian and Caribbean INDEPENDENTS cuisines, as well as innovative limited-time-only pies. Spicy flavors $ 444,691 particularly resonate with today’s palates, as evidenced by the spicy red CHAINS sauce option offered by Blaze Pizza, and Pieology Pizzeria’s LTO offerings: the Spicy Southwest (red enchilada sauce, mozzarella and cheddar $745,681 cheeses, roasted red peppers, jalapeños, cilantro and chicken) and the Chicken Chile Verde (green enchilada sauce, mozzarella, roasted red peppers, diced mild green chilies, cilantro and chicken).

Beyond that, the watchwords for 2017 will be “authentic” and

ASIA

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Third-party companies like UberEATS have emerged to help meet rising demand for online ordering and delivery.

Fresh, locally grown and all-natural ingredients can drive up food costs but appeal to today’s consumers.

CHARLES SCHILLER

“clean,” both synonymous in the customer’s mind with “quality,” says Kelly Weikel, director of consumer insights for Technomic. “Authenticity is really big in terms of consumer demand overall,” she says. “In the pizza space, you have that natural association with Italian fare, so you have the opportunity to not just take authenticity from the quality approach but also from that approach of old-world tradition, recipes and sourcing of ingredients from Italy. You can go above and beyond authenticity in terms of quality to something that really connects it with a place and time.”

Many independent pizzeria operators can lay claim to authenticity, especially if they have Italian roots or a history of community involvement. Going “clean” with your ingredients, however, can be costly. The term generally refers to fresh, organic, wholesome foods with few or no artificial ingredients, dyes and additives. According to Technomic, 58% of customers say they’d like restaurants to offer all-natural pizza. But locally sourced, organic ingredients can drive up food costs, and owners have to be careful not to buy more ingredients than they can use.

By their very nature, the megachains struggle with authenticity, but when it comes to “clean” ingredients, Pizza Hut and Papa John’s have been leading the way.

Pizza Hut removed artificial flavors and colors from its core pizza line in 2015 and eliminated BHA and BHT additives from its meats this year. The company has vowed to get rid of preservatives in its cheese and human 46

antibiotics in its chicken by the end of March and will strip out additional preservatives and additives by 2020.

Papa John’s has cleaned up its menu, too, at a reported cost of $100 million per year. Its grilled chicken toppings and chicken poppers now come from poultry raised without human or animal antibiotics and fed a vegetarian diet.

The company says it has also gotten rid of 14 undesirable ingredients, including various artificial colors, flavor enhancers, sweeteners, thickeners and preservatives. It even pulled the MSG from its ranch dressing. “It’s hard to remove some of these things and still get the flavor and functionality you want,” founder John Schnatter told Bloomberg. “We gave up flavor on the ranch dressing because I wanted to get the chemical out.”

THIRD-PARTY VOTES The growing importance of online and mobile ordering cannot be overemphasized. Despite carrying their phones everywhere they go, many customers don’t want to actually talk on them—at least not to a harried pizzeria staffer who may put them on hold or botch the order. Online ordering will likely overtake phone orders by the end of the decade, and it fits hand-in-glove with delivery service.

As ordering online gets easier, experts say delivery will become a must-have for many restaurants—and not just pizzerias. A 2016 Morgan Stanley study found delivery is a $30 billion industry, but it has the potential to be worth more like $210 billion—the total amount currently

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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Adam Paccione of Red Tractor Pizza has built a thriving business around clean, local ingredients; DoorDash (right) has become a player in food delivery.

DOOR DASH

RED TRACTOR PIZZA

spent on off-premise dining. Of that $30 billion figure, $11 billion in delivery orders are placed online, and nearly two-thirds of those online orders are for pizza. According to POS provider Toast’s Restaurant Technology in 2016: Dining Edition report, 57% of survey respondents now order from a restaurant’s website daily, weekly or monthly.

That means more requests for delivery, but many pizzerias already struggle to keep up with demand, which is why third-party providers—such as UberEats, Eat24, DoorDash and Caviar—have emerged as new power players. Online retailer Amazon even jumped into the game last year and delivers food in cities like New York, Dallas, Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and Baltimore. Many of these companies field the online orders for restaurants and even handle all or some of the delivery— for a substantial fee, of course (up to 30% of the order).

Elsewhere in this month’s PMQ, Rick Drury, owner of Precinct Pizza in Tampa, Florida, describes his recent foray into third-party delivery (“The Third-Party Wave, Part 1,” Page 64). He says pizzerias can save money on drivers and related expenses, but they risk losing that 48

all-important personal connection with their customers.

And since third-party providers act independently of the pizza restaurant, there’s no way to control how the drivers present themselves to customers. A survey by Technomic, On Demand Delivery: Disrupting the Future of Foodservice, echoes Drury’s concerns; it found that 76% of consumers will hold the restaurant at least partially responsible for errors made by a third-party delivery service.

DOUBLING DOWN ON EASY The rising demand for online ordering and delivery isn’t exactly shocking news to the major chains. Greg Creed of Yum! Brands told investors this year that “easy beats better” is the company’s new mantra, especially for Pizza Hut. Creed found inspiration in an unexpected source: the ride-sharing service Uber. “If you think about the Uber experience, it’s easy to order, it’s easy to pay, and then it’s very easy to track,” he told investors earlier this year, adding that it’s time to “double down on easy.” With that in mind, Pizza Hut has renewed its focus on faster delivery and added a loyalty program tied to its mobile

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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TOP 50 PIZZA CHAINS BY ANNUAL SALES RANK BY CATEGORY 2014 U.S. UNITS

UNITS CHANGE (%)

2015 AVERAGE SALES PER UNIT

2014 AVERAGE SALES PER UNIT

UNITS CHANGE (%)

7,822

7,863

-0.52%

704.42

699.48

0.71%

5,200

5,067

2.62%

905.50

814.08

11.23%

4,256

4,025

5.74%

822.37

802.96

2.42%

5.32%

3,290

3,250

1.23%

855.93

822.72

4.04%

843,000

4.44%

1,496

1,433

4.40%

588.52

588.28

0.04%

742,500

713,900

4.01%

228

219

4.11%

3256.58

3259.82

-0.10%

Cicis

430,000

419,000

2.63%

445

434

2.53%

966.29

965.44

0.09%

Round Table Pizza

424,107

399,500

6.16%

437

435

0.46%

970.50

918.39

5.67%

5

Marco's Pizza

417,632

310,900

34.33%

667

570

17.02%

626.13

545.44

14.79%

37

33

Chuck E. Cheese's

364,294

365,000

-0.19%

541

545

-0.73%

673.37

669.72

0.54%

8

40

16

Hungry Howie's Pizza

342,478

327,126

4.69%

548

552

-0.72%

624.96

592.62

5.46%

12

13

26

43

Jet's Pizza

339,500

282,600

20.13%

384

310

23.87%

884.11

911.61

-3.02%

13

7

46

29

Godfather's Pizza

299,200

316,300

-5.41%

550

590

-6.78%

544.00

536.10

1.47%

14

14

32

26

Sbarro

261,400

279,694

-6.54%

333

364

-8.52%

784.98

768.39

2.16%

15

18

13

9

Pizza Ranch

228,618

202,400

12.95%

192

188

2.13%

1190.72

1076.60

10.60%

16

38

3

27

Bertucci's

191,800

192,700

-0.47%

86

88

-2.27%

2230.23

2189.77

1.85%

17

35

5

19

Peter Piper Pizza

190,500

182,400

4.44%

94

94

0.00%

2026.60

1940.43

4.44%

18

25

12

20

Donatos Pizza

183,600

175,000

4.91%

153

152

0.66%

1200.00

1151.32

4.23%

19

22

18

17

Mellow Mushroom

162900

154,900

5.16%

164

164

0.00%

993.29

944.51

5.16%

20

15

42

10

Villa Fresh Italian Kitchen

148,612

134,554

10.45%

245

244

0.41%

606.58

551.45

10.00%

21

41

4

14

LaRosa's Pizzeria

145505

135,586

7.32%

66

65

1.54%

2204.62

2085.94

5.69%

22

24

25

13

Papa Gino's Pizzeria

144,680

144,800

-0.08%

163

173

-5.78%

887.61

836.99

6.05%

23

26

23

39

Mazzio's Italian Eatery

124,600

127,900

-2.58%

133

135

-1.48%

936.84

947.41

-1.12%

24

16

48

41

Fox's Pizza Den

124,200

129,300

-3.94%

242

245

-1.22%

513.22

527.76

-2.75%

25

23

34

2

Mountain Mike's Pizza

122,054

90,900

34.27%

164

155

5.81%

744.23

586.45

26.90%

26

10

50

45

Pizza Pro

118,300

110,000

7.55%

460

410

12.20%

257.17

268.29

-4.14%

27

19

41

22

Rosati's Pizza

118,100

110,900

6.49%

190

185

2.70%

621.58

599.46

3.69%

28

31

11

47

Gatti's Pizza

116,500

126,826

-8.14%

97

100

-3.00%

1201.03

1268.26

-5.30%

29

30

15

12

Ledo Pizza

109,978

99,980

10.00%

99

98

1.02%

1110.89

1020.20

8.89%

31

29

20

1

Blaze Pizza

100,600

33,000

204.85%

104

50

108.00%

967.31

660.00

46.56%

30

21

47

28

Pizza Inn

92,950

92,593

0.39%

179

181

-1.10%

519.27

511.56

1.51%

32

46

9

18

Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza

83800

73,900

13.40%

52

48

8.33%

1611.54

1539.58

4.67%

33

45

10

38

Giordano's

83,400

76,000

9.74%

54

49

10.20%

1544.44

1551.02

-0.42%

34

34

27

48

Happy's Pizza

83,200

80,900

2.84%

95

87

9.20%

875.79

929.89

-5.82%

35

47

8

6

Shakey's Pizza Parlor

82,900

77,400

7.11%

51

54

-5.56%

1625.49

1433.33

13.41%

36

32

29

46

Famous Famiglia

81,900

89,100

-8.08%

96

99

-3.03%

853.13

900.00

-5.21%

37

39

22

49

Pieology Pizzeria

74,610

44,600

67.29%

78

42

85.71%

956.54

1061.90

-9.92%

39

33

33

40

Imo's Pizza

71,900

70,500

1.99%

96

92

4.35%

748.96

766.30

-2.26%

38

48

7

24

Wolfgang Puck Express

71,900

79,300

-9.33%

44

50

-12.00%

1634.09

1586.00

3.03%

40

42

17

11

Monical's Pizza

64,942

61,529

5.55%

63

65

-3.08%

1030.83

946.60

8.90%

41

36

36

50

MOD Pizza

64,800

27,000

140.0%

92

31

196.77%

704.35

870.97

-19.13%

42

44

14

30

Monkey Joe's

64,100

65,500

-2.14%

55

57

-3.51%

1165.45

1149.12

1.42%

43

43

16

23

Me-N-Ed's Pizzeria

63,000

61,100

3.11%

60

60

0.00%

1050.00

1018.33

3.11%

44

50

2

42

Dion's Pizza

62,300

55,000

13.27%

21

18

16.67%

2966.67

3055.56

-2.91%

45

27

44

4

Pizza Factory

60,750

49,100

23.73%

111

110

0.91%

547.30

446.36

22.61%

46

40

31

7

Toppers Pizza

59,778

48,762

22.59%

73

67

8.96%

818.88

727.79

12.52%

47

37

38

31

ZPizza

59,500

59,400

0.17%

89

90

-1.11%

668.54

660.00

1.29%

48

28

45

34

Giovanni's Pizza

57200

57,000

0.35%

105

105

0.00%

544.76

542.86

0.35%

49

49

6

44

Brixx Wood Fired Pizza

56700

51,000

11.18%

30

26

15.38%

1890.00

1961.54

-3.65%

50

20

49

3

Simple Simon's Pizza

53,600

48,400

10.74%

184

210

-12.38%

291.30

230.48

26.39%

SALES

UNITS

AVERAGE SALES PER UNIT

AVERAGE SALES CHANGE

CHAIN NAME

1

1

35

32

Pizza Hut

5,510,000

5,500,000

0.18%

2

2

24

8

Domino's

4,708,587

4,124,936

14.15%

3

3

30

25

Little Caesars

3,500,000

3,231,900

8.30%

4

4

28

21

Papa John's

2,816,017

2,673,854

5

5

43

36

Papa Murphy's Pizza

880,429

6

17

1

37

CPK

7

11

21

35

8

12

19

15

9

6

39

10

9

11

2015 U.S. SALES (X 1,000)

SOURCE: TECHNOMIC

2014 U.S. SALES (X 1,000)

SALES CHANGE (%)

BASED ON 2015 SALES

2015 U.S. UNITS

* TECHNOMIC ESTIMATE

December 2016 pmq.com

PizzaPowerDecember16.indd 49

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app. But it will have a hard time catching up with its rival, Domino’s. Although Domino’s trails Pizza Hut in total number of stores, the delivery giant takes a back seat to no one in ease of ordering. Don’t look to NASA for a breakthrough in teleportation—if there’s a way to beam a meat lovers pie into your living room, Domino’s is on track to figure it out first.

Domino’s multiplatform Anyware campaign lets customers order pizza from almost anywhere—with a tap on their smart watch, by voice in their snazzy Ford Taurus, or with a click of their remote in the middle of Game of Thrones. Once they go online and set up a “Pizza Profile” (including name, address and credit card number) with their favorite “Easy Order” (say, a medium thin-crust with pepperoni and sausage), customers can text or tweet a pizza emoji, shoot off an order via Facebook Messenger or bark a command to their wireless, voice-controlled Amazon Echo, and pizza’s on the way. Does that still sound like too much work? The company’s Zero-Click app caters to the truly indolent, placing an “Easy Order” automatically when it’s opened—no clicks required, although there’s a 10-second countdown in case the customer changes his mind.

It’s no wonder many industry observers now refer to Domino’s not as a pizza chain but as a tech company. In 2014, Domino’s rolled out its own version of Apple’s Siri, a smartphone-dwelling personal assistant ready to tend to the user’s every pizza need, and has been tinkering with delivery robots in Australia and drone delivery in New Zealand. Meanwhile, the company’s flashy DXP “super-delivery” car, tricked out with a built-in warming oven and space for 80 pizzas, makes every trip a joyride for drivers at dozens of U.S. locations.

THE FAST-CASUAL PHENOMENON If all that digital wizardry makes you want to write an angry letter to the editor on your Smith-Corona typewriter, just remember that millennials—a segment of young consumers now aged about 19 to 34—use these technologies to buy more pizza. A LendEDU study of 500,000 transactions on Venmo, a fast-growing app that’s essentially Paypal for the 20-something crowd, found pizza was the most common purchase by millennials (also high on the list were tequila and strippers—we never said millennials were angels).

As PMQ reported in last year’s report, millennials have

&Pizza in Washington, D.C. stands out as a fast-casual restaurant brand with strong millennial appeal.

& PIZZA

PizzaPowerDecember16.indd 50

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PMQnov.final.indd 1 PizzaPowerDecember16.indd 51

51 11/1/16 9:31 9:40AM AM 11/14/16

TOP

20

PMQ’S TOP 20 CHAINS HIGHEST VOLUME

MOST IMPROVED

LARGEST

1. California Pizza Kitchen 2. Dion’s Pizza 3. Bertucci’s 4. LaRosa’s Pizzeria 5. Peter Piper Pizza 6. Brixx Wood Fired Pizza 7. Wolfgang Puck Express 8. Shakey’s Pizza Parlor 9. Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza 10. Giordano’s 11. Gatti’s Pizza 12. Donatos Pizza 13. Pizza Ranch 14. Monkey Joe’s 15. Ledo Pizza 16. Me-N-Ed’s Pizzeria 17. Monical’s Pizza 18. Mellow Mushroom 19. Round Table Pizza 20. Blaze Pizza

1. Blaze Pizza 2. Mountain Mike’s Pizza 3. Simple Simon’s Pizza 4. Pizza Factory 5. Marco’s Pizza 6. Shakey’s Pizza Parlor 7. Toppers Pizza 8. Domino’s 9. Pizza Ranch 10. Villa Fresh Italian Kitchen 11. Monical’s Pizza 12. Ledo Pizza 13. Papa Gino’s Pizzeria 14. LaRosa’s Pizzeria 15. Round Table Pizza 16. Hungry Howie’s Pizza 17. Mellow Mushroom 18. Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza 19. Peter Piper Pizza 20. Donatos Pizza

1. Pizza Hut 2. Domino’s 3. Little Caesars 4. Papa John’s 5. Papa Murphy’s Pizza 6. California Pizza Kitchen 7. Cici’s 8. Round Table Pizza 9. Marco’s Pizza 10. Chuck E. Cheese’s 11. Hungry Howie’s Pizza 12. Jet’s Pizza 13. Godfather’s Pizza 14. Sbarro 15. Pizza Ranch 16. Bertucci’s 17. Peter Piper Pizza 18. Donatos Pizza 19. Mellow Mushroom 20. Villa Fresh Italian Kitchen

The fast-casual Blaze Pizza chain emerged as the No. 1 fastest-growing restaurant chain in the U.S. this year.

52

BLAZE PIZZA

become a force to be reckoned with, and their demand for customizable meals has also fueled the fast-casual trend, which continued unabated last year, according to Technomic’s 2016 Top 500 Chain Restaurant Report. The fast-casual segment nearly doubled the growth rate of any other dining segment in 2015, achieving 11.4% sales growth. Blaze Pizza emerged as the fastest-growing restaurant chain of 2015, with year-over-year sales up by 205%. Two other fast-casual pizza companies were among the five fastest-growing restaurant brands: MOD Pizza’s sales climbed by 182%, and Pieology Pizzeria posted a 67% gain.

Keep in mind that Blaze Pizza opened its first location in 2012, while Pieology launched in 2011, and MOD Pizza started in 2008. With growth like that, maybe we should stop labeling fast-casual a trend and start calling it a phenomenon.

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

PizzaPowerDecember16.indd 52

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ONE LAST VICTORY IN NUTRITIONAL LABELING Under FDA rules scheduled to take effect May 5, 2017, restaurant chains with 20 or more locations will have to provide calorie counts for all regular menu items, along with a statement about suggested daily caloric intake. More nutritional data—covering total fat, trans fat, saturated fat and carbs, to name a few—must be disclosed in writing upon customer request.

Earlier versions of the rules, which counted a whole pizza as a single serving, alarmed the pizza industry. After some pushback, revised guidelines allowed most pizzerias to list calories and related info by the slice (as long as they state how many slices each whole pizza contains) and to list a range of calories for build-your-own pies with various possible combinations of toppings. But the rules presented one last hurdle for the pizza industry, specifically for pizzerias that serve party-style or square-cut pies.

Round pizzas yield roughly uniform slices—each with about the same amount of crust, sauce and toppings—making it easier to come up with a single calorie count per slice. But nonround pies may yield slices in various sizes and inside pieces with no corners, and deriving a single calorie count for those pieces would have been much more difficult. Hence, pizzerias that serve nonround pizzas would

Independents like Big Apple Pizza in Havelock, North Carolina, parlay authenticity and quality food into lasting success.

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December 2016 pmq.com

PizzaPowerDecember16.indd 53

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TOP 50 PIZZA CHAINS BY ANNUAL SALES STATE

NO. OF STORES

POPULATION

STORES PER 10,000 PEOPLE

New Hampshire

515

1,320,720

3.90

Massachusetts

2,426

6,646,140

3.65

Iowa

1,122

3,074,190

3.65

Pennsylvania

4,601

12,763,540

3.60

Rhode Island

373

1,050,290

3.55

Delaware

319

917,090

3.48

Ohio

3,975

11,544,230

3.44

Connecticut

1,236

3,590,350

3.44

New Jersey

2,987

8,864,590

3.37

West Virginia

584

1,855,410

3.15

Indiana

2,026

6,537,330

3.10

Michigan

2,998

9,883,360

3.03

New York

5,776

19,570,260

2.95

Maine

378

1,329,190

2.84

North Dakota

197

699,630

2.82

Vermont

173

626,010

2.76

South Dakota

228

833,350

2.74

Montana

267

1,005,140

2.66

Kentucky

1,118

4,380,420

2.55

Kansas

733

2,885,910

2.54

Missouri

1,522

6,021,990

2.53

Illinois

3,246

12,875,260

2.52

Nebraska

465

1,855,530

2.51

Minnesota

1,335

5,379,140

2.48

Arkansas

727

2,949,130

2.47

Florida

4,722

19,317,570

2.44

Nevada

669

2,758,930

2.42

Maryland

1,384

5,884,560

2.35

Wyoming

134

576,410

2.32

Oregon

898

3,899,350

2.30

Idaho

367

1,595,730

2.30

Wisconsin

1,308

5,726,400

2.28

Oklahoma

860

3,814,820

2.25

Washington & DC

139

618,000

2.25

Virginia

1,828

8,185,870

2.23

Colorado

1,140

5,187,580

2.20

Tennessee

1,413

6,456,240

2.19

North Carolina

2,102

9,752,070

2.16

South Carolina

1,010

4,723,720

2.14

Alaska

149

731,450

2.04

Washington

1,361

6,897,010

1.97

Utah

552

2,855,290

1.93

Texas

4,862

26,059,200

1.87

California

7,051

38,041,430

1.85

Arizona

1,198

6,553,260

1.83

Georgia

1,753

9,919,950

1.77

Mississippi

513

2,984,930

1.72

New Mexico

352

2,085,540

1.69

Alabama

777

4,822,020

1.61

Louisiana

723

4,601,890

1.57

Hawaii

131

1,392,310

0.94

54

ABOVE AVERAGE

AVERAGE

SOURCE: CHD EXPERT

BELOW AVERAGE

BASED ON 2016 SALES

GRANDE

N

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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still have been required to declare a calorie total for the whole pizza, a deceptively larger number, instead of by the slice.

Marla Topliff, chair of the NRA’s Pizzeria Industry Council and president of the Rosati’s Pizza chain (which serves party-style pies), enlisted foodservice nutrition consultant Betsy Craig, founder and CEO of MenuTrinfo, to change the FDA’s mind. “We were originally told the only option these pizzerias had was to label the calories for the full pizza, but we fought to show the FDA how this could put them at a disadvantage,” Craig said. “The calories for an entire large pizza would appear astronomical, especially compared to their competition, which may label their calories by the traditional triangular slice.”

The FDA agreed to let pizzerias with nonround pies list per-slice data based on an average slice size, as long as they don’t under-declare numbers for calories, fat and

saturated fat or over-declare on nutrients like fiber and vitamins. “Having the calories provided per slice of pizza, as opposed to an entire pie, will not only enable guests to better understand the information; it will also allow our clients more flexibility in their labeling,” Craig said.

Smaller chains and single units will be exempt from the new rules, but should they offer nutritional data anyway? “I think they should,” Weikel says. “Consumers feel strongly entitled to know what they’re eating—how many calories, how much fat, etc. I think that information needs to be made available to the consumer. It doesn’t necessarily have to be front and center—you could just put it deeper into your app or your website.” The numbers probably won’t surprise customers anyway, and they won’t stop eating your pizza based on nutritional data. “Pizza is still an indulgence,” Weikel says.

WORLD PIZZA MARKET $128 BILLION (IN BILLIONS) 10.28% 3.48% 7.39%

WESTERN EUROPE $47.28 BIL

NORTH AMERICA $45.15 BIL

EASTERN EUROPE 12.67%

MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA

RUSSIA $.83 BIL 10.99%

25.76%

ASIA PACIFIC $10.80 BIL

$3.38 BIL

30.70%

CHINA $3.67 BIL

$4.71 BIL 8.12%

45.15%

AUSTRALASIA $1.97 BIL

LATIN AMERICA $13.28 BIL SOURCE: EUROMONITOR INTERNATIONAL

(INCLUDING A FORECAST THROUGH 2020)

December 2016 pmq.com

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Y

BURKE

HOW TO COMPETE IN 2017

1

CLEAN UP YOUR ACT. Millennials want natural ingredients and “responsibly raised” meats without any added hormones and antibiotics. Natural, unprocessed, sustainable and locally grown ingredients are more important than “low-fat” and “low-carb” to many consumers, especially millennials and Generation X.

2

OFFER NUTRITIONAL DATA. Once the larger chains start providing this info as required by law, health-conscious customers will come to expect transparency from smaller pizzerias, too. According to the National Restaurant Association, 70% of customers order more healthful options at restaurants today than they did 10 years ago. You don’t have to put nutritional data front and center on your menu, but make it available on your website or in your app.

3

GET CREATIVE IN THE KITCHEN. Create new specialty pizzas and LTOs featuring locally grown, in-season toppings, and explore new flavor profiles and ingredients, such as chorizo, chipotle or Jamaican jerk chicken. To boost your lunch business, offer lighter, personal-size pizzas or create a brunch pizza for the weekend crowd, Technomic recommends.

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4

TAKE THE ONLINE ORDERING PLUNGE. Talk to your POS company about the options available to you. If they can’t help, third-party providers now abound, and you can negotiate with them on fees and commissions.

5

CASH IN ON THE DEMAND FOR DELIVERY. If you’ve never offered delivery before, this is the time to give it a second look. You don’t necessarily need a team of drivers; third-party aggregators like DoorDash and UberEats will get your pizza into more living rooms if you’re willing to share a piece of every sale.

6

REWARD YOUR LOYAL CUSTOMERS. The major chains are leveraging tech-based rewards programs to foster loyalty and acquire crucial data about their customers. Don’t let them get ahead of you. Set up a system that your customers can use online and offline, make signup a snap, track spending habits, and tailor your rewards to users.

Rick Hynum is PMQ’s editor-in-chief

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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December 2015 pmq.com

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John Arena, co-owner of Metro Pizza, conducts a packed pizza business class at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas.

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the of a P A R T

1

A pizza industry leader explains how to overcome economic challenges—and build a better operation—by changing the way you think about your business and your customers. By John Arena Flat restaurant sales have led some economists to speculate that harder times might be on the way in 2017, although other experts say there’s no reason to panic. At PMQ, we’re journalists, not economists, and don’t pretend to have the expertise to make predictions about the future economy. However, we do want to help our readers prepare for any economic challenges that may lie ahead. In this first installment of a three-part series, John Arena, co-owner of Metro Pizza in Las Vegas and a highly respected pizzeria operator, offers insights on how to thrive—and think like a winner—in hard economic times.

W DANIEL PEREA

hen folks ask if a restaurant recession is inevitable, my first thought is, “Will the sun eventually set?”

The truth is, most of us are running scared. We can have our best sales month in history, but if it’s followed by one slow day, we start thinking that customers are never coming back. After nearly 50 years in the pizza business, I’ve gotten used to the idea that we’re on a permanent roller coaster, and a lofty ascent is often followed by a pretty steep and scary drop.

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Pay attention and be cautious, but don’t write off emerging trends as “just a fad.” Online and mobile ordering are relatively recent technologies that have made a huge impact on the way pizzerias operate.

While most operators can withstand an occasional downturn, it becomes particularly dangerous when a drop in sales comes on the heels of a prolonged flat period.

For many operators, this seems to be the recent trend.

We must always be mindful of the fact that no business and no demographic is recession-proof. In November 1929, former millionaires were jumping off rooftops.

But take heart—even in the worst depression in modern history, not everyone went broke. So how do you protect yourself, your family, your team and your business from the downturns that are sure to come from time to time?

STEP 1. IDENTIFY WHAT BUSINESS YOU ARE REALLY IN. Sounds obvious, but is it really? Even the most successful business owner can lose sight of what his real business is.

At one time, Sears was a dominant retailer in the United States. The problem was, they thought they were in the

It’s easy for a longtime pizza maker to brush off what the newbies are doing. We do so at our own peril. The best long-term operators are informed by what’s come before, but not bound by it.

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mail-order catalog business; then along came online shopping, and they failed to keep up. Where are Polaroid and Kodak in the age of instant digital images?

In the case of the pizza business, you must first ask yourself, “What is my particular niche?” Once you have determined who you are, you must decide who you want to be. For many operators, that isn’t easy to do. Most pizzeria operators take great pride in staying true to their founding vision. They will proudly state, “Unchanged for 50 Years!” Well, guess what? Your business may not have changed, but your customers certainly have. From lifestyle and family structure to cultural identity, virtually everything that may influence buying patterns is changing more rapidly than our parents and grandparents could have imagined. Always remember that, nostalgia aside, we are not building museums; we are running a business. That means constantly evaluating and responding to today’s customer and trying to anticipate what your future customers are going to crave. Starbucks has a store on every corner for a good reason: evolution. If you read founder Howard Schultz’s first book, it’s obvious that the global brand he runs today is light-years from what he originally envisioned. Most notably, many of the things he swore he would never do, such as selling food, have now become a huge component of his business!

STEP 2. KEEP A BEGINNER’S MIND. Maintain an open mind and never stop learning. Some of the most exciting, innovative changes are coming from people who are relatively new to our business. They know

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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PMQ_h

Successful operators know that constant vigilance must be applied to all areas of their business, from payroll to portion control, menu planning to theft protection.

STEP 3. DON’T FEAR CHANGE. It is the cosmic force of nature. Stay light on your feet.

Learn to run lean even in peak sales periods. Payroll, purchasing, portion control, menu planning, theft protection—all of the crucial components of our business —must be continually tightened. Fiscal discipline isn’t always the most exciting part of our business, but it’s a lot more fun than closing shop. Teach yourself to see every cultural shift as a new opportunity.

People PMQ_halfpage_FWE-2016_Layout 1 5/3/2016 8:09 AM Pageare 1 not going

DICK WATERMAN

how to seize advantages that more experienced operators don’t even perceive. It’s easy for a longtime pizza maker to brush off what the newbies are doing. We do so at our own peril. The best long-term operators are informed by what’s come before but not bound by it. Watch everything. Don’t just look at pizza trends. Keep an eye on every consumer pattern and demographic shift. Learn to identify the difference between a fad and a trend.

to stop eating pizza, but how, where, and what kind of pizza they eat will definitely evolve. An astute business owner constantly implements incremental improvements and subtle changes that enhance the guest experience. The caveat is that this must be done in a nonthreatening way.

Radical change will leave customers and team members disoriented. Instead, build a culture of flexibility, and keep everyone engaged as your business evolves to satisfy modern dining habits.

John Arena is the co-owner of Metro Pizza, with five locations in Las Vegas.

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Precinct Pizza runs its own in-house team of drivers while also using third-party services to meet a high demand for delivery.

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The

Third-Party Wave P A R T

1

The owner of Precinct Pizza weighs the pros and cons of using outside delivery services—and explains why he has taken the plunge.

By Rick Drury | Photos provided by Precinct Pizza Editor’s note: This article will be the first of a two-part series about Rick Drury’s experiences with third-party delivery.

A

ccidents happen, but some accidents—even apparently minor ones—can be devastating in the pizza delivery business. I learned this lesson the hard way after one of my drivers rear-ended another car during a routine delivery a few years ago. I went to the scene of the accident myself, and as a former New York City paramedic who has seen my fair share of wrecks, I estimated this to be a slow-speed (20 m.p.h.) rear-impact collision, causing minimal damage, and no one reported any injuries.

Three years passed, and I believed that my insurance company had handled it—until one day I received a letter from my insurer stating that they would not renew my policy. Unbeknownst to me, the woman whose car had been rear-ended had a stroke three weeks after the accident and claimed it was caused by the stress of the wreck. As ludicrous as it sounds, my insurance company took her claim seriously and decided to pay out nearly $500,000 to her—all of this with zero input from me or any notification of their intent to pay the claim. Suddenly, I had an enormous insurance payout on my record due to a driver’s accident. No insurance company would touch me. What could I do?

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Precinct Pizza’s delivery cars make an unforgettable impression on the streets of Tampa, Florida.

Eighty-three percent of U.S. pizzerias offer delivery. If you’re one of them, how do you protect yourself? Do you even have Non-Owned & Hired auto insurance? Is there a way to cash in on the lucrative delivery business without all of the headaches—hiring and scheduling drivers; buying car tops, uniforms and other necessary supplies; and paying for insurance? Yes, there is. Let’s explore an alternative to in-house delivery: third-party services.

OUTLINING THE BENEFITS Third-party delivery service is a booming business. Some of these online startups quickly gained valuations of billions of dollars after just a few years in business. They provide pizzeria owners with a source of revenue minus the potential pitfalls of hiring your own drivers. There are many to choose from, including Eat24, GrubHub,

DoorDash, Seamless, Caviar and Postmates. Additionally, two huge tech companies have entered the restaurant delivery market: UberEats and Amazon Prime Now Restaurant Delivery.

There are many pros of using these services in place of in-house delivery, including: dd No hiring and training drivers dd No money spent on uniforms, car tops, hot bags or other delivery expenses dd No money spent on insuring drivers dd No scheduling hassles dd No dealing with complaints about an employee’s driving or rudeness to a customer dd Money saved on advertising—third-party companies advertise your business at their own expense dd Reduced staff and labor costs

PRO:

CON:

Contracting with a thirdparty delivery service reduces the hassles of driver recruitment, training and scheduling.

66

Third-party companies don’t know your menu as well as your employees do, so mistakes are more likely to occur.

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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In a Tampa market saturated with chains, Precinct Pizza has grown into one of the busiest independent pizzerias in the nation.

of the amount of the order, and you don’t lose those customers to another pizzeria.

Finally, the third-party delivery service may deliver outside your delivery area, opening your restaurant to new potential customers and income that would have been previously unattainable.

SPLITTING THE WORK In fact, you don’t have to entrust your entire delivery program to a third-party company. In my case, I’ve retained my own staff of professional drivers and vehicles, while UberEats and Amazon Prime Now Restaurant Delivery manage a portion of our deliveries. My pizzeria, Precinct Pizza, is very well-known locally for its eye-catching delivery vehicles, which pay homage to the New York Police Department and reinforce our ties to New York and New York-style pizza. We’ve got delivery down pat in our market, and our pizza brand is one of the most recognized in Tampa. But that doesn’t mean there is no room for improvement.

So far, I’ve identified several advantages to partnering with a third-party delivery company. For example, it’s a lot easier to handle routing of deliveries. Imagine that 20 customers want delivery from your restaurant right now.

If you do not have an outside delivery service, you will have to deliver all 20 of those orders; however, with an outside delivery service, maybe five of those orders will come through that third party. Thus, you only have to deliver 15 orders rather than all 20.

Additionally, if you can’t handle a rush because you’re low on drivers, you can direct your customers to the thirdparty service. They still get their pizza, you receive most

CONSIDERING THE CONS Now let’s discuss the cons to outsourcing your delivery business. Crucially, of course, you won’t make as much money per order. You will have to pay a percentage of the order to the outside company, usually around 20% to 30% of the order. Other cons include: dd The third-party company doesn’t know your menu as well as your employees do, so mistakes are more likely to occur. dd You may lose that personal connection to your customer. Pizza is a comfort food, and many people want to be assured that their pie is being made and delivered by someone who knows them as a “regular.” dd You have no control over the outside company’s ability to deliver your product on time. If they do a poor job, it will reflect on your restaurant; you may suffer negative reviews online or lose business due to the bad service.

PRO:

CON:

Third-party delivery services advertise your business for you at their own expense.

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With a third-party delivery service, you may lose some of that personal contact with your customers.

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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Suddenly, I had an enormous insurance payout on my record due to a driver’s accident. No insurance company would touch me.

What could I do?

Founded by a former Big Apple paramedic, Precinct Pizza draws crowds with New York-style pizzas bearing names like the Arresto Pesto and the Detective’s Deluxe.

dd Someone who’s not wearing your company uniform will deliver your food, and some may be dressed poorly.

Unfortunately, these companies often don’t conduct regular inspections of their delivery personnel. dd The third-party delivery company has no idea how busy you are at any given time or how well you will be able to fulfill an order. Some companies offer the option to deny the order, but they will simply tell the customer to call another restaurant for which they deliver. You cannot speak to that customer directly and preserve the relationship. dd You will lose some control over the quality of your delivered product. These companies do not have heated delivery bags, and some don’t even use nonheated bags. Additionally, you can’t call them if they left your store and forgot an item. And because they won’t return to your store after making a delivery, you have no idea how long it’s taking them to deliver your pizza.

70

dd You may still be held liable in legal issues related to outside delivery companies. All of them appear to classify their delivery personnel as “independent contractors,” which may protect the third-party company from potential lawsuits but isn’t necessarily good for you. A litigant will always go after the company with the deepest pockets. You should discuss insurance and legal ramifications with your insurance representative and/or your attorney.

Clearly, these are not trifling concerns. After a review of the facts presented above, some operators may feel the cons outweigh the pros. But I’ve decided to move forward with a third-party delivery company, and I’m going to share my experience with the readers of PMQ. This article covered the general pros and cons of working with thirdparty services. My next article will delve into the financial issues involved and will serve as a case study of how I started working with two leading outside service providers and how they have impacted my business. I hope that PMQ’s readers will benefit from my experience so they can make better-informed decisions about this intriguing, if challenging, new pizza delivery opportunity.

Rick Drury is the owner of Precinct Pizza in Tampa, Florida. Rick has more than a quartercentury of pizza experience, and Precinct Pizza has been recognized as one of the busiest pizzerias in the country.

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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YEAH, BOY!

FLAVOR FAVES Flavored crusts meet the customer demand for variety, yet they’re relatively rare in pizzerias. Should you consider adding a little kick to your crust?

By Tracy Morin

T

he meteoric rise of fast-casual pizzerias has highlighted one defining characteristic of the modern consumer: a need for build-your-own everything.

Pizza, the endlessly customizable meal, is a natural vehicle for this demand.

So why aren’t there more crust varieties clogging up pizzeria menus coast to coast?

We asked operators who have created fan-friendly flavored crusts to chime in on how to take the leap—and make the move successful.

TURNING A BLAND CRUST INTO A CULINARY SUPERSTAR There are two main methods for creating flavored crusts, says pizzaiolo Leo Spizzirri, resident dough specialist at Little Lady Foods in Elk Grove Village, Illinois: Add the ingredient directly into the dough, or atop the crust before or after baking.

“When adding flavor on the crust, I love infused oils,” Spizzirri says. “Roasted garlic puree-infused olive oil can easily be brushed onto the crust before baking.

The oil helps with browning, and the aroma is very appealing. I also like adding grated hard cheeses, like Asiago, on the edge of my crust before baking, which adds nuttiness and crispy texture.”

December 2016 pmq.com

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Spizzirri also adds ingredients into dough for flavor and texture. Rosemary, parsley or sundried tomatoes can turn a bland crust into a culinary superstar. However, he warns, when introducing these ingredients, add them during the last couple minutes of mixing. (Rosemary and parsley can create green dough, while sundried tomatoes can turn dough red if added at the beginning of the mix cycle.)

At Primo’s Pizza in Allen Park, Michigan, partner and manager Timothy O. Estheimer keeps several flavor choices on tap for customers: dd Sesame: Sprinkled on before cooking, sesame seeds toast up nicely in the oven. dd Barbeque: Added upon request or on Primo’s BBQ Broasted Chicken Pizza, premade barbecue-flavor seasoning packs a sweet-heat punch. dd Cajun: Estheimer’s pizza makers add a prepared spice blend to the Spicy Chicken Pizza, or customers can request it on other pies. dd Garlic Butter: Premade liquid garlic easily spreads on the crust, prebake. dd Garlic Butter Parmesan: After spreading on garlic butter, employees add a generous shake of Parmesan cheese to the crust.

“Offering a flavored crust as your standard pizza might eliminate some of the market. While Garlic Butter and Garlic Parmesan are our most popular crusts, a lot of customers don’t like them. I think leaving it as an option is best.”

— T I M OT H Y E S T H E I M E R , PRIMO’S PIZZA 74

PRIMO’S PIZZA

Sesame seeds add extra layers of flavor and texture to a classic pepperoni pie at Primo’s Pizza.

“Five or six flavors seem to be a good amount to offer some variety,” Estheimer explains. “We like to keep it consistent and simple, so we don’t make any proprietary blends; we buy them premade.” Roughly 50% of his customers choose a flavored crust, he says, and 50% of those choose the two most popular flavors: Garlic Butter or Garlic Butter Parmesan.

With nearly 600 locations, Hungry Howie’s, based in Madison Heights, Michigan, has revolved its entire menu around flavored crusts, with eight options: Butter, Asiago Cheese, Butter Cheese, Cajun, Onion, Ranch, Garlic Herb and Sesame. “Flavored crust is what sets our pizza apart, period—it’s the concept that our founder built the business on and what we’ve become known for over the past 40-plus years,” says Steve Jackson, CEO. “Butter Cheese is a tried-and-true classic, but we love to give our fans options to switch it up. Our most unique flavor is sea salt, which adds a savory yet crisp flavor.”

If you’re just starting out, experiment with low-risk options and test the waters. Try universally popular flavors or those that require little extra effort or supplies. “It’s easy to brush butter or oil or sprinkle some hard cheese on a crust,” Spizzirri says. “Adding these to your current pizza lineup gives added value to your customer, without you having to source additional ingredients.”

GRAND EXPERIMENTS Like pizza itself, ideas for flavored crusts are practically limitless; Spizzirri notes that ethnic and spicier flavors are all the rage right now. “I love being able to complement my toppings with a flavorful crust, so I’ve done Tikka Masala on a crust made with coconut cream, yogurt

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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Potential Pitfalls

PRIMO PIZZA

Are flavored crusts ever a bad idea? In 2014, Pizza Hut revamped its brand and introduced a range of flavored crusts after extensive focus groups and millennial-facing marketing research approved the switch. But, only a few months later, execs admitted that sales had slumped. The lesson: Know your audience. “Flavored crusts are uncommon because of the wide range of people we feed,” says Leo Spizzirri, resident dough specialist at Little Lady Foods in Elk Grove Village, Illinois. “You never really know who likes what flavors, and a lot of restaurateurs won’t risk sales based on trends.” But, he adds, it’s also important to understand the science behind dough. “Ingredients like garlic or onion powder act as natural dough conditioners (making your dough soft and even causing it to break down if used at a high ratio), while cinnamon affects yeast activity and dough rise,” Spizzirri explains.

“Flavored dough that isn’t selling as projected leads to additional waste and wreaks havoc on your numbers. It’s very easy for a good idea to turn sour if you’re not prepared!”

Timmy Estheimer spins dough at his dad’s Primo’s Pizza store, which offers five flavored crusts. About half of the pizzeria’s customers request one, owner Tim Estheimer says.

“Butter Cheese is a tried-and-true classic, but we love to give our fans options to switch it up. Our most unique flavor is sea salt, which adds a savory yet crisp flavor.”

— S T E V E J AC K S O N , H U N G RY H O W I E ’ S

and turmeric powder, or shredded beef and pork on an empanada crust speckled with Mexican oregano inside the dough,” he explains. “I’ve even done a Wisconsin Beer Brat pizza that incorporated local craft beer in the dough. Just keep in mind, flavors should not overpower one another—they should develop layers of taste.”

Many operators try out new pizza crusts through limited-time offers (LTO), allowing them to suss out a crust’s viability while piquing customer palates. “We currently have eight core offerings, but we like to provide our customers with enough variety so they keep coming back,” Jackson says. “We offer limited-time flavors once per quarter.” Past LTO crusts at Hungry Howie’s have included Sriracha, Cheese Puff, BBQ Chip and Loaded Baked Potato.

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Spizzirri agrees it’s often best to offer new items as LTOs, since certain flavors might be loved by some and considered polarizing by others. “I don’t feel that it’s wise to create an additional category on your menu until it’s been proven successful in the market,” he advises. “Put a special or two on the menu each month and track your sales. If something is doing really well, consider making it a permanent addition.” But, Spizzirri cautions, too many new things can confuse customers; try changing up seasonally so that menus always offer something new alongside your core items.

Indeed, most operators find that experimentation is key.

“As we add new specialty pizzas, we’ll add more flavors— for example, Mexican pizza with taco seasoning sprinkled on the crust,” Estheimer says. “We’re also adding S’mores

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Hungry Howie’s has built a pizza empire around specialty crusts, including limited-time-only flavors once per quarter.

HU

H RY NG

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Dipping Sticks to the menu, with cinnamon-sugar in the crust. The possibilities are endless, but we keep in mind that the flavoring is there only to enhance the pizza, not take it over.”

PRICING AND POSITIONING Once you’ve developed your flavored crust, should you charge extra for the option? “Food cost needs to be considered, so I normally don’t add flavors to my crusts in day-to-day operations unless it’s a special,” Spizzirri says.

“If the ingredients can make a menu item more premium, then the customer will be willing to pay for it, but you must understand your market. If your clientele doesn’t veer off the beaten path much, you probably shouldn’t be adding saffron or anything exotic.” His advice: Keep it simple and sensible, at least initially. If you’re adding an ingredient that you already stock (i.e., herbs purchased in bulk), keep the price the same as the normal menu item.

“In Michigan, flavored crusts are pretty common, and none of our competitors charge for this option,” Estheimer says. “We decided to offer them free to keep up with the competition, so we don’t want to spend too

much time with the crusts’ preparation. I believe some markets could charge a small fee for this option, but it’s not something we can do in our market.”

Hungry Howie’s, too, allows customers to “crustomize” pizzas at no additional charge. The company even offers a website with a “What Crust Are You?” quiz and the ability to recommend a new crust flavor, for which fans can vote.

“Flavored crusts are intrinsic to our business, so we don’t believe in charging the customer extra,” Jackson notes.

However, he adds, a specialty crust needn’t be the base crust at a pizzeria; allowing customers to choose a “plain” option gives more variety and allows for customization only if desired.

Again, offering maximum options is key. “We include a flavored crust on almost all of our specialty pizzas, but it can also be added to any pizza,” Estheimer says. “Offering a flavored crust as your standard pizza might eliminate some of the market. While Garlic Butter and Garlic Parmesan are our most popular crusts, a lot of customers don’t like them. I think leaving it as an option is best.”

As Spirrizzi concludes, flavored crusts should remain consistent, something that everyone will enjoy and that complements your current toppings. “Garlic pairs well with a lot of ingredients, but some people are put off by it,” he notes. “Things constantly evolve in the food industry, but at the end of the day, people will buy only what they like!”

Tracy Morin is PMQ’s senior copy editor.

“If the ingredients can make a menu item more premium, the customer will be willing to pay for it, but you must understand your market. If your clientele doesn’t veer off the beaten path much, you probably shouldn’t be adding saffron or anything exotic.”

— L E O S P I Z Z I R R I , L I T T L E L A DY F O O D S 78

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Wired

s

for

Venezia’s New York Style Pizzeria has been using online ordering to boost check averages and save on labor since 2013. Here’s how they do it. By Liz Barrett

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t’s easy to see why Venezia’s New York Style Pizzeria, with five locations in Phoenix and the surrounding area, is a favorite among locals. Numerous “best of ” awards, a 24” Party Pizza eating challenge, a cameo on an episode of Breaking Bad, and pizza roots dating back to the ‘60s are just part of the draw at this family-run pizzeria.

Dominick and Jaime Montanile opened the first Arizona outpost of Venezia’s in 1998 and began offering online ordering in 2013. “Online ordering is 30% of my business now,” Dominick says. “We process 8,000 online orders per month across our five locations.” PMQ sat down with Dominick to find out how online ordering has affected his business and how his processes have evolved to keep up with changing technology.

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PMQ: HOW HAS YOUR BUSINESS BENEFITED SINCE OFFERING ONLINE ORDERING? Montanile: Our customers have gained a greater knowledge of our menu overall, because they can now browse through our expanded online menu to find sandwiches and many other items we offer. We’re also saving money on labor costs, since 30% of our orders are going straight into the POS. Finally, our delivery check averages are increasing.

PMQ: HOW DO CHECK AVERAGES COMPARE BETWEEN PHONE AND ONLINE ORDERS? Montanile: We see an average of $3 to $4 more spent on online orders, simply because guests have more time to look through the menu and make selections.

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Dominick and Jaime Montanile, owners of the five-store Venezia’s, have pizza roots dating back to the 1960s and best-of awards galore on the mantelpiece.

success PMQ: AND YOUR ONLINE ORDERING IS INTEGRATED INTO YOUR POS? Montanile: About 25% to 30% of our online orders come directly through our website into our SpeedLine POS system. Another 5% to 9% come from third-party online ordering sites through Chowly, a company that collects orders from sites such as GrubHub, ChowNow and DoorDash and delivers them directly into our POS.

PMQ: WHAT COMPANY ARE YOU CURRENTLY USING FOR ONLINE ORDERING? Montanile: I started with Brygid four years ago and switched to RTO about a year ago. The reason I switched was because RTO is subscription-based, charging $100 per store, and Brygid was charging per transaction, which adds up when you’re processing 8,000 transactions per month.

We also were in the process of building a new website and needed online ordering that was really responsive.

PMQ: WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO HAVE ONLINE ORDERING THAT INTEGRATES WITH YOUR POS? Montanile: When we have orders coming from thirdparty sites, a staff member on our end has to click and confirm the order. It’s easy for someone to click “confirm” and then get distracted and forget about the order.

This can result in mistakes and upset customers. When the orders are integrated into the POS—including those orders coming from third-party vendors—there’s no room

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PD

Online Ordering:

BY TH3 NUMB3R5 Old-school and brand-new pizzerias alike are quickly beginning to understand the impact that online ordering can have on sales, staffing and customer satisfaction.

220 1995

Number of minutes consumers spend each day on mobile devices, according to Flurry by Yahoo. This number increased by 35% between 2014 and 2015.

The year consumers were introduced to the idea of ordering pizza online when Sandra Bullock ordered one using her computer in the movie The Net.

Percentage of sales increase, on average, when an order is placed online versus over the phone.

90%

Percentage of mobile time that’s spent in apps such as Facebook and YouTube versus browsers such as Chrome and Safari, according to Flurry by Yahoo.

Percentage of fewer calories ordered by consumers when they had access to health information during online ordering, according to a study from Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pennsylvania.

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Venezia’s processes 8,000 online orders a month across its five locations.

for error. Additionally, when you have a large number of online orders coming in, like we do, if they weren’t integrated automatically, we would have to add extra staff to the schedule just to enter the orders into the POS. PMQ: IF YOU ALREADY HAVE SO MANY ORDERS COMING THROUGH YOUR WEBSITE, WHY USE THIRD-PARTY SITES ALSO? Montanile: Your competitors are on those sites—you have to be on them, too, so that your customers see you there. As long as the commission structure makes sense, we list Venezia’s on various third-party online ordering sites. Each site’s structure varies, but they normally ask for 12% to 15%

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“We see an average of $3 to $4 more spent on online orders, simply because guests have more time to look through the menu and make selections.”

— D O M I N I C K M O N TA N I L E , V E N E Z I A’ S N E W YO R K S T Y L E P I Z Z E R I A

The Montaniles started offering online ordering in 2013, and it now comprises 30% of their business.

commission from each order. We’ve also gained new customers from those sites who would never have known about us otherwise.

PMQ: HOW DO YOU PROMOTE YOUR ONLINE ORDERING? Montanile: We make sure to promote the fact that online ordering is available on everything that customers see, including our website, emails, pizza boxes and fliers.

PMQ: WHAT’S THE PROCESS FOR CHANGING YOUR MENU OR ADDING SPECIALS/COUPONS TO YOUR ONLINE ORDERING SITE? Montanile: When we make changes, we just email RTO, and they are usually able to get the items and coupons updated in their system in a few days. The key is, I have a coupon log sheet, and as long as I keep this managed— with our 300 coupons—and keep up with what has been sent or deleted with our online provider, we’re usually good. We actually just started offering our slice specials as an online ordering option. We have eight slice specials that are combo deals with a drink, all for $8 or less; 75% of our dine-in business comes from these combo deals, so it will be a great convenience for our customers to be able to order them online.

PMQ: DO YOU USE THE CUSTOMER DATA GATHERED THROUGH YOUR ONLINE ORDERS TO REWARD YOUR BEST CUSTOMERS AND GROW YOUR EMAIL LIST? Montanile: We ask for their feedback and get them to complete a survey online, and we get about 15 surveys back per week. If they fill the survey out, we give them a 15%-off offer to use at our stores. It’s great for feedback for our locations. We are also able to continue to compile

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email addresses if they choose to opt in. We’ve been able to grow our email list to 55,000, which is great for us! We send out two emails per month with offers and promotions.

Online ordering allows customers to spend more time getting to know the menu so they can find exactly what they want.

PMQ: WHAT PERCENTAGE OF YOUR ONLINE ORDERS COME THROUGH MOBILE PHONES? Montanile: I actually just updated these figures with the reporting RTO provides—54% is desktop, and 46% is mobile.

PMQ: DO YOU FIND THAT CUSTOMERS ARE AVERSE TO PLACING LARGE CATERING ORDERS ONLINE? Montanile: We’ve started to see larger orders placed online, but I find that if customers are placing an order of $300 or more, they tend to want to make sure it’s confirmed. Sometimes they will place the order, then call to confirm. We have a policy of calling and confirming any order over $80 as well.

PMQ: WHAT’S YOUR ADVICE TO OPERATORS WHO ARE STILL ON THE FENCE ABOUT ONLINE ORDERING? Montanile: You’re losing out on 30% of your customer base, potentially!

Liz Barrett is PMQ’s editor at large and author of Pizza: A Slice of American History.

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ON THE ROAD WITH PMQ

Where We've Been

PMQ’s Pizzamobile is alw ays on a mission to unco ver new moneymaking milestone events in the ideas and document pizza industry. If we ha ve n’t been to your town yet, time. Learn more abou it’s only a matter of t where the PMQ staff has been and look out for where we’re headed next.

At Frank’s Pizza House, which opened in 1965, the group was greeted by owner Giorgio Taverniti, who took over the pizzeria with his mother, Maria, in 1992.

Talulah’s Pizza.Bar.Bread has become a hipster hangout known for its made-from-scratch, artisanal approach.

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TORONTO On a trip to Toronto, editor-at-large Liz Barrett and her husband Benjy joined Amadio’s Pizza owner Joe Leroux and his family for dinner at two historic pizzerias. At Toronto’s first pizza shop, Vesuvio Pizzeria & Spaghetti House, they met Ettore Pugliese, who has been working the ovens since he opened the eatery with his father and brother in 1957. The restaurant serves a New York-style pizza that’s not too thick and not too thin, Pugliese says.

At Frank’s Pizza House, which opened in 1965, the group was greeted by owner Giorgio Taverniti, who took over the pizzeria with his mother Maria in 1992. Frank’s is best known for its calzones and specialty pizzas named after family members. Maria passed away in 2016, but Giorgio carries on her legacy by serving some of the city’s favorite pizzas.

ASBURY PARK, NEW JERSEY When senior copy editor Tracy Morin took a trip home to New Jersey, an allnight pizza party was already in the works. Talulah’s Pizza.Bar.Bread scored a top-five spot on the 2016 “N.J.’s 25 Best Pizzerias” list from one of the state’s pizza authorities, Peter Genovese. But it was the inventive, outside-the-box menu—think flights of mezcal and in-house fermentation—that piqued Morin’s interest. Throw in housemade vegan pepperoni and sausage; artfully crafted sourdough bread loaves; and creative toppings like miso creamed kale and local Black Beauty eggplant, and Talulah’s stamped itself as a must-stop. It also scored extra points for listing Cape May Brewery (co-owned by Morin’s cousin) as one of its long list of local purveyors tacked to the exposed-brick walls, and for imaginative cocktails that incorporate made-from-scratch ingredients such as seasonal jam.

Meanwhile, Porta stands out with Neapolitan certification stamped by the master pizzaiolo Roberto Caporuscio, plus mozzarella and ricotta made in-house daily, and everything from hand-built ovens to flour and tomatoes imported from Italy. A seasonally changing menu ensures the freshest produce possible to top airy, fire-blistered pies, and local hipsters gobble up the myriad vegan options on the menu. Picnic-style tables inside and out (plus a bocce court) wait beyond the welcoming sign that announces, “Eat. Drink.

Be Honest.” In keeping with that philosophy, a portion of sales from a rotating pie named after a friend and fan is donated to a local scholarship fund.

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Where We're Going

STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN PMQ International Correspondent Missy Assink is no stranger to Sweden.

She visited Malmö in 2013 and went on a pizza tour with chef Michael Arvblom, an international pizza making champion who beat out several industry legends—including Giulio Adriani and Antonio Starita—in an international competition in 2011. Arvblom has asked Assink to come back this year as a judge in the Swedish Master Cup Championships in Stockholm. The event is sanctioned by the World Pizza Championship (WPC).

Sweden is so serious about pizza that the country holds three culinary events a year—one in each major region of the country. Regional winners earn a trip to Parma to compete in the WPC. But Swedish pizza will likely never be confused with traditional Italian fare. Missy uncovered some unusual variations on the classic pizza during her Malmö trip, including: The Pizza Salad. No, it’s not what it sounds like. Assink describes it as coleslaw without the creaminess, featuring shredded vegetables and a strong bite of vinegar. “It’s given to the customer immediately after ordering a pizza and always included free of charge,” Assink wrote in a 2013 blog about her adventure. “It’s pretty good if you like those vinegary/pickled flavors, plus it’s a very inexpensive ‘happy’ to give to your customers. There’s no fixed recipe, and it doesn’t matter how upscale or downscale the pizza shop is.

There will be pizza salad.”

Kebab Pizza. This one is topped with the fixings you would expect to find in a shawarma wrap, including iceberg lettuce and yogurt sauce. “The seemingly strange combo is likely due to the proximity of pizza with kebabs [in Sweden],” Assink wrote in her blog. “The two are rarely seen apart.

Selling pizza in the same store as kebabs could be why sauces on pizza— such as béarnaise, yogurt, garlic, curry and Thousand Island—are quite popular, too.”

Assink reports that most pizzerias in Sweden offer about 50 pizzas on the menu, including pies topped with banana and shredded ham, smoked salmon and tuna, or thick-cut steak and a buttery sauce.

Swedes take their pizza seriously, but they’ve also taken it in new culinary directions.

December 2016 pmq.com

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PIZZA WITHOUT BORDERS

Reporting international trends, events and cultural etiquette from around the world

By Missy Assink London, England British Restaurants Turn to Tap Water Tackling the waste of one-time-use packaging and transportation of water, British company Vivreau has come up with a water filtration system that instantly delivers still, sparkling and boiling water on tap. By bottling water in-house, restaurants can offer their customers the same water quality and taste associated with prepackaged bottles at a lower price while practicing sustainability.

Vivreau was the first company of its kind to come to market in the late 1980s, and it expanded its international presence by partnering with Brita in 2012. With increasing pressure on restaurants to be sustainable and rising concern over health consequences of consuming water from PET plastic packaging, other water filtration companies have emerged. Many of them offer reusable, designer glass bottles in which restaurants can serve their water—and create a memorably elegant presentation in the bargain.

Other companies offering tap water filtration systems with chic glass bottles include Still Sparkling in Sweden and Purezza in Australia.

Fast-Casual Chain Expands to Saudi Arabia Customers who are into fast-casual, additive-free, organic pizza and craft beverages can try the pies at a Skinny Pizza location in New York, Pennsylvania, and, soon, Saudi Arabia. The healthy pizza franchise, based in New York, will open 25 locations throughout Saudi Arabia with the Fawaz Al Hokair Group, which already operates 11 separate international franchised brands. “There is nothing similar to Skinny Pizza in the Saudi market. [Everything else] is either fast food-quality or casual dining,” says Sultan Al Hokair, vice president of Fawaz Al Hokair Group. A spokesperson for Skinny Pizza adds, “Since its opening, the popularity of our New York City World Financial Center location has created frequent international franchise inquiries by healthy pizza lovers from all over the world.

We routinely deflected those inquiries on almost a weekly basis. However, we quickly became more open-minded when we were made aware of the Al Hokair Group’s interest.”

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Moscow, Russia Hand in Glove: Cleanliness Is Paramount in Russia You might think nothing matters more than flavor when it comes to pizza, but not everyone in the world sees it that way. PMQ Russia publisher Vladimir Davydov invited me to attend the PIR Expo this past October in Moscow. I gained some surprising insights into the Russian pizza industry and culture, which puts a premium on cleanliness and sanitation.

In Russia, the use of gloves in restaurant kitchens is mandatory, and this high regard for sanitation was reflected in the judging criteria at the Russian Pizza Championships. For example, judges calculated the majority of points based on how the pizza maker worked: How professional was his appearance? Did he wear gloves? Was the uniform ironed? Only 20 of the 100 total points pertained to the actual taste and bake of the pizza; 20 points alone were awarded for wearing gloves while making and cutting the pizza. To me, as someone who has judged pizza making competitions in both Sweden and Italy and helped produce competitions in the States, these sanitation rules seemed as harsh as the generous use of anchovies on competition pies.

Shanghai, China Sex Sells: Tyson Shows Skin to Chinese Consumers Tyson in China is using sex appeal to sell more chicken with a marketing campaign featuring Chinese actor, singer, model and overall heartthrob Huang Xiao Ming. The website BrandinginChina.com says the sex-sells approach to advertising is thriving in the country, which has only recently begun to explore the possibilities of capitalism. The site reports that “fresh meat” in Chinese is slang for “hot young men,” and the seductive marketing tactics should come as no surprise in a country that is largely nonreligious. According to TalkBusiness.net, Tyson in China found itself in the red following a devastating outbreak of bird flu a while back, a disaster that prevented the import of chickens from the States into China. In response, the company launched a $16-billion campaign to highlight a new line of prepackaged convenience foods specifically targeting millennials. With the fit and shirtless Xiao Ming flexing his muscles on huge outdoor ads, the campaign’s success suggests that the government has loosened its once-firm grip on artistic expression in China.

December 2016 pmq.com

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“All big corporate names in the pizza business began as an entrepreneurial idea, with only a few employees, a market to fill, and the will and vision to grow,” says Rick Stanbridge, the company’s managing director. He says The Stanbridge Group can help pizzeria operators reach their growth potential by providing expertise in the following areas: 1. Business Plans 2. Bank Relationships 3. Total Funding

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IDEA ZONE THE STANBRIDGE GROUP

SPONSORED CONTENT

Protect Your Pizza From the Deadly “Slide-to-One-Side” During Delivery

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t’s a familiar conundrum to every pizzeria out there: A customer calls, dissatisfied with how their pizza was delivered. “Ask any pizza operator,” says Giuseppe Di Fiore, inventor of the Pizza Seatbelt. “It’s guaranteed they have had customers complain that the cheese and toppings slid to one side of the pizza in transit.” Most pizzeria operators will immediately make a new pizza and send it out, meaning extra food cost, labor cost and, worst of all, an unhappy customer. After 37 years in the business, Di Fiore decided to put an end to this problem. “I was losing about 200 pizzas per year to poorly transported pizza, not to mention the damage done to customer satisfaction.”

The solution? Fiore has introduced the Pizza Seatbelt, a raised and angled platform that keeps the pizza level as it’s being delivered to the customer’s door. It works like a car seat for your delivery bag. It’s set into place using the passenger seat’s safety belt and can fit into any variety of cars. Raised guards on the sides of the platform protect your pizza from swift turns and sudden stops, which can be detrimental to those hot, melty toppings. After just a few seconds and the

click of your seatbelt, the installation is done, and your pizza is ready to go safely to your customers’ door.

“I created this product to make people happy and not mad,” says Di Fiore. “Before addressing this problem, I had 200 mad customers calling me up per year. Some were OK with it, but others would curse at me! Now, I’m happy to say we don’t have that problem anymore, and that saves us headaches and food cost.”

The Pizza Seatbelt is not limited only to pizzas. Any food that needs to stay level during transport, such as cakes or other desserts, can benefit from the security of the Pizza Seatbelt. Gain some of peace of mind when your pizza leaves the store, regardless of which driver is making the delivery. With the Pizza Seatbelt, you can deliver perfect pizzas every time, retain more customers, and cut down on food cost. Get one for $39 plus shipping & handling, or receive a package discount when you purchase more than one. Order the Pizza Seatbelt and watch a video on how it works at PizzaSeatBelt.com or call (610)703-3728.

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IDEA ZONE PSI PLASTICS

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Stop Giving It Out for Free!

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ow often are you asked to give away your pizza for FREE for an organization raising funds? Donating pizza directly to an event or giving away gift certificates is sure to get a positive response from the community, but a lot of independents can’t bear the financial hit. “Many pizzerias can’t afford to give out free product,” says Mike Hallahan, president of PSI Plastic Cards. “Plastic gift cards have a perceived higher value than paper, and that allows business owners to sell them in bulk to fundraising organizations, which can turn around and resell them at a higher price.”

For example, if the high school band is raising funds for a trip, a pizza store owner might sell the band 300 cards or key tags with a special offer on it. If the band buys them for $10 and sells them at $20 each, they can quickly make the money they need without the owner having to take a loss. This way of giving back to the community generates good karma with the locals and effectively sends an army of marketeers out to find new customers for you.

Rather than having customers keep up with a paper card to get stamped each time in hopes of reaching a milestone, why not reward your customers with a discount when they

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commit to buying several pizzas and paying upfront for them? The customer will be happy to get a deal, and you will come away with guaranteed sales.

Plastic cards and key tags are functional for keeping points or other remaining balances. PSI has developed an app, available in the Apple Store and Google Play, which works with QR codes to load more money onto customers’ accounts and/or check their balance. Using digital information makes it easier to collect customers’ information, such as their email address, while they’re always carrying your brand in their wallet or on their keys. “There is value in a loyal customer,” Hallahan says. “You have to give them a reason to come back. Otherwise, why wouldn’t they go try someplace new?”

For the independent looking to support its community, plastic gift or loyalty cards are a great way to do it. PSI has been helping pizza businesses like Papa John’s, Papa Murphy’s and CiCi’s get more repeat customers with plastic cards and key tags for 25 years. Contact them at 800-489-0048 or visit idcard.com.

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New Technology Blows the Whistle on Sneakily Inflated Food Prices

W

hile you’re busy making pizza and running your business, you don’t have time to compare prices across suppliers, much less for every item on every order. But buyer beware: less notable items can easily be marked up 30% to 40%, all for lack of attention. How can you ensure you’re getting the best price with the least investment in time and money?

CherryPickPrices.com offers a 100% risk-free guarantee when you try out their software to compare prices among suppliers. It’s also a simple inventory system, a connection portal to your sales rep, and a buying channel to make purchasing easy. “We are so confident you’ll save money right away, even the initial setup fee will be refunded if you’re not happy with the results,” says David DeSantis, the Food Cost Dude and inventor of CherryPickPrices.com. “No other comparative shopping software invests first in you.”

Cherry has worked hard to create a trained network of affiliates that can get you set up from start to finish in a few days—and deliver instant savings after that. “With our initial customers, we’ve seen how quickly suppliers drop their prices to keep your business. Suppliers will get notified when they

don’t get a repeat order from you, but they’ll never know how much you paid with another distributor. We recognize privacy is important and allow you to keep what you pay secret, even to Cherry, with the click of a button,” adds DeSantis.

After years of experience as a sales rep, a multi-unit pizza store operator and an Executive MBA, David DeSantis created Cherry Pick Prices to automate what he used to do manually. “The original Cherry was an excel spreadsheet,” he says. “I used to download the price lists each week and compare prices. I created Cherry to do this in seconds instead of hours.”

Cherry is your in-house vigilante who ensures suppliers are paying what they agreed to. It is the only software which lets you upload your invoice and alerts you if there is a discrepancy between the price that was bid on and what you paid for it. You can also enable contract pricing to be sure you’re being charged the same rate across all your restaurants.

If you want to lower your food costs and make informed purchases but don’t have the time or initial investment money to start saving, go to CherryPickPrices.com.

Visit us online for more information!

SUPPLIER PRICE COMPARISON SOFTWARE

Single & Multi Unit Independents, Franchises, Fast Casual, Fine Dining Restaurants

Cherry is the most important software to hit the restaurant industry since the 1st POS system was created.      

Reduce you overall cost of goods as much as 12% Shelf to Screen Ordering, Mobile Application Tracks your Rebates, Contract Pricing & Special Deals Interactive Portal to work with your Sales Reps Complete Account Privacy (even from us) 100% Money Back Guarantee

Works with virtually every supplier. $79.99M Provide your us with your order guide & we set it up for you.

Contact us Today & let’s get started!

December 2016 pmq.com

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PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

Island-Fresh and Organic

Quality Makes the Difference

Pureed fruits and vegetables from the family-owned and -operated Stahlbush Island Farms add a distinctive �lavor to any pizza sauce. Stahlbush offers certi�iedorganic, certi�ied-sustainable, non-GMO and conventional products in various packing options. Grown in the United States, their produce is processed hours, rather than days, after harvest. 541-757-1497, stahlbush.com

You can’t have the best pizza without the best cheese.

Dairy Farmers of America manufactures and sells a complete line of high-quality cheeses to elevate your product in texture and taste. They provide award-winning Italian cheeses to national and local distributors, food wholesalers and restaurant chains.

816-801-6792, dfamilk.com

The Magic of Magnets

How to Lower Your Phone Bills PizzaCloud helps pizzerias lower their phone bills and increase sales through improved phone handling, new features and cellular backup Internet. With cellular backup, your phones, web order �low and card processing stay up when the internet goes down. PizzaCloud says most customers also see an increase between $250 and $750 a month from upsell messages.

866-511-5521, pizzacloud.net

The Doors to Success Swinging doors from Clear Vu are a great choice when visibility and safety are paramount concerns in your pizzeria. They are speci�ically made for walk-in coolers and freezers. Employees will love the easy access, and the auto-closing feature keeps the cool air in to extend product shelf life. They can be custom-made to your speci�ications.

800-722-3539, worldmanufacturing.com

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You can drive hungry customers to your pizzeria and add more dough to your bottom line with Pizzeriamagnets.com.

These promotional magnets are highly visible, effective and affordable marketing tools that help you attract new business and retain current customers. Ask about its free design services, complimentary digital proofs and affordable pricing.

888-870-7172, pizzeriamagnets.com

The Original Finger Pizza Created by J. Guidos Foods, Twisty Rolls are the original “�inger pizza.”

Made with Italian meats and cheese, they’re twisted and baked in an old-family-recipe pizza dough. Two more �lavors—cinnamon with a powdered sugar glaze and roasted garlic, sundried tomato and spinach—will soon be offered. Uniquely tasty and easy to bake and handle, they’re ideal for pizza shops.

614-425-5658, jguidos.com

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE BULLETIN BOARD

Manufacturer and Processor of Fine Italian Cheese caputocheese.com

December 2016 pmq.com

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MID-AMERICA

restaurant

JANUARY 29-30, 2017 presented by the Ohio Restaurant Association

THE PREMIER REGIONAL RESTAURANT SHOW

innovation, technology & trends

GREATER COLUMBUS CONVENTION CENTER COLUMBUS, OHIO

Newly created and restaurant-centered, this business-to-business trade show will be like none other in the Midwest. Built on a pizza and ice cream foundation, the Mid-America Restaurant Expo has been reimagined and attendees can expect new features, such as:

%

40

Top-quality, wide-ranging programming designed for the modern foodservice operator

LARGER

EXHIBIT HALL meeting your foodservice business needs

Access to the experts and tools you need to run your business

Peer networking at the after-hours event

Visit www.midamericarestaurantexpo.com to see new hours for seminars and exhibits!

Sunday, January 29 KEYNOTE SPEAKER:

CHEF

RICHARD BLAIS!

Television host and restaurateur Richard Blais will keynote the inaugural Mid-America Restaurant Expo. The James Beard nominated cookbook author, Bravo's Top Chef regular and host of the upcoming show Man vs Master on the FYI Network will discuss new technology and tools he relies on to make his San Diego restaurants, Juniper & Ivy and Crack Shack, operate efficiently. He'll also inspire attendees with valuable lessons learned while working at famed restaurants such as The French Laundry, Daniel, and el Bulli. Chef Blais is also the owner of Trail Blais, a restaurant consultancy.

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF OUR PRE-REGISTRATION SHOW RATE OF

49

$

before January 25, 2017.

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REGISTER & GET SOCIAL WITH US! www.midamericarestaurantexpo.com. #MidAmResExpo

#MidAmResExpo

#MidAmResExpo

11/11/16 3:06 PM

Introducing

PIZZA BUTLER!

THE

Uniquely stylish and uncommonly practical, The Pizza Butler makes an impact in more ways than one.

• Space-saving footprint - Compact design uses less table space than traditional stands • Easy storage - stackable • Versatile Function - serve pizza, appetizers, mini deserts and more • Sturdy Contruction - Dishwasher-safe, 18 gauge stainless steel • Customizable - Personalize with engraved logos

Before

After

Call Manny at 718-894-1212 ext. 218 Order online at www.thepizzabutler.com

December 2016 pmq.com

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE BULLETIN BOARD

u See yo MFG DOUGH BOX

at

Know a pizzeria thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s over 50 years old and a pillar of the community?

Expo a z z i P in Ma

rch

Raising the standard Optimal dough protection and prolonged storage Airtight stacking with no bending or sagging Easily cleaned in standard pan washers Reinforced composites bring a whole new level of performance to food service. And the leading name in FRP is MFG. Contact your local distributor or call (800) 458-6050.

Learn more at www.mfgtray.com.

MOLDED FIBER GLASS TRAY Contact us by calling 1 800 458.6050 or at www.mfgtray.com

98

Nominate them for inclusion into the Pizza Hall of Fame!

Visit

www.PizzaHallofFame.com for more information.

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Business Monthly

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ADVERTISER INDEX DECEMBER 2016 Advertiser

Phone Website

AB Mauri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-772-3971 . . . . . . . .

AM Manufacturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219-472-7272 . . . . . . . . .

Ardent Mills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 888-685-2534 . . . . . . . .

Bacio Cheese . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 885-222-4685 . . . . . . . .

Bay State Milling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-553-5687 . . . . . . . .

Bellissimo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-813-2974 . . . . . . . .

Breakaway POS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 817-299-4500 . . . . . . . .

Caputo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

CherryPickPrices.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 678-837-3131 . . . . . . . .

ClearVu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-722-3539 . . . . . . . .

DeIorioâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-649-7612 . . . . . . . .

Devanco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 847-228-7070 . . . . . . . . .

Edge Ovens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 888-480-EDGE . . . . . . .

Escalon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Fontanini . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-331-MEAT . . . . . . . .

Forno Bravo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-407-5119 . . . . . . . .

Galbani . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-206-9945 . . . . . . . .

Grain Craft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423-265-2313 . . . . . . . .

Grande Cheese . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-8-GRANDE . . . . . . .

Harbortouch POS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 866-286-8744 . . . . . . . .

HTH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-321-1850 . . . . . . . .

ID Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-489-0048 . . . . . . . .

Infrared Dynamics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 888-317-5255 . . . . . . . .

Italforni . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 424-364-0075 . . . . . . . .

Kamut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

La Nova . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 716-881-3366 . . . . . . . .

Lloyd Pans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-748-6251 . . . . . . . .

MailShark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-457-4275 . . . . . . . .

Marsal & Sons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 631-226-6688 . . . . . . . .

MFG Tray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-458-6050 . . . . . . . .

MicroMatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 866-327-4159 . . . . . . . .

Microworks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-787-2068 . . . . . . . .

Middleby Marshall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 877-34-OVENS . . . . . . .

Mid-America Restaurant Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 877-265-7469 . . . . . . . . .

Nutella . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

PCI Pizza Cono . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 732-707-9009 . . . . . . . .

PDQ POS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 877-968-6430 . . . . . . . .

Pierce Chicken . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Pizza Butler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 718 894 1212 . . . . . . . .

PizzaOvens.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 877-367-6836 . . . . . . . .

Pizza Seatbelt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610-841-5666 . . . . . . . .

Pizza Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 855-289-6836 . . . . . . . .

Restaurant Depot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Somerset Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 978-667-3355 . . . . . . . .

Speedline POS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 888-400-9185 . . . . . . . .

Stanbridge Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 888-738-2330 . . . . . . . .

Stanislaus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-327-7201 . . . . . . . .

Univex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800-258-6358 . . . . . . . .

WestRock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Winona Foods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 920-662-2184 . . . . . . . .

XLT Ovens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 888-443-2751 . . . . . . . .

Page

abmna.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Inside Back Cover ammfg.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 ardentmills.com/highgluten . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 baciocheese.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 baystatemilling.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 bellissimofoods.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 breakawaypos.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 caputocheese.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 cherrypickprices.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 deiorios.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 devancofoods.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 edgeovens.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 escalon.net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 fontanini.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Inside Front Cover fornobravo.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 galbanicheese.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44,45 graincraft.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 grandecheese.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 iharbortouch.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 hthsigns.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 idcard.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 infradyne.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 italforniUSA.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 kamut.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 lanova.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Back Cover lloydpans.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 themailshark.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 marsalsons.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 mfgtray.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 micromatic.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 microworks.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 wowoven.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 ohiorestaurant.org . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 ferrerofoodservice.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 pcifrozenfoods.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 pdqpos.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 poultry.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 thepizzabutler.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 pizzaovens.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 oomadeeasy.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 pizzasolutions.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 restaurantdepot.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 smrset.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 speedlinesolutions.com/results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 thestanbridgegroup.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 stanislaus.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 5 univexcorp.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 westrock.com/pizza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cover Tip winonafoods.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 xltovens.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

PMQ provides this information as a courtesy to our readers and will not be held responsible for errors or omissions. To report an error, call 662-234-5481 x127.

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE ADVERTISING

ATM

CHEESE

EXPRESS ATM.................................................................................... ExpressATM.com 877-385-5228 .......................................................................................................Simple Payment Solutions

BAKING SCHOOLS AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF BAKING .........................................................Manhattan, KS 785-537-4750 ................................................................................Fax: 785-537-1493

BAKING STONES FIBRAMENT-D BAKING STONE.....................................................www.bakingstone.com 708-478-6032 ......................................NSF approved baking stone for all ovens by AWMCO

BEVERAGES ON TAP

BREAD SPECIALIZING IN HEARTH BAKED ITALIAN BREADS, HOAGIES, BUNS & ROLLS SINCE 1911.

Authentic Flavor for Modern Menus

CELLONES.COM • 800.334.8438

Contact - Mark Wutz • MWutz@cellones.com

CHEESE CALL (800) 824-3373 OR VISIT SAPUTOUSAFOODSERVICE.COM Mozzarella I Provolone I Blue Cheese I Gorgonzola I Asiago I Romano

Call 816-801-6792 to place your order.

www.dfamilk.com

CANDY/MINTS

Easy Way to Drive Traffic hospitalitymints.com

800 334 5181

• 61% of consumers say they would visit restaurants with mints more frequently • Customized with your Logo

Winona Knows Cheese. Get to Know Winona.

Natural | Process | Portions | Specialty

Winona Foods, Inc.

100

WinonaFoods.com

920.662.2184

PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE CHEESE SHAKERS

COMPUTER SYSTEMS: POINT OF SALE

CHEESE SHAKER LIDS

CHICKEN

1-888-400-9185 speedlinesolutions.com COMPUTER SYSTEMS: POINT OF SALE

The BEST Pizza POS OS OS

877-968-6430 PDQpos.com

The Fastest POS on the Planet The Easiest to Learn & Operate Online Ordering / Rewards & Loyalty Mobile Reporting/Enterprise Complete EMV & PCI Compliance

CONSULTING

CUTTING BOARDS - EQUAL SLICE

Pizza Technology that Delivers.

www.granburyrs.com

800.750.3947 December 2016 pmq.com

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e $2395 THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE icGUIDE fer Pr

PMQ

O

DESSERTS

DOUGH

LOVE YOUR CUSTOMERS; BRING THE AUTHENTIC TASTE OF ITALY TO YOUR RESTAURANT 1 844 GELARTO

INQUIRIES@GELARTO.COM

WWW.GELARTO.COM

IF YOU WANT IT, WE WILL GET IT TO YOU! DISTRIBUTER INQUIRIES WELCOME.

DELICIOUS MADE-TO-ORDER BREAD AND PIZZA DOUGH Old World Tradition with New World Convenience.

www.mamalarosafoods.com

To locate a distributor near you, call 734-946-7878.

Be Inspired. Be Creative. Be Original.

DOUGH DIVIDERS/ROUNDERS

Red, White, and Blue Pizza with Nutella®

Breakfast Pizza with Nutella®

Fried Pizza Dough with Nutella®

For more exciting recipes and tips about Nutella®, visit www.ferrerofoodservice.com or call (800) 408-1505 for more information.

Don’t “Settle ” For Less....Get More PASMO America Soft Serve Machines Less Noise, Low Cost of Ownership and 50% less than our competition.

1-844-52-PASMO

More Loyal Customers.Financing Customers.Financing available

isales@pasmousa.com www.pasmousa.com

Now Offering Gelato & Tiramisu Cups DOUGH PRESSES, ROLLERS 908-241-9191 * Tasteitpresents.com Dessert is the last impression you’ll make on a customer

800.835.0606 ext. 205 | www.doughxpress.com

dough presses, dough dividers/divider rounders, dough dockers, carts and accessories

Make it count

DOUGH

DeIorio Foods

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE FLOUR

DOUGH TRAYS/PROOFING TRAYS

www.kamut.com Kamut® is a trademark of Kamut International ltd.

When Dough Matters!

Molino Pasini s.p.a. - Italy

Full line flours for Pizza, Fresh Pasta, Ready Mix for gnocchi Phone: 1-973-454-8534 +39 0376 969015 www.molinopasini.com - info@molinopasini.com

Eliminate racks, lids and tins with our stackable, airtight and cost effective Dough Trays.

1-502-969-2305 www.DoughTrays.com COST EFFECTIVE

STACKABLE

AIRTIGHT

DURABLE

ORDER DIRECT

4601 COMMERCE CROSSINGS DR., STE 300, LOUISVILLE, KY 40229 | p: 502-969-2305 | f: 502-810-0907

Full line of Flour: Pizza, Pasta, Bread, Pastries, Gluten Free, & Whole Grains Imported Exclusively by: Manzo Food Sales, Inc. Tel. (305) 406-2747.........www.manzofood.com

WWW.DOUGHTRAYS.COM

• Dough Trays – extremely durable and airtight!

Outlasts All Other Dough Trays • Dough Tray Covers – designed to fit!

• Plastic Dough Knives – two ergonomic designs!

• Dough Tray Dollies – heavy duty!

Excellence in Customer service since 1955!

The preferred dough tray of the largest pizza companies in the world.

Buy direct from the manufacturer with over 25 years manufacturing in dough trays.

FOOD DISTRIBUTORS

Call 800-501-2458 ........... www.doughmate.com ......... fax: 908-276-9483

FLOUR, GLUTEN-FREE Scan for Demo

“Consistently Delicious!”

Premium Flours Make Gluten-Free Tasty & Easy!

Tel: 310-366-7612 E-mail: sales@authenticfoods.com Web: www.authenticfoods.com

BAY STATE MILLING GLUTEN-FREE PIZZA MIX ........................................... baystatemilling.com Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour, Custom-blends and Co-Packing Dedicated production area for exceptional purity ..........................................................800-55-FLOUR

FOODSERVICE, PRIVATE LABEL AND RETAIL PRODUCTS

847-228-7070 • Elk Grove Village, IL • www.devancofoods.com

FLOUR

Exceptional pizza starts with exceptional flour.

Traditional Pizza Flours, Whole Grain Flours, Pizza Crust Mixes, Private Label Packaging, Proprietary Blending, Custom Development For more information call 1-800-553-5687 or visit www.baystatemilling.com

FRANCHISING

Should You Franchise Your Restaurant?

Contact us today to receive your free video on “How to Franchise Your Business” and learn ® about one of the most dynamic methods of expanding your business in today’s marketplace.

F R A N C H I S E C O N S U LTA N T S 708-957-2300 • www.ifranchisegroup.com • info@ifranchisegroup.com

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE FRANCHISING

FURNITURE/FIXTURES

Heat your Restaurant with SUNPAK® Outdoor Patio Heaters Wall or ceiling mounted, nothing on the floor Natural Gas or Propane Models Made in the U.S.A.

FRYERS

www.infradyne.com

888.317.5255

GIFT CARDS

BE THE

KING OF

CHICKEN WINGS With AutoFry and MultiChef ventless technology you can serve hot delicious appetizers without the need for costly renovations.

Fully Automated • Convenient • Reliable • Safe • Affordable • Fully Enclosed For more information call 800-348-2976 or visit us online at MTIproducts.com • AutoFry.com • MultiChef.com Your Source for Ventless Kitchen Solutions for over 25 Years

MACHINERY/EQUIPMENT

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE GLUTEN-FREE W H PRODUCTS O L E S O M

E

&

MACHINERY/EQUIPMENT

D E L I C I O U S ™ WHOLES

OME & DELICIOUS

™

Scan for Demo

Premium Flours Make Gluten-Free Tasty & Easy!

Tel: 310-366-7612 E-mail: sales@authenticfoods.com Web: www.authenticfoods.com

MAGNETS

HOTEL ROOM KEYS

HOTEL ROOM KEY ADVERTISING DIAL #600 from your room for In-Room SPEED DIAL Papa John’s ROOM DELIVERY to Your Business

PIZZAROOMKEYS.COM • 866-912-3539 INSURANCE

PIZZAPRO .............................................................Low Low cost pizza delivery insurance program Contact Julie Evans (717) 214-7616..............................................................www.pizzapro.amwins.com www.pizzapro.amwins.com

MACHINERY/EQUIPMENT MIDDLEBY MARSHALL

OVENS MIXERS

RANDELL

PREP TABLES

AMERICAN RANGE

WALK-INS

SOMERSET

PARTS SMALLWARES

1-800-426-0323

www.northernpizza.com

IMPERIAL

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE MARKETING IDEAS

MIXERS

MOISTURE-ABSORBENT TOPPINGS CONDITIONER/SUPPLIES

OLIVES THE WORLD`S LARGEST OLIVE AND OLIVE OIL PRODUCER ACORSA USA 2200 FLETCHER AVE. SUITE # 702, FORT LEE, NJ 07024 Tel. 201-944-0474 ...... Fax # 201-944-1279 enrique.escudero@dcoop.es ... www.dcoop.es

MEAT TOPPINGS

We offer a full line of Green Olives, Ripe Olives and Olive Oil from Spain for private label or branded. OU Kosher and BRC Certified. Inventory stored at 11 warehouses throughout the U.S.

ON HOLD MARKETING

PRESTIGE FOODS ............................314-567-3648 ........................MEATTRADER@MSN.COM Low Closeout Pricing! Call for this week’s special. For Deals That Go To Your Bottom Line.

MIXERS USED HOBART 60 QT. MIXER FOR SALE AT US $4980.00 PLUS SHIPPING. Call Lynn at 214-552-3218.............................................................................. or e-mail tbfm@tbfm.com

Precision HD-60 Pizza Mixer 7-Year Unconditional Parts Warranty on all gears and shafts in the planetary and transmission!

Holdsbowl! art 80-qundles a Ha . bag 50 lb our! of fl

ONLINE ORDERING

1000+ Restaurants Extensively Developed Fast. Secure. Easy.

www.pizzamixers.com • 1-877-R-MIXERS

60 QUART—HEAVY HEAVY DUTY

Pizza Mixer

Handles 50 lb. bag of flour • Direct gear drive transmission Rigid cast iron construction • Best warranty in its class

$99 Monthly 0% Commission Go Mobile Today!

imenutogo.com

718 676 7554

Globe Food Equipment Co. | www.globefoodequip.com

The Original Variable Speed Mixer

Varimixer Strong as a Bear.

800-222-1138

www.varimixer.com V6OP

mixer@varimixer.com • 14240 South Lakes Dr • Charlotte, NC

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE ONLINE ORDERING

PIZZA BOX LINERS

ONLINE ORDERING PROMOTIONAL PROGRAMS

PIZZA DELIVERY THERMAL BAGS

PIZZA BOXES

“The Swiss Army knife of pizza boxes” JUST BUCKLE YOUR CAR’S SEATBELT TO INSTALL!

info@greenboxny.com | 212.874.0748 | www.greenboxny.com

CUSTOMIZE YOUR PIZZA BOX Doing It The American Way! TAKE YOUR IMAGE TO THE NEXT LEVEL

Pizza Seatbelt “The Pizza Seatbelt keeps the pizza(s) straight and the pizza and its toppings from sliding all over the place! I highly recommend the Pizza Seatbelt.”

pizza boxes stack on level surface!

— Joe Castle (Deliveryman for 20 years)

7” to 36” Custom Boxes and Odd Sizes Available

SEE OUR VIDEO ON OUR WEBSITE

*CALL US FOR DETAILS

pizzaseatbelt.com • 610-703-8744

UP TO 4-COLORS | NO PLATE FEES*

•

CURRENT DISCOUNTS AVAILABLE , CALL TODAY !

888.400.3455 ext.107 | www.wpackaging.net 2001 East Cooley Drive, Colton, CA 92324

PIZZA BOX LINERS

YOUR ONE-STOP BAG SHOP • UNBEATABLE BAGS AT UNBEATABLE PRICES PRICES AS LOW AS

$13.49

$10

ATE FLAT R ING SHIPP

1-844-HOT-BAGS

Satuisafaractniotened! g

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE PIZZA DELIVERY THERMAL BAGS

Metal is the right choice.

Aluminum is lighter and longer lasting that wooden peels.

Introducing the ultimate perforated pizza peel to easily sift away excess flour.

Tailored to your preferred length, shape and functionality.

100% made in Italy and available in America, close to you with the service you need.

Pro fe & r ssion est au al too ran ts, ls for sin piz ce z 19 erias 86 .

GI.METAL USA, INC Phone (630) 553 9134 www. gimetalusa.com info@gimetalusa.com

Be Smart.

Wood is over.

MADE IN ITALY

DECEMBER SPECIALS

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE PIZZA LOYALTY PROGRAMS

PIZZA OVENS

PIZZA OVENS

TRADITIONAL, FAST CASUAL, ARTISAN...

WE’VE GOT PIZZA COVERED VENTLESS IMPINGEMENT CONVEYORS, BATCH, AND ARTISAN BATCH OVENS 1-800-90TURBO | www.turbochef.com

EARTHSTONE OVENS, INC. ...............6717 San Fernando Rd...................Glendale, CA 91201 800-840-4915 .......................Fax: 818-553-1133.......................... www.earthstoneovens.com All units UI listed.

MARSAL & SONS, INC. ................................................ The new standard in the Pizza Industry Brick Lined Deck Ovens • Standard Deck Ovens • Prep Table Refrigeration 631-226-6688......................... marsalsons.com ........................ rich@marsalsons.com

Stone Deck, Pizza Dome, and Bakery

WOOD STONE CORPORATION......................................Stone Hearth & Specialty Commercial Cooking Equipment..................................... 1801 W. Bakerview Rd ............Bellingham, WA 98226 TOLL Free 800-988-8103 .....................Fax: 360-650-1166 ...........woodstone-corp.com

PIZZA PANS www.univexcorp.com Tel. 800-258-6358 Fax. 603-893-1249

WWW.XLTOVENS.COM TO ORDER CALL (316) 943-2751 | TOLL-FREE: (888) 443-2751 | FAX: (316) 943-2769

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE PIZZA PANS

PIZZA PEELS

AMERICAN MADE

Pizza Screens • The Ultimate in Bake Disks Pizza Pans... Round, Square, & Rectangular Sauce/Cheese Rings • Pan Covers Pizza Cutters/Knives

PIZZA SUPPLIES

• Pizza Preparation and Delivery Products •

P.A. PRODUCTS, Inc. BAKEWARE SPECIALISTS

33709 Schoolcraft • Livonia, Michigan 48150 (734) 421-1060 • FAX: (734) 421-1208 www.paprod.com Introducing

THE

PIZZA BUTLER!

Space-saving footprintEasy storage | Versatile Function Sturdy Contruction | Customizable

National Marketing, Inc.

www.nminc.com 800-994-4664

734-266-2222

Fax: 734-266-2121

Manufacturers’ Direct Pricing • Call or order online • We export

Call Manny at 718-894-1212 ext. 218 Order online at www.thepizzabutler.com

PIZZA PEELS

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE PRINTING

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE PRINTING

REFRIGERATION

SAUCE

PRIVATE LABELING

SAUCE REFRIGERATION TOMATO PRODUCTS Since 1915, the Neil Jones Food Company has been producing premium quality tomato and custom blend sauces. A family owned and operated corporation, we only pack from the freshest and finest vine-ripened California tomatoes. So whether you prefer classic #10 cans or new shelf-stable pouches, you will always get the very best in fresh packed tomato products from Neil Jones Food.

with a real passion for fresh-packed product

njfco.com | 800.291.3862

SPECIALTY TOPPINGS MAKE YOUR PIZZA

STAND OUT WITH

DUCK BACON! For more information call 800-348-2812 or visit www.mapleleaffarms.com

SPICE FORMULATION, BLENDING & PACKAGING

see more at

www.marsalsons.com

(631) 226-6688

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THE PIZZA EXCHANGE PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE SUPER DOUGH BOWLS

WINGS

SUPER DOUGH BOWLS Non Stick • Easy to Clean • FDA Approved Plastic Heavy Weight • Last 10X longer than metal!

Replace your dented ones TODAY !

MADE IN THE USA Manufacturer’s Direct Pricing Free Sample Available - $15 del/hand REBATED on first order. email us at: bhausen@aol.com

Call Sid

516-546-7744 TELEPHONE EQUIPMENT/SUPPLIES/SERVICE

YEAST

Specializing in voice and data communications service, repair, installation, sequencers and on-hold messaging.

GUARANTEED LOWEST INDUSTRY PRICE!

www.fidelitycom.com.........................800-683-5600

TOMATO PRODUCTS

Are you a pizza-making genius?

PROVE IT!

TOPPINGS

LIGURIA

The Pizzaiolo’s Pepperoni www.pizzatv.com

Share your best recipes with PMQ - and the entire pizza-loving world in the Recipe Bank.

• Pizzas • Appetizers • Entrees

• Wings • Flatbreads • Salads

• Desserts • and More!

Submit your recipes TODAY at PMQ.com/recipebank!

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PIZZA HALL OF FAME www.pizzahalloffame.com

(Clockwise from left) A high school football team celebrates its championship win at Mandee’s in the 1960s; Emanuel Destefano (second from left) shows off one of his popular pies; by the 1980s, current owner John Theo began propelling the pizzeria into the future.

Mandee’s Pizza This Salem, Massachusetts, pizzeria effortlessly balances the old- and new-school, remaining a first adopter of technologies without sacrificing customer face time. By Tracy Morin

E

manuel Destefano went by the name of “Man Dee,” the moniker that inspired his pizzeria in Salem, Massachusetts, back in 1962. Around 1975, he passed the reins to a local college professor, Chuck Stasio, but it was a teenage employee, John Theodorakopoulos (a.k.a. Theo), who transported the pizzeria into the future.

By 16, Theo had already worked his way up to supervisor; at 18, he used his college savings to buy the pizzeria from his mentor in 1986. “I really wanted to be in business for myself, and I ran the pizzeria like it was my own from a young age,” Theo recalls.

“I always told Chuck, ‘Someday, you’re going to be working for me!’”

Mandee’s still follows the same authentic recipes—hand-tossed Italian pies with fresh dough made daily and sauce from imported San Marzano tomatoes—but has improved operations with modern technology, like conveyor

ovens. Theo still considers Mandee’s “old-school and family-owned and -operated”; his daughter, Alicia, majors in hospitality while helping out at the pizzeria, and his sister and brotherin-law own a sister location in nearby Lynn. But Theo has always been a first adopter of technology, investing in an early-era POS system in the late ’80s; starting a live pizza cam on dial-up back in 1990; and initiating online ordering a decade ago. Newschool techniques (email marketing, a loyalty program and social media) join more personalized approaches, including new customer thank-you cards; follow-ups at 30, 60 and 90 days; and postcard apologies when deliveries run longer than desired.

“I’ll do old-fashioned phone calls if I haven’t seen a regular customer in a while,” Theo adds. “Maybe they had a problem and didn’t say anything— most customers don’t complain, they

just don’t come back. So it’s really important to reach out.”

Doing a little bit of outreach every day adds up, and Theo is a firm believer in staying in-store, doing any job needed—making dough, doing dishes, mopping floors. The self-professed “tinkerer and problem-solver” also freely experiments with trendy new toppings and combinations; recent hits include spicy pies like the Chicken Sriracha. “Although we’re a mom-and-pop pizzeria, I’m very professional,” Theo says. “I really care about my customers and reputation, because that’s all you really have. My mentor always told me, I don’t work for him—I work for the customer.

They’re here for the food, but they’re also here for you. I want them to think of Mandee’s as not only a pizza shop, but as a local guy who really cares about the community.”

HAS YOUR PIZZERIA BEEN IN BUSINESS FOR 50 OR MORE YEARS? IF SO, CONTACT US AT TRACY@PMQ.COM. 114

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©2016 AB Mauri Food Inc.

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