A hearty congratulations to Domino’s Pizza is in order. As you can tell by the cover of this particular issue of Pizza Today, the Ann Arbor, Michigan-based juggernaut is our 2010 Chain of the Year. This represents the second time the company has been awarded the honor (2003).
Without question, no foodservice entity — I’m not just talking the pizza segment here now — has made more noise than Domino’s over the past 12-18 months. Between a food safety scandal that caught the attention of the masses on YouTube and a bold revamping of their core product, Domino’s was in the national press a lot in 2009 and thus far in 2010. Here is just a small sampling of the headlines the company has made:
? A Video Prank at Domino’s Damages Its Brand (New York Times)
? Domino’s Pizza Adds Chocolate Cake to Expand Menu (Reuters)
? Domino’s Pizza Delivers Change in Its Core Pizza Recipe (USA Today)
? Domino’s CEO Brandon to be Michigan Athletic Director (USA Today)
? Patrick Doyle to Succeed David Brandon As Domino’s CEO (Crain’s Detroit Business)
? Domino’s Pizza Opens 9,000th Store (Forbes)
? New Domino’s Pizza Recipe Doubles Quarterly Profits (New York Daily News)
? Domino’s Says New Recipe, Frank Ad Campaign Help Double Profit (USA Today)
? Domino’s Tough Love on Itself is Getting Noticed (MSNBC)
? Domino’s Launches Massive $75 Million Ad Blitz (Forbes)
Clearly, there’s been a lot going on in Ann Arbor recently. And my gut tells me there’s much more still to come.
Was any pizza company more newsworthy than Domino’s in the past year? Not even close. Match their buzz with their very strong financial performance (an unbelievable 14.3 percent jump in same-store sales in the first quarter of 2010 for domestic units), and it becomes clear that we really only had one choice for our Chain of the Year.
Congratulations, Domino’s! Read more about the company and its recent developments and performance beginning on page 58. And stay tuned for our August issue as well, when we’ll name our Indy of the Year.
Best,
Jeremy White, editor-in-chief
[email protected]