A POPULAR pizza chain is declaring war against its rivals as the CEO reveals his plans to win over foodies.
Kevin King, the CEO of Donatos Pizza, is calling out other major pizza chains as the food industry is still being hit with rising prices.
Donatos first started in 1963 in a small shop owned by Jim Grote in Columbus, Ohio, and was founded on three tenets: lead with love, follow the Golden Rule and do the right thing.
King assumed leadership of the company last October and is pushing for new strategies to keep the brand relevant for new and existing customers.
“If we do those, we know we’ll have a successful business in the end,” King said on the Pizza Marketplace Podcast.
When asked about the supposed “pizza wars” ramping up in the industry due to price hikes, King called out other major brands such as Domino’s and Papa Murphy’s.
“I think the fundamental thing is that the consumer is stressed,” King said.
While there were record pizza sales during the pandemic, as patrons returned to restaurants, their spending has softened, he added.
“Wanting to maintain share, the competitors all went deep on price, I think,” he said.
“Domino’s started it, they have a super powerful brand and a huge voice in the pizza category, and went low on price,e and we had to react.”
However, King said the shoppers are still “stressed,” so there’s an effort to keep them engaged.
“There’s definitely a price war going on and people [are] trying to protect margin,” said King.
“We had to get aggressive on price as well.”
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Part of Donatos mission to oust the competition comes as the company plans on opening more than 100 new locations.
The company operates nearly 180 traditional restaurants across 12 states and is served at over 280 Red Robin locations.
However, Donatos Pizza is hoping to bump up these numbers, with big expansion plans in the works.
The iconic chain plans to enter the Houston market by the end of this year with the recent signing of two local franchisee groups, Donatos announced in a press release.
Franchise agreements were signed in January and March, respectively, and Donatos is working with local brokers to search for locations, said Jeff Baldwin, Donatos’ vice president of development and franchising.
He shared that one franchisee is browsing spots in suburbs north of Houston, particularly the Tomball and The Woodlands areas, while the other is looking in the southwest around Missouri City.
Both local franchisee groups plan to open three locations initially.
“Obviously, we have a huge market and a huge opportunity in Greater Houston, and so we’re really focused on that area and bringing in high-quality partners, restaurant operators… that can open multiple stores and fill in the Houston market,” Baldwin said.
The move to enter the Houston market comes on the heels of Donatos opening its first two Texas restaurants in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in fall 2024, with another one on the way.
Donatos is aiming to open over 100 franchisee-owned spots in the Lone Star State over the next 10 years, including 40 to 50 in both the Houston metropolitan area and Dallas area.
The chain is also hoping to open franchisee-owned restaurants in East Texas, Waco, and Austin in the future.
Donatos breaking ground in Texas is part of the company’s larger growth strategy to expand outside its roots in the Midwest, primarily in the Southeast.
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