Competition among pizza brands is set to hot up as US-based Domino’s Pizza’s first store opened in Johannesburg yesterday, bringing the dough fight to the doorsteps of the Debonairs, Panarottis and Pizza Hut restaurant-chains.
Despite legal tussles over the master agreement licence for Domino’s, Taste Holdings is a sole licence owner.
Taste plans to open at least six Domino’s Pizza restaurants before the end of the year. The group has begun a process of converting the Scooters and St Elmo’s franchises into Domino’s Pizza outlets.
Chief executive Carlo Gonzaga said: “We are excited to be able to share the news that South Africans will very shortly have the opportunity to taste the world Domino’s Pizza for themselves.”
Gonzaga added that Taste had no doubt that the brand’s introduction would also afford greater business opportunities for both existing and potential business owners who were looking to make a mark in the fast-food franchising market.
Founded in 1960, Domino’s Pizza has more than 10 800 stores in about 70 countries, including the US, India, Mexico and South Korea. The pizza chain delivers more than 1 million pizzas daily.
Apart from the South African market, the US-based company intends to expand in six other southern African countries including Swaziland, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi among others.
Locally, the opening of Domino’s means fierce competition among players.
Retail analysts previously said pizza was becoming the fastest-growing food offering in South Africa.
Locally, Debonairs Pizza, which is owned by Famous Brands, was the leading brand in the offering with over 450 restaurants across the country.
Famous Brands’ chief executive Kevin Hedderwick said earlier this week that Debonairs was ahead of both the existing competition and the new contenders.
He said the group was either a category leader or a strong number two in all the food categories in which it participated. “If you talk pizza we are leaders in [the] category in terms of branded [take-away] and home-delivery pizzas.”
Hedderwick said in the near future Debonairs Pizza would exceed 500 outlets in South Africa. “There was still a lot of space between us and the other groups,” he added.
Domino’s Pizza was not the only new player in the market – it will be joined by Pizza Hut, which is owned by Yum Brands.
Pizza Hut made its return to South Africa in September, after leaving the market in 2008. It launched its first store in Honeydew, Johannesburg and planned to open more stores in Boksburg, Midrand and Soweto, as well as in Zambia and Angola.
Meanwhile, Spur Corporation had previously named Panarottis Pizza as a star-performer among its chains, which include Spur Steak Ranches and John Dory’s.
Gonzaga said Domino’s Pizza would become its leading pizza-franchise offering.
“Domino’s Pizza is the leader of its markets. We intend to not only meet, but exceed, the standards of the brand in our own local market to ensure… South Africa is one of the top Domino’s Pizza markets very soon,” he said.
Taste’s share price was unchanged at R3 yesterday.