Pizza Hut

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Pizza Hut Inc.
Type	Wholly owned subsidiary
Founded	Wichita, Kansas, USA (1958)
Headquarters	Addison, Texas, USA
Key people	Dan and Frank Carney (founders) David C. Novak (CEO)
Industry	Fast food
Products	Pizza, Pasta
Employees	300,000+
Parent	Yum! Brands
Website	pizzahut.com

Pizza Hut Inc. is a restaurant chain and international franchise based in Addison, Texas, USA (a northern suburb of Dallas) specializing in American-style pizza along with side dishes including (depending on location) buffalo wings, breadsticks, and garlic bread. Pizza Hut is the world's largest pizza restaurant chain and is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc.. restaurants total approximately 34,000 restaurants, delivery-carry out units, and kiosks in 100 countries.^[1].

Pizza Hut was founded as a pizzeria in 1958 by the Carney brothers - Dan and Frank. Borrowing $600 from their mother, the Wichita State University college students took a family pizza recipe and opened the first restaurant at a busy intersection in Wichita, Kansas^[2]. Additional restaurants were opened, with the first franchise unit opening in 1959 in Topeka, Kansas. By 1964 a unique standardized building appearance and layout was established for franchised and company-owned stores, in order to have a universal and familiar look for customers to recognize. By 1970, with 310 stores nationwide, Pizza Hut went public on the New York Stock Exchange under the stock ticker symbol PIZ. In 1977, Pizza Hut was acquired by Pepsico, along with KFC and Taco Bell. In 1997, the three restaurant chains were spun off into Tricon, and in 2002 joined with Long John Silver's and A&W Restaurants to become YUM! Brands.

The oldest continuously-operating Pizza Hut in the world is in Manhattan, Kansas, in a shopping and tavern district known as Aggieville. ^{[citation needed]}

Contents 1 Products 2 International operations 2.1 Andorra 2.2 Bangladesh 2.3 Bulgaria 2.4 China 2.5 Egypt 2.6 Germany 2.7 Greece 2.8 India 2.9 Israel 2.10 Japan 2.11 Luxembourg 2.12 Malaysia 2.13 Mexico 2.14 Netherlands 2.15 Pakistan 2.16 Philippines 2.17 Romania 2.18 Russia 2.19 Serbia 2.20 Singapore 2.21 Spain 2.22 Sri Lanka 2.23 UK & Ireland 3 Advertising 3.1 Sponsorship 3.1.1 Book It! 4 Unions 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Products

The most commonly sold food at the restaurants is the "Pan Pizza", which usually comes in four different sizes including Personal Pan (which is an individual serving), Small, Medium, and Large, although most stores have done away with the small size. They come in a variety of toppings, including "specialty" styles, which consists of Meat Lovers, Pepperoni Lovers, Cheese Lovers, Veggie Lovers, Double Cheeseburger, Supreme, and Super Supreme, which is Pizza Hut's most expensive pizza. Pan Pizza has a thicker crust than most other commercially available pizzas. Unlike most of Pizza Hut's competitors (such as Domino's deep dish or Papa John's Perfect Pan), Pizza Hut does not charge extra for its pan pizza, except in Poland^{[citation needed]}.

In addition to the Pan Pizza, Pizza Hut also sells "Stuffed Crust" (with the outermost edge wrapped around a coil of mozzarella cheese); "Hand-Tossed" (which is more like traditional pizzeria crusts); "Thin 'N Crispy" (a thin and crispy dough which was the original crust); "Bigfoot", which is a two-foot by one-foot square cut pizza; and the Dippin' Strips pizza, which is similar to a Sicilian pizza but is cut into small strips that can be dipped into a number of sauces. Another is the "Edge" pizza, where the pizza is baked with no puffy crust, and the toppings reach nearly to the edge of the pie.

Pizza Hut has experimented with new products frequently. Less successful ones have been discontinued. These include Chicago Dish Pizza and Sicilian pizza; the Sicilian Pizza made a 2006 comeback as the Lasagna Pizza. Other products Pizza Hut has offered are the "P'zone", Pizza Hut's version of the calzone; the "Cheesy Bites", similar to the "Stuffed Crust" except the crust has been divided into bite-sized pieces that can be pulled apart; and the "Insider", where a layer of cheese is in between two layers of dough.

Pizza Hut also has a number of side dishes including bread sticks, cheese sticks, cinnamon sticks, mozzarella sticks, onion rings, hot and mild chicken wings, boneless wings, chicken munchers, jalapeño poppers, and garlic bread.

Depending on the size, Pizza Huts also may offer pasta dinners such as Spaghetti and Cavatini - a mixture of Cavatelli (shells), Rotini (spirals), and Rotelle (wheels). They often come with a side of garlic bread. Some Pizza Huts also serve lunch and dinner buffets with numerous types of pizza, breadsticks and pastas, as well as a salad bar.

A new, upscale concept was unveiled in 2005, called "Pizza Hut Italian Bistro". The concept, unveiled at fifty locations nationwide, is similar to a traditional Pizza Hut, except that new pasta dishes are offered, such as penne pasta, chicken pomodoro; toasted sandwiches and other foods are also offered.^[3] Instead of black, white, and red, Bistro locations feature a burgundy and tan motif.^[4] Pizza Hut Bistros still serve the chain's traditional pizzas and sides, as well.

[edit] International operations

Pizza Hut restaurants are located throughout the world. Based on their location and the culture of the people, Pizza Hut often offers different menu choices in these countries than in the United States and Canada.

[edit] Andorra

There are 2 Pizza Hut locations in Andorra: 1 in Escaldes and 1 in Meritxell ^[5]

[edit] Bangladesh

Pizza Hut opened its doors to the Bangladeshi market on the 6th of December, 2003 and ever since then it has been one of the most popular fast food outlets in Bangladesh. Currently there are two outlets, one in Dhaka which is situated at Gulshan-1 and the other at GEC Mor, Chittagong. Another 2/3 outlets are set to start operations soon. All foods served in the outlets in Bangladesh are halal. Pizza Hut Bangladesh has an annual all you can eat offer during the Islamic holy month of Ramzan. The outlet in Gulshan has 220 seats and over 6000 sft., is one of the largest Pizza Huts in Indian subcontinent.

[edit] Bulgaria

The first Pizza Hut outlet was opened in the capital Sofia near the National Football Stadium in June 1995. It became a hit and now there are more than 10 outlets in Bulgaria. Since 1996 Pizza Hut offers a Take Away service.

[edit] China

The first Pizza Hut store in mainland China was opened on December 1, 1990 and still operates in the Dongzhimen area, Beijing. Pizza Hut is called 必胜客 (Pinyin:Bishenke). In 1998 the first Shanghai store opened.

Currently, Pizza Hut has approximately 200 restaurants in China, including the first Mongolian language store in Hohhot and a Uyghur language store in Ürümqi, which both opened in 2005.

The 200 restaurants are located in more than 50 cities, such as almost all the provincial capitals and large cities such as Shanghai, Tianjin, Chongqing, Guangzhou, Nanjing, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Wuhan and Changsha. In China, Pizza Hut is marketed as a dine-in restaurant, serving sangria and escargot as well as the traditional pizza (including traditional toppings and others like tuna).

Hong Kong

The first Pizza Hut in Hong Kong was opened in 1981, in the basement of The Landmark (demolished in 2000 with the Landmark East portion of the complex). It currently has 54 restaurants over Hong Kong, 34 being "express" restaurants and 20 being full service restaurants^[6]

"Pizza Hut Hong Kong" is notable for its menu with half of the pizza selections that are thousand island sauce based. Also, along with pizza, pasta, lasagna and baked rice are equally emphasized in Hong Kong's Pizza Hut outlets.

[edit] Egypt

Pizza Hut was and is a big hit in Egypt. It was one of the first fast food chains that opened in Egypt, after KFC & Wimpy and before McDonald's. It now has many outlets all over the country. Pizza Hut serves Pan Pizza, Thin n' Crispy and Stuffed Crust, with all the basic toppings, however no pork, ham nor bacon are available to please the Muslim majority. Pasta, salads and desserts were introduced in 2005. Before that Pizza Hut was only known for its pizzas, with few other choices. That was changed as a result of heavy competition with other pizza chains.

[edit] Germany

Pizza Hut entered the German market as "Pepsi Food Services" in 1983. Currently, there are 69 locations throughout Germany (not counting the Pizza Hut locations on US military bases run by AAFES), German corporate headquarters are located in Düsseldorf. The first Pizza Hut opened in Frankfurt am Main in 1983. Pizza Hut employs approximately 2,600 people. Pizza Hut Germany consists of the traditional Pizza Hut restaurant with the full menu as well as Pizza Hut Express locations (found mostly in large train stations such as Cologne and Frankfurt) which sell Personal Pan Pizzas as well as pizza by the slice. Combined KFC/Pizza Hut locations are found in Augsburg, Bochum, Darmstadt, Frankfurt (Hauptwache), Hamburg, Kaarst, Cologne (Frankfurter Straße near Cologne/Bonn Airport) and Paderborn. These combined locations sell mainly KFC products with a limited Pizza Hut menu (similar selection as described in the Pizza Hut Express concept). The prices are the same across Germany.

[edit] Greece

Pizza Hut established itself in Greece in 1990. There are a total of 41 locations across Greece. They are located in: Athens (32 locations), Corfu (1 location), Crete/Heraklion (1 location), Patras (1 location), Rhodes (1 location), Thessaloniki (4 locations) and Zakinthos (1 location) (Source:[1]). Pizza Hut offers in Greece a variety of choices based on the local tastes, such as 'Greek Lover's pizza' and 'Cyprus Lover's pizza' with the first having feta cheese and the latter halloumi cheese among other ingredients.

[edit] India

Pizza Hut came to India in 1996 with a dine-in restaurant in Bangalore, that had special vegetarian pizzas. In addition to traditional toppings, it incorporates Indian favorite foods such as Chicken tikkas, Lamb korma and other dishes, in its list of innovative toppings. Along with pizzas, the menu features appetizers such as garlic bread and soups, fresh salads, oven-baked pastas and choice of ice-cream sundaes. They have some American and Italian foods other than just Indian foods. They have pepperoni pizzas as well as cheese and the like. They have different types of meal orders such as the Four Course Menu. In the Four Course Menu you can get garlic bread (with or without cheese), a small bowl of soup (mushroom or tomato basil), a small personal pan and a desert of mango ice cream.

Pizza Hut now has a presence in many major Indian cities such as Bangalore, Chandigarh, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Udaipur, Lucknow, New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Kanpur,Chennai, Pune, Surat, Jaipur Puducherry, Coimbatore, Amritsar, Cochin, Agra, Hyderabad (with multiple branches in many of those cities), Ahmedabad,Indore,Mangalore,Mysore,Visakhapatnam and Bhubaneswar.

[edit] Israel

In Israel, Pizza Hut is kosher in order to accommodate Jewish dietary laws. In most places in the world, Pizza Hut pizza is not certified as Kosher.

The popular slogan there is:

• Great pizza under one roof

[edit] Japan

Pizza Hut in Japan, run by KFC Japan Ltd., began its operations in 1991 with its first outlet in Myougadani, Tokyo. They currently serve pizza with "cheesy roll" crust, which contains cheese filled rolls made of crust surrounding the pizza. They also have the "sausage roll" pizza, which has a sausage baked in the crust.

[edit] Luxembourg

Luxembourg's first location opened in its capital on December 9th, 1987. Two more locations were added on July 12th, 1994 and on August 13th, 1998. Today, there are 3 locations across Luxembourg: Luxembourg Ville (opened in 1987), Strassen (opened in 1994) and Beggen (opened in 1998). Luxembourg Ville and Strassen were built as typical European Pizza Hut locations, both buildings reflect more European characteristics than the typical American architectural counterparts. In stark contrast, Beggen was built as an American-style stand-alone, red roof Pizza Hut adjacent to a Texaco gas station. Pizza Hut's menu in Luxembourg reflects the standard offering found in most European locations (Pan Pizzas/Cheezy Crust) as well as specialized variations (Italian crust). (Source: Pictures and Location info)

[edit] Malaysia

In Malaysia, Pizza Hut offers toppings that do not contain pork to comply with the Muslim majority; instead, substitutions made with chicken or turkey are used. There are also different toppings that reflects the country's cuisine, for example, satay.

[edit] Mexico

Pizza Huts are found throughout Mexico, including Alcapulco and Mexico City, as well as other tourist destinations.

[edit] Netherlands

Pizza Hut opened its first outlet in the Netherlands in 1973; it is still operating at the same location in The Hague. This outlet was the first Pizza Hut in Europe. Pizza Hut isn't that much of a success in the Netherlands: in 1997 there were about thirteen outlets, but as of 2007, there are only three locations left - The Hague, Scheveningen and Rotterdam. There also used to be five Pizza Hut Express counters at railway stations across the Netherlands. These have been taken over by New York Pizza (a big rival in the Netherlands). (Source: Pizza Hut Netherlands)

[edit] Pakistan

Pizza Hut first started operations in Pakistan by opening its first restaurant near Bank's Square on Mall Road in Lahore. It then expanded to Karachi and Peshawar. Now it also has restaurants in Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Hyderabad, Quetta and Multan. The topping Chicken Tikka which is now used in franchises in India was first used in restaurants in Pakistan. The pizza served in Pakistan is Halal according to the Islamic law.

[edit] Philippines

Pizza Hut opened its first restaurant in 1984, and now currently operating more than 130 dine-in restaurants, delivery units, express counters and six Pizza Hut Bistros throughout the Philippine archipelago. Most of the Pizza Hut franchises in the Philippines are located in shopping malls. The Philippines is one of only two countries in the world where Pizza Hut serves chips.

[edit] Romania

Pizza Hut (aka S.C. American Restaurant System S.A.) has a total of 11 locations in the following cities: Bacau (1 location, inside METRO AG), Bucharest (4 locations), Cluj (1 location, inside METRO AG), Constanta (2 locations), Iasi (1 location), Ramnicu Valcea (1 location) and Timisoara (1 location). Pizza Hut Romania's menu includes Pan Pizza, Classic and Thin 'n' Crispy crust pizzas, salads, pasta, appetizers (garlic bread, quesadillas) and desserts (cakes, brownies, mousse) as well as the Junior Menu (Pizza Junior & Dessert Junior) for kids. ^[7]

[edit] Russia

In 1990, the first Pizza Hut location in Russia opened in Moscow on Gorkii Street in a location with a 3-floor, 400 seat dining area. A second location is on Ulitsa Pyatnitskaya ("5th Street").

The Saint Petersburg location is on Nevskii Prospekt, and has a 2-floor dining area.

The logo has been re-done in Cyrillic letters, but is readily identifiable as the Pizza Hut logo even to those who cannot read Cyrillic letters.

During the August coup in Russia which eventually led to the collapse of the Soviet Union, then-Russian SFSR president Boris Yeltsin famously ordered Pizza Hut for everyone barricaded in the Russian White House during the coup.

The highest-grossing Pizza Hut is located in Moscow; it grosses an average $6500 a day. ^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Serbia

In October 2003, Belgrade got its first Pizza Hut restaurant. The restaurant is situated in Makedonska Street 44 in the heart of Belgrade. This Pizza Hut offers pizzas, pastas, salads and starters, as well as coffee, cakes, and ice cream. In early 2004, Pizza Hut introduced Take–Away as a new service.

[edit] Singapore

In 1981, Pizza Hut opened its first restaurant in Singapore. There are currently more than 37 dine-in outlets in Singapore. Recently, breadsticks and baked rice and pasta has been available.

[edit] Spain

Pizza Hut entered the Spanish market in 1980. Today, Pizza Hut Spain operates 130 locations across Spain including locations on the Balearic Islands. (Source: Pizza Hut Spain)

[edit] Sri Lanka

Pizza Hut in Sri Lanka is one of the first variety chain stores in the country. Currently Pizza Hut offers an online ordering system which delivers to the following outlets: Colombo, Negombo, Kandy, Kiribathgoda, Kotahena, Colpetty, Union Place, Rajagiriya, Havelock Rd., Malabe, Dehiwala, Nugegoda, Thalawathugoda, Moratuwa, Maharagama and Wattala.

[edit] UK & Ireland

With a recent change in the menu, there are now the following four types of bases available, Pan Pizza, "The Italian" (A more traditional style pizza), stuffed crust, and the "Cheesy Bites" pizza available with either triple cheese (mozzarella, chedder and regarto) or mozzarella in the tear off crust.

In addition the menu offers a buffet; all you can eat "under terms and conditions"^[specify], for pizza only or for a combination of pizza, pasta, and salad.

It is also now possible to order Pizzas over the internet.

[edit] Advertising

Pizza Hut's main advertising slogan is "Gather 'round the good stuff". Pizza Hut does not have an official international mascot, but at one time, there were commercials in the United States called 'The Pizza Head Show.' These commercials ran from 1993-1997 and were based loosely on the Mr. Bill shorts from Saturday Night Live in the 1970s. The ads featured a slice of pizza with a face made out of toppings called 'Pizza Head'. In Australia during the Mid to late 1990s, the advertising mascot was a delivery boy named Dougie, with boyish good looks who, upon delivering pizza to his father, would hear the catchphrase "Here's a tip, be good to your mother".

In 1994, Donald Trump and ex-wife Marla Maples starred in a commercial. The ending of the commercial showed Maples-Trump asking for the last slice, to which Donald replied, "Actually dear, you're only entitled to half", a play on the couple's recent divorce.

In 1995, Ringo Starr starred in a Pizza Hut commercial which also featured The Monkees. Rush Limbaugh also starred in a Pizza Hut commercial the same year.

In 1997, former Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev starred in a Pizza Hut commercial to raise money for the Perestroyka Archives. In recent years, Pizza Hut has had various celebrity spokespeople, including Jessica Simpson, the Muppets, and Damon Hill and Murray Walker. Recent commercials have Queen Latifah providing the voiceover. Also in 1997, Pizza Hut, reunited "greatest of all time boxer" Muhamad Ali with trainer Angelo Dundee in a sentimental made for Super Bowl commercial.

Talk show host, Jonathan Ross, co-starred in an ad with American model, Caprice Bourret. They were used to advertise the stuffed crust pizza, with Jonathan Ross saying "Stuffed Cwust", to which is a play on Jonathan's pronunciation of 'R's.

Another UK ad shows British Formula One driver Damon Hill visit a Pizza Hut restaurant and order a pizza, with famous F1 commentator Murray Walker visiting with him, and narrating as though it was a Formula One race. As Hill is about to finish his meal, Walker, in a play on Hill's 1994 & 1995 seasons, shouts "And Hill finishes second, again!" at which Hill grabs Walker by his shirt and shakes him angrily, Walker proclaiming, in his usual tones, "He's lost it! He's out of control!"

The 1990 NES game Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game, came with a coupon for a free pizza. The game was filled with Pizza Hut advertising and pizza that would refill the character's life.

Pizza Hut sponsored the first space pizza delivery in 2001, and paid for their logo to appear on a Russian Proton rocket in 2000.^[8]

In Australia, 2006 saw the introduction of a mascot in Pizza Hut's advertising - "Pizza Mutt", a small dog who delivers pizzas.

Early 2007 saw Pizza Hut move into several more interactive ways of marketing to the consumer. Utilizing mobile phone SMS technology and their MyHut ordering site, they aired several television commercials (commencing just before the Super Bowl) containing hidden words that viewers could type into their phones to receive coupons. Other innovative efforts included their "MySpace Ted" campaign, which took advantage of the popularity of social networking, and the burgeoning user-submission marketing movement via their Vice President of Pizza contest.

[edit] Sponsorship

• In the early 1990s, as part of PepsiCo's sponsorship of The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, Pizza Hut was included in the acknowledgment alongside Taco Bell and KFC, which PepsiCo owned at the time.

• In 2000, Pizza Hut was a part-time sponsor of Galaxy Motorsports' #75 Ford in the then NASCAR Winston Cup Series, driven by Wally Dallenbach Jr.

• Pizza Hut was the shirt sponsor of English football club Fulham F.C. for the 2001-02 season.

• Terry Labonte drove selected events with Pizza Hut as the primary sponsor of his #44 car in 2005.

• Pizza Hut purchased the naming rights to Major League Soccer club FC Dallas' stadium, Pizza Hut Park, prior to its opening in 2005.

• In 2005, Pizza Hut sponsored The Simpsons on Channel 4. The adverts often contained the catchphrase "Who's called the Hut?" At the same time, due to a deal that started years earlier, Domino's Pizza sponsored The Simpsons on a different British TV station, Sky One.

• In March 2007, Pizza Hut partnered with Verizon Wireless to offer a free LG mobile phone with the purchase of a Cheesy Bites Pizza.

• In the Japanese Anime, Code Geass, Pizza Hut boxes can be seen in several episodes of the Anime.

• In the Japanese Anime, Darker than BLACK, a Pizza Hut branch can be seen below the detective agency in some episodes.

• Recent Pizza Hut television ads use the track "Can't Get Enough of You Baby" by pop rock group Smash Mouth.

[edit] Book It!

Pizza Hut has been a longtime sponsor of the "Book It!" program (started in 1988), which encourages reading in American schools. Those who read books according to the goal set by the classroom teacher are rewarded with Pizza Hut coupons good for a free Personal Pan Pizza or discounted menu items. In the late 1980s, Pizza Hut threw free pizza parties for classes if all students met their reading goals. The program has received criticism^[9] from some child development specialists, on grounds that the food and educational message provided to children is more harmful than helpful.

[edit] Unions

In more recent history, Pizza Hut's delivery drivers have been organizing into unions [2]. These drivers cite conditions as 'deplorable' with the average US driver getting paid $0.50(USD) per delivery (while Pizza Hut, on average, charges the customer $1.50(USD) per delivery), compared to a national average elsewhere of $1.25 per delivery. [3]. Such unions include SEIU and APDD. In addition to wages, many Pizza Hut drivers have safety and job security concerns. As of October 2006 no union has successfully recruited in any company-owned Pizza Hut restaurants.

[edit] References

1. ^ Our Story, PizzaHut.com
2. ^ Pizza Hut web site - about the company
3. ^ http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3190/is_14_39/ai_n13593323
4. ^ http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070309/COLUMNISTS37/703090323/1061/ENT07
5. ^ http://www.pizzahut.es/html/buscador/?cp=&provincia=Andorra
6. ^ Pizza Hut (Hong Kong) History, Pizza Hut Hong Kong, accessed on November 27, 2006.
7. ^ http://www.pizzahut.ro
8. ^ Pitching products in the final frontier
9. ^ http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070416/COLUMN0202/704160317/1069/ITK

[edit] External links

• Official site
• Directory of international websites

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