PMQ Pizza Magazine May 2020 by PMQ Pizza Magazine

PIZZA MAGAZINE T H E W O R L D ' S A U T H O R I T Y O N P I Z Z A | P M Q . C O M | P I Z Z AT V. C O M

MAY 2020

Pizzeria owners emerged as community leaders in the COVID-19 pandemic. So whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the key to a healthy future for the pizza industry? PAGE 28

IN CHEESE WE CRUST 38

DIRECT MAIL SUCCESS 46

CALL CENTERS 54

OUR FATHER TRAINED US TO USE THE BEST INGREDIENTS. IN TURN, HE TRAINED THE WHOLE NEIGHBORHOOD TO APPRECIATE WHAT PIZZA SHOULD BE.

What’s your declaration of independence? Grande is championing operators who have an independent spirit and shared passion for excellence. By providing the finest all natural, authentic Italian cheeses, along with an unwavering commitment to quality, we’ll continue to advocate for independents and their love of the craft.

pizzamagazine.com

ONLINE @ PMQ

FIND US ONLINE

FEATURED STORY WEBSITE DEPICTS CORONAVIRUS IMPACT ON RESTAURANTS NATIONWIDE The National Restaurant Association in mid-April launched a new industry education and engagement website called RestaurantActs.com. The new site, described as a “one-stop hub of critical information for restaurants, employees, customers and industry partners,” paints an up-to-date picture of the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on restaurants around the country, including a state-by-state view. Sean Kennedy, the association’s executive vice president of public affairs, said the site will also serve as “a dedicated platform to share with Congress how important restaurants and employers are as community cornerstones.” P M Q . C O M / R ESTAU R AN TAC TS

ALSO ON PMQ.COM

RESTAURANTS SUE INSURANCE COMPANIES OVER DENIED ‘BUSINESS INTERRUPTION’ CLAIMS In Chicago, Philadelphia and other cities, a flurry of lawsuits could force the courts to answer a question weighing heavily on restaurant owners’ minds: Will my coronavirus-related losses be covered by insurance? PMQ.COM/BUSINESSINTERRUPTIONINSURANCE

SAN FRANCISCO PUTS CAP ON THIRD-PARTY DELIVERY COMMISSIONS As many third-party delivery platforms continued to charge hefty commission fees during the coronavirus pandemic, the city of San Francisco stepped in to protect restaurants struggling to stay afloat. PMQ.COM/THIRDPARTYCAP

FLORIDA SHERIFF DELIVERS PIZZAS TO SUPPORT SMALL BUSINESSES

THIS INNOVATIVE PIZZERIA USES ITS OVEN TO MAKE FACE SHIELDS FOR HOSPITALS

A Florida sheriff went above and beyond the call of duty by delivering pizzas for local restaurants struggling during the coronavirus crisis. “These folks are the backbone of our county,” Michael Chitwood told Fox News. “We cannot have them collapse.”

Dimo’s Pizza in Chicago hit upon a novel solution for helping hospitals get the face shields they needed to protect medical workers treating patients for COVID-19. All owner Dimitri Syrkin-Nikolau needed was some acrylic, a Velcro strap and pad— and a hot pizza oven.

PMQ.COM/SHERIFFCHITWOOD

PMQ.COM/FACESHIELDS

6 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

IN THIS ISSUE

MAY FEATURES

ON COVTHE ER

Heroes To Go

Pizzeria owners emerged as hometown heroes in the midst of a devastating health and economic crisis. We offer a look at how they served their communities - and what they must do to stay strong in the challenging months ahead. (Cover photo by Blake Harris)

Recipe of the Month

Dealing Direct

In Cheese We Crust

64 Game of Phones

TO N I E V O LY L

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R E M

O T S U C VE. LO

N R U T

Feel all the love with Original Philly ™ Beef and Chicken Steaks. Win customers over when you bring this legendary experience to your menu straight from the heart of Philly. The authentic, iconic flavor of Original Philly ™ beef and chicken steaks are now available nationwide.

Find products and learn how to serve it like a local at phillycheesesteak.com.

IN THIS ISSUE

A Publication of PMQ, Inc. 662-234-5481 Volume 24, Issue 4 May 2020 ISSN 1937-5263

MAY DEPARTMENTS

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 ART DIRECTOR Eric Summers, eric@pmq.com ext. 134 SENIOR COPY EDITOR Tracy Morin, tracy@pmq.com

In Lehmann’s Terms: How To Provide A Better Carryout Pizza

The Dough Doctor offers tips for pizzeria operators who can offer only takeaway due to the coronavirus pandemic.

IT DIRECTOR Cory Coward, cory@pmq.com ext. 133 DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH Blake Harris, blake@pmq.com ext. 136 TEST CHEF/USPT COORDINATOR Brian Hernandez, brian@pmq.com ext. 129 FOOD PHOTOGRAPHER David Fischer, david@pmq.com CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Shawn Brown, shawn@pmq.com ADVERTISING SALES DIRECTOR Linda Green, linda.pmq@gmail.com ext. 121 SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Tom Boyles, tom@pmq.com ext. 122

Accounting For Your Money: How Do I Get My CARES Loan Forgiven by the SBA?

Pizza industry accountant Michael Rasmussen offers advice for staying on top of federal requirements for the Paycheck Protection Program.

SALES ASSISTANT Brandy Pinion, brandy@pmq.com ext. 127 PMQ INTERNATIONAL PMQ CHINA Yvonne Liu, yvonne@pmq.com PMQ RUSSIA Vladimir Davydov, vladimir@pmq.com PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE 605 Edison St. • Oxford, MS 38655 662.234.5481 • 662.234.0665 Fax

Pizza Hall of Fame: Riverview Inn

A vintage recipe unearthed from an old toolbox meets a brand-new larger-than-life mascot in this quaint Wisconsin pizzeria and tavern.

IN EVERY ISSUE 6 Online @ PMQ 18 Moneymakers 60 SmartMarket

PMQ Pizza Magazine (ISSN #1937-5263) is published 10 times per year.

66 Marketing Idea Zone 68 Product Spotlight 70 The Pizza Exchange

10 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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 9, Cedar Rapids, IA 52406-9953. 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.

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IN LEHMANN’S TERMS

HOW TO PROVIDE A BETTER CARRYOUT PIZZA The Dough Doctor offers tips for pizzeria operators who can offer only takeaway due to the coronavirus pandemic. BY TOM LEHMANN

Because of the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, many pizzerias have had to change the way they do business to conform to the mandated public health regulations intended to control its spread. This month I will share some of the related questions I have received from operators across the country.

Q A

We’re a dine-in and carryout restaurant, but we now have limited our operating hours and closed our dining room due to the coronavirus pandemic. Do you have any suggestions for improving our carryout pizza? Keep in mind that some pizzas are better suited for carryout than others. As a rough guide, those that are baked at high temperatures (above 750°F) are generally less wellsuited for carryout. Those pizzas that are baked at a lower temperature (450°F to 600°F)—and essentially all pizzas baked in any type of air impingement oven—will be better suited for carryout. By no means does this imply that pizzas

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baked at high temperatures are not suitable for carryout— they’re just not as well-suited and may require special handling by the consumer once they get their pizza home. Reheating any DELCO (delivery/carryout) pizza will do wonders to improve its quality. This step, in my opinion, is the salvation of a high-bake-temperature carryout pizza, because it helps to re-crisp the crust and dry the top of the pizza. Make sure to educate your customers by including an instructional note with each pizza that reads something like this: “For maximum enjoyment, remove pizza from packaging and place into a 300°F oven for X minutes before serving.” To make reheating the pizza easier for your customers, place the pizza on a square piece of ovenable parchment paper laid out in your pizza box. This will allow for easy transfer of the pizza either directly into the oven or onto a pizza pan or cookie sheet for reheating. Above all, you want to offer a drier pizza for carryout. Air impingement ovens are champs at removing moisture

from a pizza, but to provide the necessary throughput, they are sometimes pushed too hard when it comes to baking time. If at all possible, slow your oven down—even 15 seconds can make a significant difference—and lower the baking temperature slightly if you need to. If you work with a deck or stone hearth oven, you might want to try baking your pizzas for the first couple of minutes on a seasoned screen or an anodized disk. This may allow you to bake them a little longer without changing the oven temperature. Also consider placing the baked pizza on a screen or rack to let it steam off for 30 to 60 seconds before cutting and boxing. Finally, consider using a box insert designed to hold the pizza off the bottom of the box or cardboard circle. The insert will help both the flavor of the crust while reducing its tendency to get soggy after being boxed/packaged. Q: Now that we sell pizza strictly on a carryout basis, do you have any suggestions that might help us increase our profits? A: While I’m not a marketing expert, I’ve seen a few things that work well in cases like this. I think bundling is a good idea right now. Try to bundle complete meals with your pizza by including drinks, an appetizer and a dessert (even if it’s only a cookie) for a set price. You can try some “value-added” options, too, such as including a free order of breadsticks with each pizza. And if you simply brush your breadsticks with

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melted butter as soon as they come out of the oven and then dredge them in a cinnamon mixture, they can become a quick and easy dessert item. Above all, let your customers know that you appreciate their business. A simple handwritten message on the box top can do wonders! Q: We’ve got a small slice shop. We hold the slices in a heated cabinet, and when a customer buys one, we reheat it to crisp the bottom. Do we need to do anything different to sell our slices for carryout only? A: The only change I might suggest would be to add a little extra cheese to the slice at the time of reheating and increase the reheat time to ensure the added cheese is thoroughly melted and that the bottom crust develops a nice crispness to it. That will result in a pretty good slice that’s ready for the customer to enjoy at home. And, as mentioned earlier, be sure to bundle your slices with a drink if possible.

Tom Lehmann was the longtime director of bakery assistance for the American Institute of Baking (AIB) and is now a pizza industry consultant. TH E DOU GH DOC TOR@H OTM A I L. C OM

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M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

ACCOUNTING FOR YOUR MONEY

HOW DO I GET MY CARES LOAN FORGIVEN BY THE SBA? Pizza industry accountant Michael Rasmussen offers advice for staying on top of federal requirements for the Paycheck Protection Program. BY MICHAEL RASMUSSEN

Q A

Is my SBA loan through the CARES Act forgivable? And what do I need to do to stay compliant with federal requirements governing my loan? Yes, the loan is forgivable if you follow the actual intent of the law and interpretations that have been subsequently provided. According to a summary of the interim final rule issued by the Small Business Administration on April 2, the CARES Act “is designed to encourage eligible employers to keep employees on their payroll, despite experiencing economic hardship related to COVID-19. The CARES Act temporarily adds a new product, titled the Paycheck Protection Program, that provides for forgiveness of up to the full principal amount of qualifying loans guaranteed under the Paycheck Protection Program.” The first thing to remember is that the amount of the loan forgiveness may extend to the full amount of the loan plus interest. The total amount of forgiveness will depend on the amount of your pizzeria’s payroll costs, payments of

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interest on mortgage obligations, rent or lease payments, and utility payments that were generated on contracts or services in effect as of February 15, 2020. Don’t attempt to skirt the system. Guidance issued by the SBA mandates that no more than 25% of the above costs can be figured into your total loan forgiveness under this program. The true intent of the Paycheck Protection Program is to ensure that you keep your employees on the payroll. The SBA specifically states, “If you knowingly use the funds for unauthorized purposes, you will be subject to additional liability, such as charges for fraud.” Secondly, if you receive a loan under this program, you will have eight weeks from the date the money arrives in your bank account to inform the bank and/or the SBA how these loan funds were disbursed. It’s crucial to maintain separate checking accounts and accounting for every expenditure. This is the time to get disciplined in your record keeping!

Ingredients matter. You make careful choices about the ingredients in your food. WestRock makes careful choices about the ingredients in our boxes. We resource raw materials domestically and manufacture our boxes in North America to meet the highest quality and food safety standards.

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On the day after this eight-week period, further guidance will be issued on how your record keeping should be provided to the SBA (through your bank) in order to request loan forgiveness. So you need to set up a daily record keeping system for this program now! Create your own system to identify initial loan monies received and to preserve all receipts for any bills paid. Work closely with your payroll provider to isolate this eight-week period of activity and start a disciplined program. If you, as the owner, don’t have the time to handle this important task, assign it to a trustworthy employee, but make sure that you personally review it—daily. Finally, from March 13 forward, you should create a road map of accounting for your pizzeria, including a daily record of employee attendance. Require your key advisers (including your CPA, banker, attorney, insurance agent, payroll manager and investment adviser) to apprise you of how their systems work and to update you on available financial programs and advise you on any pitfalls to avoid. Personally, I created the website mycovidcpa.com as a service for PMQ subscribers to help them get the most current road map that can help navigate through these challenging times. Above all, choose advisers whose systems you can trust to provide accurate data. As we emerge from this difficult period, your financial success is in your hands. Don’t wait for someone from the government to contact you. Be proactive and get answers unique to your situation!

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Michael Rasmussen has been contributing articles to PMQ for more than 15 years. You can visit his website, hitechcpa. com, for additional insight into restaurant-specific tax strategies, accounting and technology programs. H I TE C H C PA . C OM

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Cheese is a powerful tool. In the worst times, cheese can bring comfort. In good times, it is the life of the party. Cheese brings a smile to any occasion.â&#x20AC;? -Natale Caputo President

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MONEYMAKERS

AND THE BAND PLAYED ON New Jersey musicians played to an empty house at Delvetto’s Pizzeria in Neptune, New Jersey, in late March, and that’s exactly how they wanted it. To support local artists and attract carryout and curbside delivery business during the coronavirus health crisis, Delvetto’s hosted a live music series in its parking lot, with area performers like Kevin Koczan and Jay and Amy. Customers were invited to drive up and park, eat pizza and listen to tunes from the safety of their cars. Koczan also performed with his band, From the Ground, one afternoon inside the otherwise empty pizzeria, and the show was streamed on Facebook Live. Additionally, Delvetto’s took the now-familiar concept of pizza meal kits and spiked it with booze. The pizzeria teamed up with Asbury Distilling in nearby Asbury Park to sell “craft cocktail kits,” featuring six craft drinks—made with gin, vodka and bourbon—and a cheese pizza for $50.

Local musicians put on live performances in the parking lot at Delvetto’s Pizzeria in late March while customers sat in their cars and ate pizza. Delvetto’s also introduced “craft cocktail kits” to Neptune, New Jersey.

A BIRTHDAY GIFT FROM UNO The coronavirus pandemic ruined a lot of birthday plans this spring, but Boston-based UNO Pizzeria & Grill did its part to create memorable parties for kids—from a safe distance. In early April, UNO announced it would provide complimentary make-your-own-pizza kits to more than 1,000 Boston-area children for virtual birthday parties. From April 3 to 17, UNO took requests via Instagram and Facebook from the families of young ones who had to cancel an in-person birthday celebration with friends in March or who would have to do so in April or May due to the coronavirus outbreak. UNO then randomly selected 200 kids, each of whom was allowed to invite up to five friends for their virtual parties. UNO provided free pizza kits for the events to all participating children. UNO Pizzeria and Grill saved the day for birthday kids in Boston by offering free pizza kits for virtual parties.

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855-BUY-OVEN (289-6836) Financing Available. Call today or visit PizzaSolution.com

Hi from Staten Island, If I’ve learned one thing in quarantine, it’s that you can’t stop pizza. Coronavirus has forced everyone to change. From getting smart about safety to optimizing for pickup/delivery, pizzerias are doing what they can for their communities. A few ways we’re helping shops adapt: Own your online ordering: Customers want to order from YOU online. It’s time to control your digital storefront and connect with more customers directly — whether it’s keeping your specials up-to-date or making it easy to reorder. Work smarter: Efficiency is key, especially when money’s tight and hours are long. Luckily, digital tools and data are on your side, helping you make smarter business decisions, faster. If you use Slice, you have all of them in one place: your Owner’s Portal. Keep your regulars close: Share your shop stories online and chat with customers in the comments. It makes them feel connected and reminds them to order pizza. Offering free delivery has also been particularly effective at this time. Stick together: Small shops might be independent, but they aren’ t alone. Lean on us and learn from other owners. Know that our team at Slice is working with shops around the clock, while pushing our collective message of supporting local. As we adjust to this new normal, know the Slice team is here to help. From building sites to marketing campaigns, lean on us as a one-stop shop for all things digital. We’re in this together. Stay safe and support each other,

Ilir Sela

Founder and CEO of Slice

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16 oz. dough ball, slacked 4 oz. pizza sauce 10 oz. Grande Mild Provolone Blend or 50/50 Blend cheese, shredded or diced 4 oz. spicy Italian sausage crumbles, cooked 2 oz. bell peppers, julienne sliced 1 oz. Italian peppers (such as pepperoncini, banana peppers or cherry peppers), drained and sliced 4 oz. Italian seasoned Ricotta cheese

3 lb. Grande Sopraffina or Tenera Ricotta ½ oz. (2 tbsp.) Italian seasoning blend, dried

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DIRECTIONS: In a separate bowl, combine ricotta cheese and Italian seasoning and stir until blended. Spread pizza sauce evenly over crust. Top with cheese, Italian sausage crumbles, bell peppers and Italian peppers. Dollop seasoned ricotta evenly over pizza. Bake at 500°F for 8-10 minutes in an impingement oven or at 500°F for 4-5½ minutes in a deck oven or until cheese is melted and crust is golden-brown.

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TOP ALL OF YOUR PERSONAL FAVORITES WITH MORE PERSONALITY, WITHOUT SACRIFICING QUALITY.

The unique Italian Blends from Grande provide the same consistency as our traditional Mozzarella, but with a bold flavor that has the power to change the profile of any dish. Each blend starts with Grande’s signature Mozzarella. Then we add Grande Provolone, Cheddar or Asiago to create a flavor that’s uniquely yours. Since nearly half of consumers expect restaurants to offer signature flavors*, our Italian Blends can be the difference maker for keeping loyal customers.

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24 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

FOR UP-TO-DATE RESOURCES AND LINKS RELATED TO COVID-19 RELIEF EFFORTS AND RESTAURANTS, VISIT PMQ.COM/CORONAVIRUSRESOURCES

HER ES

TO GO In the midst of a pandemic, pizzeria owners emerged as community leaders and innovators. But what will it take to survive in the months to come? BY RICK HYNUM

In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic this spring, two worrisome questions haunted every waking hour—and, most likely, the late-night dreams—of pizzeria owners nationwide: When will things get back to normal, and what will “normal” look like? Seemingly overnight, their PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY ERIC SUMM ERS

world had turned upside down, capsized by a microscopic organism, a lowly “bug” invisible to the naked eye. Suddenly, the future, always unknowable, felt unthinkable, the shrouded threat of bankruptcy and failed dreams looming in the near distance.

M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

BIG G’S

Jaime Gamez (far right) mobilized his team at Big G’s Pizza to provide free pizzas to beleaguered hospital workers and anyone in need in the Chicago area.

They had met the enemy, and the enemy was us—potentially every one of us, ordinary folks who might be carrying the pathogen unawares: customers, coworkers and staff, wives or husbands or parents or children, the sales rep, the delivery truck driver. And as throngs of stressed-out Americans ransacked the supermarkets and beat a hasty retreat to the relative safety of their homes—and their own kitchens— pizzeria owners sized up the situation and finally did the only thing they knew to do. They helped. They rose to the occasion. They made sacrifices and painful decisions—including reducing their hours and laying off employees whom they loved like family members— but they didn’t stop making pizza. And they gave a lot of it away to community heroes—doctors, nurses, paramedics and police officers—fighting the good fight and to families and children in need. In a sense, it was, to borrow Churchill’s famous phrase, the pizza industry’s finest hour. Certainly not in terms of profitability—although most owners figured out a way to at least keep their businesses running. But as community leaders at a crucial point in history, these entrepreneurs strove, persevered, triumphed—and emerged as hometown heroes in their own right.

PROTECTING STAFF

It wasn’t easy, and it wasn’t fun. In those states and cities that mandated closure of dine-in services, some pizza restaurants made a relatively smooth transition to delivery (contact-free) and carryout only. After all, it’s what many of them do best. Not so for Derrick Tung, owner of Paulie Gee’s Logan Square in Chicago, where dine-in comprises up to 90 percent of business in “normal” times. “Our restaurant was never really built for delivery and pickup,” he says. “Suddenly, no one could dine in, and we realized immediately that we needed to make some changes.” After accepting phone orders for one night, Tung quickly discovered that wasn’t the way to go—for starters, he had only one line. “The phone just never, ever stopped ringing from the moment we opened,” he says. He ditched it and signed up instead for a new online ordering system called Tock to Go, launched in March specifically for pandemic-impacted restaurants that are new to carryout and delivery. True to his “employee-centric” approach to business, Tung also consulted with each member of his staff to find out who wanted to keep working and who wanted to self-isolate at home. He gave the latter up to $1,000 out of his own pocket to tide them over for a few weeks. “Every staff member who’s working for me right now wants to work,” he says. “If the

26 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

Because if your phones and web ordering are down, you may as well send everyone home. We become your phone company and provide a backup Internet connection

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When your Internet fails our cellular backup router keeps your phones, credit card processing and web orders all working The backup kicks in automatically in seconds The same router can be used to create chain-wide virtual private network to connect your locations SD-WAN LTE/LTE-A modems

Call Center capabilities for one to thousands of locations! Maintain control, and get the calls off the front counters. For a small chain all you need is a large office at one location. Cut labor hours up to 50% and/or shift labor to lower cost regions while increasing average ticket. Eliminate the constantly ringing phones at the front counters! Tight integration allows calls to overflow to stores, so you can choose when to staff the call center. The same tight integration, same detailed reports and call recordings in your hands, same ability to overflow back to the stores, but you let some one else hire and manage the staff. We can provide this service to you or work with your existing call center provider. Best for a chain with a simple menu, “A.I.” virtual call centers can flip on and off as needed. By day of week/time of day, by call load, by manual control from your phones.

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Eric Greenwald, president and COO of Grimaldi’s Pizzeria, pledged to continue his company’s support for nonprofit No Kid Hungry and to feed disadvantaged kids affected by local school closures.

company can break even and the staff are making extra money from tips and wages, that’s great, so why not do it?” Bryan Morin, owner of Federico’s Pizza & Restaurant in Belmar, New Jersey, went so far as to take out a $50,000 line of credit to keep employees on his payroll—and earned national coverage for it on Fox News. Morin eventually had to close his doors temporarily but said he would continue paying his staff during that period. And when Skyler Reeves, owner of Rosa’s Pizzeria in Prescott, Arizona, received an anonymous gift of $2,000 (from a woman who walked in, handed him an envelope and then left without a word), he used the unexpected windfall to help laid-off staffers pay their most worrisome bills. Protecting staff was also top priority for Will Grant, owner of That’s A Some Pizza in Bainbridge Island, Washington. As the bad news settled in, his mother pushed him to shut down his lunch business—which he did. But, he adds, “My initial thought was, ‘Shut down everything [and keep] just me and one or two other employees. We can do this ourselves.’ But what about the people who need the work and aren’t going to be able to pay their bills? After the fear subsided, I was like, no, I’m not the only one who needs to eat.” Seven of his 20 employees quit anyway, out of concern for their health, which helped save money on labor. Still, Grant notes, once other eateries started making adjustments to survive, his shop went from being one of two delivery restaurants in his market to one of 25. And he’s okay with that. “I want us all to survive this,” Grant says. If anything, he finds himself wrestling with an ethical dilemma. “I don’t know that marketing [to get people to] come to my restaurant is the right thing to do right now, at least not for us. I don’t want people feeling obligated to come to my restaurant when they don’t even want to leave their houses. And trying to take that business away from other people isn’t what I want to do either.”

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THE PAYCHECK PROTECTION PROGRAM

Does your pizza business qualify for a loan through the federal government’s Paycheck Protection Program? Here are the facts: •

•

A small business with under 500 employees, including multiunit operations, is eligible for the loan if it was operational as of February 15, 2020, had paid employees on the payroll, and paid payroll taxes. Loan amounts are based on your average payroll from the prior year, plus an additional 25%. Loans are capped at $10 million. The federal government will forgive the loans, up to the full amount, depending on your payroll costs, payments of interest on mortgage obligations, rent or lease expenses and utilities. To qualify for forgiveness, business owners cannot reduce their workforce during the following eight-week period or reduce employees’ salaries or wages by more than 25% during that eight-week period. By rehiring all employees laid off since February 15 or increasing wages/salaries that were previously reduced due to the pandemic by June 20, the business will likely qualify for full loan forgiveness. Loans are available through Small Business Association-certified lenders, including banks, credit unions and other financial institutions. The deadline to apply for Paycheck Protection Program loans is June 30, 2020. Talk to your bank, accountant or attorney for further instructions.

Z OL I ’ S

First responders in the Dallas/Fort Worth region enjoyed free pies donated and delivered by Zoli’s NY Pizza in Addison, Texas.

AN OPPORTUNITY TO SERVE

Not everyone will survive, unfortunately. Pizzerias and other restaurants that were already on shaky ground prior to the pandemic likely won’t bounce back, especially if they relied heavily on dine-in business. In late March, a National Restaurant Association (NRA) survey found that overall sales had plummeted by 47% from March 1 through March 22. In a March 18 letter to top government officials, the NRA predicted restaurant sales would decline by $225 billion over the next three months and that between five and seven million industry jobs would be lost. The situation was bleak. But those operators who stayed open saw the crisis as an opportunity to serve others—to deepen their connections to the community, help people in need and generate goodwill for the future. When local schools closed down, many pizzerias gave away slices and drinks to disadvantaged children who often depend on free or discounted school lunches for their only meals. Some offered free slices to anyone facing food insecurity, including laid-off workers from all trades and professions. Others dispatched delivery drivers to drop off free food at hospitals, police departments and fire departments, showing their support for the local heroes working on the front lines of the crisis. Senior adults got their share of the pie, too. In Fort Pierce, Florida, Scott Van Duzer, owner of a Big Apple Pizza & Pasta store, invited customers to pay $20 to have pizzas delivered to senior citizens living in nursing homes or self-isolating in their own residences, along with homemade cards created by children to brighten the old folks’ day. Lorrie Moffitt, owner of Knik Goose Bay Pizza Company in Wasilla, Alaska, took the idea one step further—she sent her entire staff home and spent all of her time baking pizzas for elderly and disabled people who couldn’t leave their homes. And then there was Jon Paul Brancato, co-owner of Village Pizza in Goshen, New York, and a father of five. His 37-yearold eatery had stopped delivering pizza 20 years earlier but had to revive the practice once dine-in services closed statewide. Brancato also introduced family-size trays of items like chicken

Parmesan, penne vodka and baked ziti for $65. But what about those customers who’d lost their jobs and couldn’t afford his food? Brancato announced, both in the local media and on Facebook, that they could eat now and pay later—no one would go hungry on his watch. “We will make any financial arrangements for any families that may be suffering during this difficult time,” Brancato posted on Facebook. “It’s never a matter of trust. We know everybody is good for their word. That’s the way it’s always been shown to us here.”

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OAT H P IZ Z A

DIMO’S PIZZA

Dimo’s Pizza made innovative use of its pizza ovens to manufacture badly needed protective face shields for healthcare workers in the Chicago area.

AN EXPLOSION OF INNOVATION

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MICI HANDCRAFTED ITALIAN

Along with not-so-random acts of pizza kindness, there was an explosion of innovation, too. Suddenly, everyone was offering make-at-home pizza kits and take-and-bake options. A marijuana dispensary in Corvallis, Oregon, started delivering 14” housemade pizzas (developed by Ed Barbeau of Pisano’s Woodfired Pizza in Bend, Oregon) with their weed, promising to “make memorable moments” for quarantined customers, “even if the memories of those moments are a little fuzzy.” Around the same time, Ghost Pizza Kitchen in Los Angeles developed Vampire Pizza, a vampire-themed immersive game kit—complete with roles to play and mysteries to solve—as part of a pizza delivery deal that stuck-at-home customers could really sink their fangs into. As panicked consumers in Grand Rapids, Michigan, depleted supermarket shelves of most pantry basics, Dan Uccello, owner of three Flo’s Wood Fired Pizzeria stores, sized up his inventory, saw he had a lot of what folks needed in stock and started Flo’s Home Goods. Selling milk, eggs, bread, pastas, sauces, juices, even toilet paper, Uccello made a quick segue into the grocery business and sparked a trend. A few weeks later, California Pizza Kitchen launched a similar concept on a grander scale, CPK Market, which also peddled fruits and veggies, raw meats and desserts along with make-at-home meal kits. But in terms of innovation, it’s hard to top Dimitri SyrkinNikolau, owner of Dimo’s Pizza in Chicago. As hospitals coped with a flood of COVID-19 patients and a lack of needed equipment, such as masks and ventilators, SyrkinNikolau used his high-heat oven to produce a prototype for a protective face shield for healthcare workers. He heated an acrylic sheet in his oven to the point that it became malleable,

YEAR OF THE MEAL KIT? Is it too early to declare 2020 the year of the meal kit? Make-at-home meals exploded as pizzeria operators— independents and chains alike—scrambled to make up for losses in dine-in revenue. Oath Pizza, a Bostonbased brand with 60 locations nationwide, made feeding families of all sizes easier during the pandemic with its Craft Pizza Care Packages. Available with gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan options, the meal kits range in price from $65 for the Kiddo Care Package (three Cutie Pie cheese pizzas plus two Honduran chocolate brownies and one marshmallow bar) to $110 for the Bestseller Care package (six pizzas, three brownies and three marshmallow bars). In Denver, the five-store Mici Italian Handcrafted introduced its own pizza kits, which included fun, pizza-related educational resources and activities developed by co-founder Kim Miceli, a former teacher.

5-year Parts & Labor Warranty

â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are most concerned about what comes out of the end of the ovenâ&#x20AC;?

then collaborated with a local metalworks company to create molds for the face shields. “We are used to making things very quickly, in large quantities, very cleanly,” Syrkin-Nikolau told BlockClubChicago.com. “I would love to [increase my] hours to produce face shields. I feel like that’s what’s called for, so that’s what we’re trying to do.” KEEPING THE DOORS OPEN

What the future holds for the pizza industry, no one can say, so we might as well be optimistic—but also vigilant and transparent. Not only is it important to stick to your current regimen of deep cleanings, disinfecting surfaces and personal hygiene, you must also continue to let customers know you’re doing it. In any crisis, communication is key, notes Kelly Richardson, owner and founder of Venone, a crisis communications, public relations and marketing company with many restaurant clients. “More important than the message is that it’s clear,” Richardson says. “Our channels of communication are so cluttered right now with information that it’s important to be clear, concise and reliable.”

Make sure to keep your website updated with your current hours, the latest version of your menu (if it has changed), your cleaning protocols and other vital information. “Your customers are paying attention to what you say and do,” Richardson says. “If you say you are cleaning, make sure you are doing it. If you [say you] are offering contactless pickup, make sure you’re doing that as well….Customers are also very interested in how businesses are handling reduced hours for employees, so don’t be afraid to talk about what you are doing to keep everyone working and fed.” Email is another good way to stay in touch, says Bill Corbett Jr., owner of Corbett Public Relations on Long Island, New York. “This is a great time to collect email addresses from customers,” he says. “They want to buy, but they don’t know, without calling, if you are open. The messages don’t have to be long, but owners must show and explain their plans for staying open. You may even have to overshare.” At the same time, Corbett urges, “Don’t be too serious—keep messages upbeat and fun.”

HELP WANTED—START TODAY!

PAPA JOHN’S

In the midst of massive industry-wide layoffs, Domino’s, Pizza Hut and Papa John’s took a different tack. Between the three of them, they announced in late March that they would be hiring 60,000 new workers, from delivery drivers and cooks to shift leaders, managers and virtual call-center personnel. Pizza Hut plans the biggest addition to its workforce, with 30,000 positions to fill, while Papa John’s wants to add 20,000, and Domino’s is aiming for 10,000. Both Papa John’s and Domino’s said they would speed up their hiring and training process; Papa John’s said it hoped to get new prospects interviewed, hired and working in the same day.

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PAISANO’S

Paisano’s, headquartered in Chantilly, Virginia, built a social media contest around its pizza meal kits, encouraging customers to post social-media photos of their families making the pies for a chance to win free pizza for a year and other prizes.

S T ONE R’S P IZ Z A JOINT

John Stetson, owner of four Stoner’s Pizza Joint franchises, acted early on to provide free food for schoolchildren in Broward County, Florida, who depend on school lunches.

HERE ARE SOME MORE TIPS FOR STAYING COMPETITIVE DURING THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS: 1. Focus on value. Millions of Americans are out of work, which means belt tightening and little money to waste. “We are specifically communicating value-oriented specials to stay top-of-mind for consumers at the moment, since discretionary spending is extremely tight,” says John Stetson, owner of four Stoner’s Pizza Joint franchises in Florida and Georgia. Offer bundled deals and a variety of carryout and grab-and-go options, including family-size meals that can be taken home and reheated. 2. Devote some time to brand-building. Everyone is on social media right now, in part to stay on top of the latest news and because they don’t have much else to do. “This is a great time for owners to build their personal brands…and tell their personal stories so people can get to know them better,” Corbett says. Pizza making videos and mouthwatering food photos will remind customers of what they’re missing and give them something to look forward to once the crisis passes. Eric Greenwald, president and COO of Grimaldi’s Pizzeria, recommends making good use of Instagram Live to stay engaged with customers. “This could include offering virtual cooking classes and pizza/wine pairing suggestions, virtual tours around the property, promoting a ‘pizza of the day’ to

encourage pickup orders, and more,” Greenwald says. “More than ever, customers are looking to connect. By showing the behind-the-scenes of your pizzeria, the authenticity of the company will stand out above regular posts to create and display a human element online.” 3. Make friends with influencers. Social media influencers and local celebrities can give your business a big boost at a time when you need it, Richardson says. “I’m advising clients to invite local influencers—the ones with less than 5,000 followers—or some of their best clients, even other local business owners, to come in and grab a free pizza or a meal and document it on social media.” And don’t forget to remind local newspapers and TV stations that you’re open—many of them are likely still publishing lists of hometown places to eat. 4. Don’t forget the special-diet crowd. The demand for gluten-free and low-carb crusts won’t go away, even in a pandemic. “There are customers out there with special dietary needs that may be having a hard time finding good options right now,” says consultant Diana Yin, founder of Los Angeles-based Swan and Company and a former restaurateur who won a food truck in the 2013 season of M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

To bolster sales during the pandemic, restaurant consultant Dianna Yin recommends offering a weekly meal subscription service to homebound customers.

Mikey’s Late Night Slice kept the mood light and fun on social media, continuing to highlight customers and employees in posts while also promoting private visits by their food truck.

AUDREY MA

MIKEY’S LATE NIGHT SLICE

the Food Network’s Food Truck Face-Off. “This includes vegans and vegetarians, folks with gluten allergies, etc. If they had limited options before, it’s likely even more limited now.” 5. Find ways to ensure recurring sales. Think about those dine-in regulars who can no longer enjoy their weekly night out at your pizzeria. “Start a subscription service,” Yin suggests. “This could be a weekly meal for a family of four, such as Pizza Friday, for which families can expect pizza, salad and drinks delivered at the same day and time every week to ensure some predictability during a time of chaos. If you sell something that people consume regularly, offering a subscription service can provide a steady income for you while providing the comfort of reliability for your customers.” Also reach out to your local grocery stores. “You might be able to provide them with product that they are having a hard time stocking, such as ready-to-bake pizza dough or bakeat-home pizzas,” Yin points out. “Now might be a good time to establish some new wholesale accounts.”

ADDITIONAL MARKETING TIPS Don’t Knock TikTok. One of the fastest-growing social media platforms, TikTok allows users to create and share 15-second videos and has 800 million active users worldwide—most of them under 30 and socially aware. Restaurant brands like Chipotle use TikTok, and hometown independent restaurants can, too. Individual clips can be assembled into 60-second videos, and a live-streaming option is also available. Use TikTok to speak directly to your customers about how you’re taking care of your staff and giving back to the community. Showcase your employees and offer quick and easy recipes that customers can try at home. Update your Google My Business page. If you haven’t done so already, tweak your Google My Business page to include your new hours, links to updated menus, and details about your contactless delivery and curbside options. Don’t be afraid to brag. If you’re providing free food to frontline healthcare heroes or to those in need, this is not the time to keep it a secret. In fact, invite your customers to help you by making donations over the phone or through your online ordering platform. Encourage customers to buy gift cards for the residents of nursing homes, homeless shelters and anyone else in need. Whenever possible, shoot and post photos when you drop off donated pizzas—they will get shared on social media, thus encouraging more donations.

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In addition to feedling local frontline workers, Planet Pizza owner Dave Kuban drove through the streets of Norwalk, Bridgeport and Stamford, Connecticut, in April to deliver free food packages to the homeless while raising funds and donating meals to school children in need.

ADJUSTING TO A NEW ENVIRONMENT

Sooner or later—perhaps, with any luck, by the time you’re reading this article—the country will reopen for business. And restaurants left standing will need to move cautiously and stay flexible. “Whenever we get to a place of ‘normality,’ it will be important to adjust slowly and not get caught upside down,” Greenwald says. “An easy way to avoid getting caught shorthanded or heavy-handed is to focus on your labor costs hourly. Ensure that you are operating within your target-labor range hour by hour and adjust staffing as needed daily.” If you temporarily closed your dining room, you’ll need to think through your reopening strategy carefully. “Plan your work, then work your plan,” Stetson recommends. “That means accounting for both best and worst-case sales projection scenarios and then operating within your means and managing the business by the numbers. It will be critical, when reopening, to establish your daily break-even costs by understanding your prime-cost targets and managing them accordingly. This will mean operating with an eye on labor-cost percentages on an hourly basis and taking inventory daily, so you have an accurate representation of daily COGS (cost of goods sold). It’s also important to turn inventory as quickly as possible to avoid money sitting on shelves by over-ordering or leading to potential waste.”

Greenwald agrees. “One of the biggest mistakes [you could make] is not taking time now to plan and prepare for reopening,” he says. “Think about all the things you will need to get in place to open and create a reopening checklist to make sure you cover all the necessary steps. We’ll also be operating in a new environment, so understand and estimate where consumer confidence will be. Look around your area to see how many others will be reopening. Will you be one of few or one of many? This will determine the level of demand you should expect.” Don’t forget those competitors who shut down entirely and have recently reentered the marketplace, says Toopan Bagchi, a senior advisor with The Navio Group in Minneapolis. “Your in-store traffic may increase, but many competitors will also be reopening and will benefit from pent-up demand and sympathy from customers,” Bagchi says. “The best practice would be to carefully track key metrics and cash flow on a daily basis and preserve options wherever possible like flexible staffing, reduced opening hours, and purchasing in smaller increments to avoid getting deep into debt or overspending.” Finally, Greenwald says, stay in touch with your vendors, “because you will need their support to get up and running. If you have multiple locations, start making a list prioritizing

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Rick Hynum is PMQ’s editor in chief.

FOR UP-TO-DATE RESOURCES AND LINKS RELATED TO COVID-19 RELIEF EFFORTS AND RESTAURANTS, VISIT PMQ.COM/CORONAVIRUSRESOURCES

FIRED PIE

which location(s) to open first. And just like any opening, you may be adding new members to your team, so plan to have properly trained staff. Planning and timing will be the key to a successful reopening plan.” Like we said, no one knows what “normal” will look like in the coming months. But smaller independent pizzerias that stayed open throughout the pandemic might emerge stronger from the challenges they overcame, says Ed Noe, vice president of purchasing and marketing for Colony Foods. “This is our opportunity,” Noe said in late March, as the pandemic was worsening nationwide, “and I think independent operators who rise to the occasion will see a bump in business now, but they’re also going to see a bump in business later. They will see new customers that they had to spend a lot of money on during normal times to get their brand recognized. You just need to be open and let people know you’re open… and when all is said and done, you now have those new consumers in your database.”

In addition to offering a 50% discount on all meals for Phoenix Children’s Hospital (PCH) on Wednesdays and Thursdays, Arizona chain Fired Pie donated large catering packages to hospitals, including PCH, Valley Wise Health and the Mayo Clinic, helping to keep healthcare workers fed as they cared for their patients during the pandemic.

Cheese Cheeses help pizza soar to its peak flavor—and with so many varieties available, the possibilities seem endless. BY TRACY MORIN

When pondering the impressive versatility of cheese (not to mention its gooey, melted goodness when baked on a pizza), it doesn’t come as that much of a surprise that U.S. consumers’ intake is steadily growing. According to Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin, per-capita cheese consumption increased every year from 2008 to 2018, for a total of 18% growth in that decade alone, to 37.9 pounds. Of course, cheese remains a staple in pizzerias, but most operators have gone beyond basic mozzarella, venturing from cheddar-flecked baked-potato pies to blue cheese-studded buffalo chicken varieties. And, as evidenced by the collection of cheese-laden recipes here, those iterations represent merely the tip of the iceberg. Here, we present pizzas that incorporate a variety of cheeses—soft, hard, flavored, aged—in a mishmash of ways to inspire your own kitchen experimentation. 38 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

S Sepe ct cia io l n

Crust

M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

PIZZA DE JUSTIN

Recipe and photo pr ovided by Lisa Dahl , executive chef and ow Dahl Restaurant Gr ner, oup/Pisa Lisa, Sedo na, AZ Ingredients: Dough for a 12” crus t 3 oz. fresh mozzare lla, shredded 3 oz. domestic prov olone, shredded 2 oz. imported pros ciutto, torn 6-7 dollops fresh wh ole-milk ricotta W hite truffle oil, fo r drizzling Handful of organic arugula, for finishin g 2 farm-fresh eggs (o ptional) Directions: Roll out the dough to form a 12” crust. Layer the crust with mozzarella and prov olone. Add teaspoo ns of ricotta in dollo around the pie, then ps layer the prosciutto over the cheeses. If the eggs, crack them using on top of the pizza. Bake in a 750°F wo oven for 4 to 5 min od -fired utes. Finish the pie with a light drizzle truffle oil and a hand of wh ite ful of arugula. Mak es 1 pizza.

40 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

CAULIFLOWER CHEE SE

Recipe and photo provid

PIZZA

ed by Gozney

Ingredients: 100g your choice of ch eese (grate harder varie ties) 200g crème fraîche 1 head cauliflower, cu t into a mix of small ste aks and florets 6 tbsp. parsley, choppe d 4 Neapolitan dough ba lls Sunflower oil Salt and pepper Directions: Combine the cheese an d crème fraîche in a he atproof bowl and place over a pan of simmering water. Stirri ng occasionally, continue to heat until the cheese has melted, creating a semismooth sauce. Set to the side to cool a bit befor e adding it to the pizza. Toss the cauli flower florets in some su nflower oil and season generously. Preheat a pan and add the cauliflower to the hot pan. Roast, tossing occasionally, for about 4 minutes, or until well-charred an d just starting to softe n. Set to the side. Open the dough and top with 3 to 4 tbsp. of the cheese sauce, then generously cover with the charred cauli flo wer. Bake at 450°F, then sprinkle wi th the chopped parsley. Makes 4 pizzas.

GYRO HERO PIZZA

Recipe and photo provided

by Fired Pie, Phoenix, AZ

Ingredients: Cauliflower Crust: 1 head of cauliflower sta lk 2 c. mozzarella, shredde d 4 c. Parmesan 2 tsp. dried oregano 2 tsp. kosher salt 4 tsp. garlic powder 2 eggs, lightly beaten Directions: Pulse the cauliflower in a food processor and steam it. In a bowl, comb ine all other ingredients and bake for 20 minutes . Toppings: 2 oz. tzatziki sauce ½ c. mozzarella cheese 2 tbsp. feta cheese 6 strips gyro meat 1/3 c. diced tomatoes 1/3 c. diced cucumbers 1/3 c. kalamata olive ¼ c. red onion 7 lines of drizzled tzatzi ki sauce Directions: After cooking the caulifl ower crust, place the ingredients on the pizza in the order listed above. Bake at 425° for about 8 minutes. 42 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

SEI CHEESE

Milk Advisory Board Recipe and photo provided by California Fiamma: Wood Fired Recipe developed by Daniel Bothman, La Pizza, Bellingham, WA Ingredients: Herbed Ricotta Cheese: 24 oz. whole-milk ricotta cheese ½ c. Jack cheese, shredded ¼ c. Italian parsley, chopped 4 tsp. lemon juice 1 tbsp. fresh garlic, chopped ½ tbsp. dried oregano ½ tbsp. salt ½ tbsp. red pepper flakes ¾ tbsp. ground black pepper Pizza and Toppings: each 6 portions prepared pizza dough, 12 oz. d dde 4½ c. mozzarella cheese, shre ¾ c. provolone cheese, shredded ¾ c. cheddar cheese, shredded 1½ c. crumbled blue cheese 1½ c. Jack cheese, shaved Directions: combine all ingredients To prepare the Herbed Ricotta Cheese, thoroughly mixed. To in a large mix ing bowl, blending until 525°F. Stretch one to prepare the pizza, preheat the oven bine the mozzarella, portion of pizza dough to 11” round. Com ½ c. of the Herbed provolone and cheddar cheeses. Spread leav ing a ¾” perimeter. Ricotta Cheese evenly over the dough, ¼ c. crumbled blue Sprinkle evenly with 1 c. cheese blend, e 5 to 7 minutes, until cheese and ¼ c. shaved Jack cheese. Bak bubbly. Makes 6 pizzas. the crust is well-browned and cheese is M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

HARVEST PIZZA

Recipe and photo provided by California Milk Advisory Board Recipe developed by Giovanni Labbate, Bricks Wood Fired Pizza Café, Mount Prospect, IL Ingredients: 22 oz. prepared pizza dough 1 tbsp. roasted garlic and olive oil base 1 c. sautéed kale 1½ c. mozzarella cheese, shredded 1 tbsp. Fontina cheese, shredded ½ c. roasted butternut squash, cubed ¼ c. caramelized red onions 3 tbsp. pancetta, diced 1 tbsp. pomegranate glaze 2 tbsp. toasted sunflower seeds Parmesan cheese, shaved, as needed Directions: Stretch the dough to a 16” circle on a ligh tly floured board. Spread with the roasted garlic and olive oil base, then add the sautéed kale. Sprinkle evenly with shre dded mozzarella and Fontina cheeses. Top with butternut squa sh, caramelized red onions and pancetta. Bake at 550°F abou t 10 minutes, until well browned and bubbly. Remove from the oven; drizzle with pomegranate glaze and sprinkle with sunfl ower seeds and Parmesan cheese before serv ing. Makes 1 pizza. 44 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

ZZA PIE

CHEDDAR APPLE PI

ed by California Mi Recipe and photo provid

lk Advisory Board

Ingredients: 3 oz. pizza sauce crust (tart dough or 1 (10”) extra-thin pizza cracker crust preferred) im mozzarella 4 oz. shredded part-sk en apple, finely minced 3 oz. skin-on red and gre d 2 oz. cheddar, shredde min seeds cu d 1 tsp. ground toaste Directions: rinkle evenly with thinly over the crust; sp Spread the pizza sauce the apples, reserv ing Sprinkle with 1 oz. of la. rel zza mo the of lf ha eddar and garnish. Sprinkle the ch for s ce pie ful lor co st at 475°F, the mo ; dust with cumin. Bake top on la rel zza mo ing the remain ttom, and the n edges and a crisp bo until the crust has golde remaining apples. ned. Sprinkle with the ow br tly gh sli is se ee ch Makes 1 pizza. ior copy editor.

Tracy Morin is PMQ’s sen

M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

Dealing Direct With the right design, offers and follow-through, direct mail can turn first-time customers into regulars at your pizzeria. BY TRACY MORIN

In an age where email inboxes are flooded with junk and actual mailboxes receive little action, direct mail marketing remains highly effective. In 2019, Mail Shark published some impressive stats: “House lists boast a 9% response rate on average, while prospect lists receive an average response rate of 5%....a 173% increase since 2006 for house lists and a 194% increase since 2006 for prospect lists.” And that dwarfs the success rate of digital spending, with methods like email, paid search and social media offering just a 1% return. Here, experts discuss the benefits of this “oldschool” marketing approach—and how to best make it work for you.

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M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

DIRECT MAIL BENEFITS

FAMIGLIA PIZZA

Darren Easton, VP and creative director at The Cyphers Agency in Crofton, Maryland, notes that direct mail offers a variety of upsides. First, it allows operators to hyper-target, selecting a specific audience within a specific geographic area based on variables such as residential versus business address, age, household size and income. Stefano Fabbri, owner of Phoenix-based Pomo Restaurant Group—which oversees concepts including Pomo Pizzeria, Pomo Pizza, Mora Italian, The Americano and Meat the Ball—has tapped into this benefit for his brands. “Direct mail allows us to highly target potential customers based on their area code,” Fabbri says. “We can also personalize direct mail to offer incentives or deals and highlight events or new menu items.” Moreover, Easton notes, direct mail is an affordable, easy and flexible solution for operators. “For example, the U.S. Postal Service’s Every Door Direct Mail service is very easy to use, allowing you to select and consider the costs of mailing to as many mail routes as you want before making your investment,” he says. “But because you can mail to as few as 200 addresses (at $0.191 per piece, plus postage), you can monitor engagement/success over time and act accordingly.” In addition, you can choose the day of the week you’d like your mailer to arrive—Easton suggests Saturday—and all you have to do is drop them off at your local post office.

“Because you don’t know which side [of the direct-mail piece] someone is going to see, make sure both sides incorporate key elements and include a strong message, even if it’s repetitive— just come up with a new way to say it.” — DARREN EASTON, THE CYPHERS AGENCY

OFFERS AND DESIGN

An eye-catching design and the right offers will help boost response rates. “Because you don’t know which side someone is going to see, make sure both sides incorporate key elements and include a strong message, even if it’s repetitive—just come up with a new way to say it,” Easton recommends. A piece can be 10.5” to 15” long, 6.125” to 12” wide, and ¼” to ¾” thick, he notes. “And, because you have plenty of freedom regarding your mailer’s size and a large amount of surface area to work with on its front and back, you have the opportunity to incorporate key elements of your messaging.” Easton believes mailers should include: bright colors, a bold font, large and different font sizes, and high-quality graphics; your logo and key message on

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SLICE

Special offers with trackable promo codes, high-quality food photography and clearly stated contact info are hallmarks of a successful direct mail piece.

“If you are doing a special offer, it needs to be simple enough to not confuse the recipient about what you are offering. Encourage them to bring in the flier upon dining, so you can track how the direct mail campaign is doing.” — STEFANO FABBRI, POMO RESTAURANT GROUP •

both sides; an image of the location and primary product, plus opening hours and address; website and social networks; and details on specials or promo offers. When Fabbri sends out direct mail, he thinks it’s important to work with a graphic designer to make it as visually pleasing as possible for the targeted customer. “Always make sure you are within your brand standards and have high-resolution photos available of the food,” he says. “If you are doing a special offer, it needs to be simple enough to not confuse the recipient about what you are offering. Encourage them to bring in the flier upon dining, so you can track how the direct mail campaign is doing.” Easton adds that new pizzeria locations can benefit from direct mail (for example, a standard postcard that simply announces your restaurant is coming soon, opening or now open, or to announce you’re hosting a ribbon cutting or grand opening). But he has also found these additional formats to be successful at generating post-opening engagement: •

Menu mailings. Menu mailings are a tried-and-true method, since many consumers will keep the menu for reference rather than tossing it out with the rest of the “junk mail”—and this is especially true if you send it in the format of a fridge magnet. In addition, a mailer with a coupon or special offer not only increases top-of-mind awareness but can provide a lift in orders immediately following the mailing.

•

Special occasion mailers. Higher-end restaurants may consider direct mail as cheap or off-brand, but special occasion mailers can be highly effective if the right design and offer are used. These direct mail postcards can be sent out with a “gift” offer around the consumer’s birthday or anniversary. Focusing on the special occasion and offering a “gift” rather than a traditional promotion or coupon makes the recipient feel special and produces strong redemption rates. Business mailers. While residential mailers make sense for the home consumer, fast-casual or high-volume delivery brands should also consider using direct mail to reach local professionals near the restaurant. Some ideas include sending mailers with a congratulatory note and an offer for a free dessert or appetizer, a catering order discount, or a gift card to audiences including new businesses in the area, businesses that have reached a noteworthy anniversary, or even specific individuals who have recently had a title change or promotion shared on LinkedIn. If you personalize the message and design the piece in an eye-catching way, these mailers can really stand out among the usual suspects in the office mail pile.

Finally, you can use direct mail to target new movers. Obviously, those who are new in town will need a go-to pizzeria—why not make it yours? “New movers are the perfect

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recipients for direct mail,” Fabbri says. “When moving to a different area, many people are looking for restaurant recommendations in their new neighborhood. This is why it’s important that your direct mail campaign encourages a community feel—if you’re a local restaurant, this is a perfect opportunity to highlight that.” GAUGING RESPONSE

When measuring ROI, Easton notes that it’s most important to develop offers that are unique to the direct mail campaign and integrate them into your POS system. “While this requires significant work on the front end, developing a code that has to be entered into the POS system ensures that every use of the promotion is tracked, and you don’t need to rely on staff collecting and retaining hard copies of the direct mail pieces,” Easton explains. He offers some additional tips to make your direct mail campaign as cost-effective as possible: •

•

“Promote your social channels on the mailers themselves, perhaps asking the recipient to like and follow you for the chance to win a prize or receive an additional promo.” — DARREN EASTON, THE CYPHERS AGENCY

Avoid one-and-dones. Frequency is the name of the game when it comes to direct mail, so it’s dangerous to send one and then cut off the campaign if no immediate results are obvious. It takes patience, but it’s important to develop a plan for several direct mail drops and stick with it before you deem it a failure. Evolve before you abandon. If you’ve built frequency into your plan, you’ll be able to modify the offers that aren’t working and double-down on the offers that are. You can also tweak the mailing area or targeting. As long as you track your variables, you can discover the “secret sauce” to your highest-ROI direct mail effort. Create a mailer template and print at volume. Taking your hard costs into account, it’s valuable to work with a design team to create a mailer that you’re happy with from the start—this will allow you to quickly and continuously update your messaging and offers without incurring many hours of work. It’s also valuable to print at a high volume, even if you want to send your mailers in waves, because this can lead to significant savings.

Of course, you will also want to turn those first-time customers into regular customers, so Easton believes it’s essential to incorporate social media marketing into your direct mail efforts. “One of the best ways to do this is promoting your social channels on the mailers themselves, perhaps asking the recipient to like and follow you for the chance to win a prize or receive an additional promo,” he says. “By doing this, the recipient will go from simply knowing that you exist to seeing you and your marketing messages on a weekly or even daily basis.” Finally, Fabbri suggests, make sure those customers have the most seamless dining experience possible via your staff members. “Always let your servers know when you are starting a direct mail campaign so they are aware of how diners can redeem the deal,” he says. “It’s important to train your staff so they know that this is the opportunity to have your new guests turn into regulars.” Tracy Morin is PMQ’s senior copy editor.

52 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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54 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

Game of

Phones Keeping call-in customers on the line is key to your bottom line—and call centers might be the answer for some chain operators. BY RICK HYNUM

There’s one surefire way to lose a call-in pizza order: Put the customer on hold and forget about him. Or leave him on hold for so long that he feels forgotten and hangs up. Either way, that customer will likely take his business somewhere else that day and might never call— or come back to—your store again.

M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

It’s an age-old plight for any pizzeria that accepts orders over the phone. And make no mistake—phone orders are still big business. A 2019 study by SMG, a global customer and employee experience provider, found that nearly one-third of customers order pizza by phone. Not surprisingly, the solution to managing all of those phone orders is at least partially based on technology. Automated phone systems have changed the customer experience in recent years, creating upsell opportunities while keeping callers on the line longer— without ticking them off. But some pizza chains have taken it one step further, adding in-house call centers or outsourcing phone-answering duties to third-party companies. Call centers were once a privilege reserved for industry giants like Domino’s and Pizza Hut. Not any longer, says Kevin Leidecker, owner of N.Y.P.D. Pizza, with four locations in the Cincinnati area. “The [call-center] technology and software that existed five years ago wasn’t ready for somebody of my size,” says Leidecker, who only recently added his fourth store. “Finally, at this point, technology is a great equalizer, and I can compete with four stores and make it effective, provide a better experience for my customers and make more money.”

56 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

“The [call-center] technology and software that existed five years ago wasn’t ready for somebody of my size. Finally, at this point…I can compete with four stores and make it effective, provide a better experience for my customers and make more money.” — KEVIN LEIDECKER, N.Y.P.D. PIZZA PLEASE STAY ON THE LINE

A Google Consumer Survey in 2019 found customers will wait on hold no longer than two minutes before hanging up. And a study by Voice Response Inc. found that more than one in three customers will never call back if they’re left on hold for too long. For pizzerias fielding more phone orders than usual while riding out the coronavirus pandemic this spring, every call mattered. But taking each call in a timely manner is always a challenge on a busy day, pandemic or no pandemic. Fortunately, today’s phone systems offer a number of ways to keep customers engaged while they’re waiting, from start-of-call upsell messages that encourage higher ticket averages to apology messages reassuring the customer that their call is important to the pizzeria. Even on-hold music can make a positive difference: An AT&T survey reported that, on average, customers will hang up after 90 seconds, but listening to music made a 30-second wait feel like only 15 seconds. Adding a set of upsell on-hold messages, played randomly for each caller, can increase your sales by $400 to $500 a month, says John Scully, who spent many years working in the call-center industry before founding Granville, Ohiobased Pizza Cloud, a telephone/internet solutions company that focuses on the pizzeria industry. “Having custom messages really helps,” Scully says. “You can customize messages [to promote] catering, party rooms and specials.… If it takes you one and a half minutes or two minutes to get to the call on a busy Friday evening and they’re not just listening to nonstop ringing, they’re not upset when they get

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Employees in a call center have one job: to answer the phones professionally, quickly and efficiently, which can result in increased ticket averages and happier customers.

through to you. It helps keep people from hanging up, which gives you an increase in revenue from orders you wouldn’t have received otherwise.” But, ideally, you don’t want to keep the customer waiting at all. “If you really do get slammed on Fridays and you’re losing calls, you could be losing customers forever,” Scully says. That’s where call centers come in. Advanced phone technology makes it relatively easy to set up a call center for smaller pizza chain operations, with dedicated agents fielding the calls and ensuring that every order gets through and the customers get their pizzas. CALL CENTER OPTIONS

Although call centers probably aren’t feasible for single-unit independents, an operator with three or more stores can reap the full benefits. The options include: In-house call center: This type of center would be manned by your own staff, perhaps three people in a single office using a specialized phone system during busy periods. These employees aren’t distracted by making pizza or serving guests at the counter—their only job is to answer the phone. “It’s really amazing the difference you see in professionalism when you have that staff member sitting there with the headset on— no background noise, no ovens, no ringing phones,” Scully notes. “They do a better job, the customer’s happier, the calls are answered faster. And you get a much higher ticket average because they have time to ask for the upsell.”

Outsourced call center: In this case, a third-party company operates the call center for you, either in the United States or overseas. “We find that smaller chains really want to try to keep the work on-shore,” Scully says. “That’s my personal preference.” The larger chains can often afford their own dedicated call center staff, while smaller chains might have to share staff with other clients. These call centers might charge by the minute, by the labor hour, or by the call or the order. Virtual call centers: These automated call centers exist entirely in the cloud—no human beings, no personal interaction. If they choose, pizzeria operators can use this type of service only during peak periods while continuing to take calls in-house when things are slower. But keep in mind that many customers still dislike talking to a machine and might just keep pushing buttons until they get through to an actual person. Leidecker knows that talking to a real person isn’t just more comfortable for the customer—it’s better for sales, too. “Somebody who’s sitting down and taking a phone order is going to have a higher ticket average and is also better trained,” he says. “They know all my coupons and all my specials. That delivery guy who comes in on a Friday night and grabs a phone call—we appreciate it. He does a good job, and I want him to do it if he can. But he doesn’t know all the specials, and he doesn’t know how to handle customers as well as somebody who does it on a daily basis.”

58 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

PRESERVING THE MOM-AND-POP FEEL

PIZZA CLOUD

Call-center technology also offers the ability to monitor and track everything from the number of calls answered and calls lost to average wait time, average talk time and more. And if you decide to outsource your call center, you can choose a market with a lower labor cost and higher labor availability— in other words, a better choice of potential employees who will work for less. For Leidecker, adding a call center will be essential to growing his company in the coming years. “I don’t want to stay at four stores,” he says. “I would like to go to five to 10 stores. By simplifying the business and getting all the ordering in place and the technology integrated in this way…if I have a solution for four stores, adding a fifth store and handling the phone calls will be easy. And the thing I’m most excited about is that I get to preserve my small mom-and-pop feel.” Rick Hynum is PMQ’s editor in chief.

M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

IS IT TIME TO AUDIT YOUR ONLINE ORDERING EXPERIENCE? SMART MARKET

SPONSORED CONTENT

Speedline Solutions will help you identify the common friction points to ensure customer satisfaction. COVID-19 has forced us to reevaluate how we connect with each other, examining every interaction for the possibility of spreading germs. We’ve had to go through our businesses and look for ways to provide a contactless experience. This process has opened our eyes to a new way of looking at operations. While we’re in that mindset, it makes sense to look for other ways to create a frictionless customer experience. What does a frictionless customer experience mean? A frictionless customer experience is one where your customers never feel frustrated while dealing with your restaurant. Anything from not being able to find your phone number to a poorly lit outdoor sign can create friction. The best place to start is with your online ordering experience. Some common online ordering friction points are: 1. 2.

It’s difficult to find your ordering site. When they Google your site, do your customers find it on the first page of results? If not, they may choose to order from someone else. Your customers need to log in before they can see your menu. New customers often want to browse online menu offerings before committing to order. If they need to create an account just to see the menu, that’s friction, and it will drive customers away. Your site is hard to navigate, and customers can’t figure out how to place an order. If your customers can’t quickly find what they are looking for, they may abandon their efforts. Your menu descriptions and photos aren’t as appealing as your menu itself. Having mouthwatering images and on-brand, informative descriptions will help increase sales and check sizes. Your customers don’t receive a confirmation of the order or updates during the delivery process. Your customer has placed their order. Now what? Keeping your customers up to date on the status of their order will relieve anxiety and reduce calls to your restaurant. Your site doesn’t look like it’s yours. A different color scheme, logo or tone of voice on your ordering site could cause your regular customers to question whether they are ordering from the right place.

Where are your online ordering friction points? By knowing where they are, you can address them and improve your customer experience. Looking for an expert opinion? Call the Speedline Solutions team for a free online ordering audit at 888-400-9185.

60 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

Get your free online ordering audit

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OUR TOWN AMERICA: GET THE WORD OUT ABOUT YOUR PIZZERIA SMART MARKET

SPONSORED CONTENT

By Brittany Johnson The past few months have thrown a curveball at restaurant owners. While your restaurant may still be open for business—feeding locals, healthcare workers and others on the frontlines—the way you’re running your restaurant right now is probably not “business as usual.” Dine-in has taken a back seat to delivery and curbside takeout. Your cleanliness rating and cleaning procedures have become a topic of conversation. Maybe you changed your hours or revamped your products/services; some pizzerias are now offering take-home “build your own pizza” kits. You’re doing all you can to stay afloat through this unique time. But how will consumers know about your new offerings if you’re busy working in the kitchen with your scaled-down crew? Although posting this information online is encouraged, consumers will appreciate it if you proactively reach out to guide them. After all, consumer habits have changed due to fewer options and less commuting; many consumers are stressed and unsure of where to get a good meal. If your pizzeria can reach out during this time of uncertainty, not only will you gain new customers, you’ll help put food on families’ tables amidst a time of crisis, which will make a lasting impression. That’s what Our Town America is here for. Our Town America specializes in connecting local businesses with new customers. And through all the recent economic changes, a few things have remained the same: People appreciate a heartfelt message from a neighborhood business, and people are checking their mailboxes. Here are three of Our Town America’s many direct-mail avenues to consider: 1.

New Mover Marketing—Reach a new set of new movers in your community each month. Meaningful offers are always, but especially now, welcomed with open arms and grateful hearts.

Saturation Postcards—Reach consumers based on neighborhoods, distance from your restaurant(s) or median household age or income. Hit every mailbox—no recipient list needed.

Targeted Demographic Postcards—Reach a specific demographic or a group of prospects based on your criteria.

With 48 years of marketing expertise, Our Town America will advise you on which option is best for your business. Our Town America knows that local businesses are the backbone of our communities. So, let them help you get the word out about your pizzeria. After all, that’s what they do best.

62 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

Our Town America WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOUR PIZZERIA GAIN & RETAIN CUSTOMERS THROUGH GOOD TIMES & BAD.

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PDQ POS HELPS PIZZERIAS RISE TO THE COVID-19 CHALLENGE SMART MARKET

SPONSORED CONTENT

The pandemic has upended the restaurant industry in ways unthinkable just a few months ago. PDQ understands the hardships owners are facing as COVID-19 continues to challenge us in myriad ways. As the No. 1-rated pizzeria POS, PDQ recognizes your current dependence on off-premises solutions like online ordering and contactless delivery/pickup and the use of rewards to gain customer loyalty. Here’s how they can help you: PDQ CUSTOM ONLINE ORDERING Their feature-rich, custom-branded online ordering solution can be quickly implemented at your store. Commission-free, you’ll get unlimited use for one low flat monthly fee. While natively integrated with PDQ POS, you don’t even need a POS (or their POS) to take advantage of the proven benefits of online ordering. PDQ CONTACTLESS DELIVERY FUNCTIONALITY Your online ordering customers will be able to select “Contactless Delivery,” ensuring their safety and the safety of your drivers. When selected, or told to you via a phone order, “Contactless Delivery” will be printed on the receipt to alert drivers to place the order on the doorstep. (A text alert can then be sent to the customer—see below!) PDQ DELIVERY TOOLKIT The PDQ Delivery Toolkit App enhances your delivery service by providing drivers with driver mapping and essential tools that save in-store tip/receipt reconciliation time, ensure order accuracy with “item reminders” and alert customers via text. The Toolkit also provides a driver tracking map, back-end reporting to ensure driver integrity and metrics to accurately determine road time vs. in-store time for wage purposes. PDQ SEAMLESS INTEGRATION TO THIRD-PARTY DELIVERY PROVIDERS PDQ POS provides seamless integration to the two most widely used third-party platforms: DoorDash and Uber Eats. PDQ also offers integration to ItsaCheckmate, a third-party aggregator that integrates to over 40 third-party platforms, eliminating the need for a tablet for each provider. PDQ TABLET POS With the rise of curbside pickup, PDQ’s rugged, restaurant-ready POS tablets add mobility to the POS. Complete with secure EMV (chip) payments, they’re perfect for curbside transactions and great for in-house driver dispatch—and, of course, line busting when the crowds finally return after the crisis. PDQ REWARDS Custom branded and customizable, the easy-to-use PDQ Rewards program, with a low, flat monthly fee, keeps your customers coming back—and ordering more of your great food! For 32-plus years, thousands of customers in thousands of locations have looked to PDQ to help grow their business. Learn more at PDQpos.com or call 877-968-6430 today.

64 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

SPONSORED CONTENT

Marketing: The Investment in Your Pizzeria’s Future Sales Strategic direct mail through Mail Shark remains one of the most effective marketing mediums for pizzerias. Having the right marketing plan is critical to the success of your pizzeria. Marketing is your investment in the future sales of your business and, as a matter of fact, marketing is the only activity that will generate any sales and cash for your restaurant. Think about it. Nothing else that you spend money on will generate any cash for your business. You can spend cash on new kitchen equipment, a new pizza oven, hiring additional staff, etc. However, none of this will generate any sales or cash. These are all expenses that your marketing must pay for. The challenge for today’s pizzeria owner is sifting through the many options and marketing companies in order to find the best solution and partner that will deliver results. Make sure your plan meets the following criteria, and you’ll be on your way to increasing your pizzeria’s sales. 1. A PROVEN TRACK RECORD OF RESULTS Not only do you need a marketing platform that has been proven to drive sales for pizzerias, but you’ll want to make sure your marketing partner has a track record of delivering those results as well. For example, strategic direct mail remains one of the most effective marketing mediums for pizzerias. Trusted companies like Mail Shark, which got its start in 2008

by marketing for pizzerias, continue to deliver results for thousands of restaurants across the country. 2. AFFORDABILITY No matter how great any marketing strategy is, it’s worth nothing to your pizzeria if you can’t afford it. Make sure to partner with a company that understands the fact that your pizzeria’s finances are analyzed on a weekly basis. With this understanding, they’ll make marketing affordable by spreading out the cost of your marketing on this same weekly basis, rather than having you pay all at once. 3. CREATE AN ANNUAL MARKETING PLAN You may remember the late Big Dave Ostrander, who wrote about the importance of laying out an annual marketing plan. Having no plan, or not putting a plan on a calendar for the year, are the primary reasons pizzeria owners fail with their marketing. As a pizzeria owner, you never have enough hours in the day, and trying to figure out your marketing on the fly will produce marginal results. Plan your marketing on a calendar for the year and you will be able to execute flawlessly. Get started on your direct-mail marketing plan with Mail Shark by calling 484-652-8359 or visiting themailshark.com.

AFFORDABLE MARKETING FOR YOUR PIZZERIA NO MONEY UP FRONT MAIL WEEKLY. PAY WEEKLY. INCREASE YOUR SALES NOW 610-463-0177 | themailshark.com/PMQ

0073-MS-20-IND - PMQ Magazine Idea Zone (may) - Print -r8.indd 1

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IDEA ZONE

How to Adapt and Stay Strong During the COVID-19 Crisis With traditional restaurant dining rooms closed, pizzerias are uniquely positioned to grow. Some key points to keep in mind: • Pizzerias can take advantage of the 44% to 64% increase in local business searches for takeout and fast food. • Market analysts are giving “buy” ratings for stock in pizza delivery chains due to expected growth. • You can power up your pizza dough productivity with an American Eagle spiral mixer. The COVID-19 crisis has increased pizza demand as more consumers choose restaurants with takeout/delivery, which is a core business strength for pizzerias. Consider adapting to this trend by expanding your ordering options. For example, pizzerias can offer bake-at-home pizza kits as an option for families who don’t want the hassle of making dough but still want an easy family activity while kids stay indoors. In the news, a variety of kindhearted sponsors have purchased “pizza-grams” for hospital workers taking care of patients. Demand for pizza will stay strong. With markets stalling and overstocked equipment dealers, 2020 can be an opportunity to invest in your capacity. Federally guaranteed loans through the SBA with very low interest rates can provide a needed capital boost. For pizza operators, a mixer is one of the most essential pieces of equipment,

and American Eagle spiral mixers offer the lowest total-cost of ownership with decades-long lifespans, providing the best value in the marketplace. WHY A SPIRAL MIXER FOR PIZZA DOUGH? For over 25 years, American Eagle has offered value by providing quality pizza mixers with best-in-class reliability and versatility. Spiral mixers can help you meet increased demand at a lower cost than traditional 60-quart planetary mixers. Superior design features, like a powerful 3-phase dualmotor system, evenly distribute the workload and result in extra long-term reliability. Most spiral mixers on the market today use sheet metal housing, but American Eagle’s spiral mixers have no welds, sharp edges, rivets or bolts. Featuring single-mold cast-iron housing and a polished, 100% stainlesssteel bowl/guard, the seamless workmanship keeps out contaminants and moisture while easily wiping clean. Time-tested internal parts like the multiple V-belt drive transmission translate into a quiet, efficient powerhouse. Scan the QR code to see a video of the American Eagle 80-quart spiral mixer in action! Learn how American Eagle spiral mixers outclass the competition. For more information, call 800-836-5756 or visit americaneaglemachine.com.

M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

GRANDE FIOR•DI•LATTE

Did you know that 48% of consumers are interested in Neapolitan-style pizza? Grande Fior•di•Latte provides a distinctively pleasant flavor that’s reminiscent of fresh mozzarella handmade in the Italian countryside. It’s all-natural with no artificial colors, whiteners or preservatives, ensuring that you get a traditional authentic product to serve your pizzeria’s customers. 800-847-2633, GRANDECHEESE.COM

PORTION PADL

Square and rectangular Portion PadLs help you keep up with today’s evolving pizza styles. Portion PadLs are custom-made to your pizza size and cut application. These Portion PadLs can be made with or without a handle to accommodate your kitchen footprint and serving needs. And the innovative design allows the use of rocker or roller knives as well as scissors to cut pizzas into equal portions. 330-608-5928, PORTIONPADL.COM

MARRA FORNI

The easy-to-use touchscreen technology of Marra Forni’s Rotator oven offers full control of crucial functions such as temperature, deck rotation speed, direction and automatic on and off. This smart brick oven cooks pizzas evenly in a half rotation in under 90 seconds. It eliminates the need to hire highly trained chefs and will produce creative, healthy and costeffective food options for your patrons. 888-239-0575, MARRAFORNI.COM

ONE FAT FROG

One Fat Frog describes itself as the nation’s largest food truck manufacturer and the only one born in the kitchen. One Fat Frog has a passion for helping others build their own business through the power of food on the move. Their 15 years of experience in building commercial kitchens has resulted in a line of food trucks and trailers that will suit you no matter where you are in your business journey. 407-480-3409, ONEFATFROG.COM

SOMERSET

Pizzeria employees can make dough balls the easy way with the SDR-400 dough rounder from Somerset. This high-production rounder can make up to 7,200 pieces per hour and round dough from 1 to 36 ounces. Made in the U.S.A., this extremely compact, heavy-duty rounder is built with innovative, nonstick, lightweight materials, and its patented design allows for easy operation and cleaning. 800-772-4404, SMRSET.COM

OUR TOWN AMERICA

The restaurant business is not “business as usual” right now. Dine-in has taken a back seat to delivery and curbside takeout. How will consumers know about your new offerings? One thing hasn’t changed: They’re still checking their mailboxes. Our Town America helps you connect with them via direct-mail avenues like New Mover Marketing, Saturation Postcards and Targeted Demographic Postcards. 800-497-8360, OURTOWNAMERICA.COM

68 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

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of below and sign-off on the advertisement as shown or indicate changes in the column. Please return this signed proof to Stacie Dennison at either: Email: sdennison@pizzatoday.com or Fax: 502-736-9518 SINCE 1843 THE UHLMANN COMPANY 1-866-866-8627

For more information or samples, contact us at ArdentMills.com or call 888-685-2534.

MANY IMITATE. NONE CAN DUPLICATE

DOUGH TRAYS/PROOFING TRAYS • Dough Trays -Standard Standard && Artisan Artisan Sizes Sizes – extremely – extremely durable durable and and airtight. airtight. Outlasts all other Plastic & Fiberglass Dough Trays! • Dough Tray Covers – engineered designed toto fit.fit. • Dough Scrapers – two ergonomic designs. • Dough Tray Dollies – heavy duty. The preferred dough tray of pizza operators in the US and Abroad for over 30 years! Order by phone or online.

Call 908-276-8484.www.doughmate.com 908-276-8484...............www.doughmate.com

The Leader in Dough Handling Products

74 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

HeckersCeresota.com

Traditional Flours, Pizza Mixes & Grain Innovations

The Original Dough Box

• Fiberglass strength & durability outlast plastic trays • Secure stacking, won't bend or sag • 3 standard sizes with snap-on lids • Optional lids and dollies available

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FOOD DISTRIBUTORS

PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE

GLUTEN-FREE PRODUCTS

MAGNETS Scan for Demo

Premium Flours Make Gluten-Free Tasty & Easy! Tel: 310-366-7612 E-mail: sales@authenticfoods.com Web: www.authenticfoods.com W H O L E S O M E & D E L I C I O U S ™ WHOLES

OME & DELICIOUS

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MANAGEMENT

keep more of your hard earned dough! 3 money saving programs:

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MACHINERY/EQUIPMENT

INSURANCE

Restaurant Delivery Insurance Program Hired & Non-Owned Auto Liability Coverage

Have your agent contact us today! Matt Andrews: 717.214.7606 | matt.andrews@amwins.com www.amwins.solutions/RD

MENUS

MIXERS

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

www.pizzamixers.com • 1-877-R-MIXERS pmq.com/Recipe-Bank/

Heavy Duty MIXeRS

2-Year Warranty

60 qt. Pizza Mixer handles 50 lb. bag of flour Direct gear drive transmission • Rigid cast iron construction

Globe Food Equipment Co. | www.globefoodequip.com M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

THE PIZZA EXCHANGE

MIXERS

NEW MOVER DIRECT MAIL MARKETING

ON HOLD MARKETING/PHONE SERVICES

MOISTURE-ABSORBENT TOPPINGS CONDITIONER/SUPPLIES

76 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE

ONLINE DATA REPORTS

PIZZA BOXES

CUSTOMIZE YOUR PIZZA BOX

Euromonitor International

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Your Strategic Partner for Company Growth Contact us at info-usa@euromonitor.com or visit www.euromonitor.com

TAKE YOUR IMAGE TO THE NEXT LEVEL

7” to 36” Custom Boxes and Odd Sizes Available

UP TO 4-COLORS | NO PLATE FEES*

Rectangular Flat Bread Boxes Available

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

Discover all the pizza trends in the Pizza Consumer Trend Report. 312.506.4060 | info@technomic.com

ONLINE ORDERING

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Cut pizza. Not corners. Your pizza. Our box. Quality matters. westrock.com/pizza

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with the power of online ordering More Orders. Starting Now.

SliceLife.com/JoinNow or (844) 880-2346

GET GOOGLE REVIEWS EASY AS A SLICE OF PIZZA

digitalgator.com

Mobile Ordering Pickup, Delivery, Catering & more Free Setup & 30 Day Free Trial

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M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

THE PIZZA EXCHANGE

PIZZA OVENS

Stone Deck, Pizza Dome, and Bakery

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

the POWER to

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VENTLESS IMPINGEMENT CONVEYORS, BATCH, AND ARTISAN BATCH OVENS 1-800-90TURBO | www.turbochef.com

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 78 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

PIZZA INDUSTRY RESOURCE GUIDE

PRINTING

TOMATO PRODUCTS

610-463-0508 | themailshark.com/PMQ20 SAUCE

TOPPINGSâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;PLANT-BASED

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.

WINGS

SCALES

Find your scale at YamatoAmericas.com

TELEPHONE EQUIPMENT/SUPPLIES/SERVICE

TOMATO PRODUCTS

Get the latest and greatest in pizza news, recipes, videos, marketing strategies and technologies at pmq.com!

ALWAYS WITH YOU.

Come follow us, like us, and engage with us on these social media platforms!

pmq.com/Recipe-Bank/ M AY 2 0 2 0 | P M Q . C O M

# OF UNITS 7482 5876 4262 3199 1400 1372 907 855 548 548 541 468 452 427 423 397 345 331 227 226 221 218 215 214 212 191 185 171 170 153 135 123 118 109

CHAIN NAME PIZZA HUT DOMINO'S LITTLE CAESARS PAPA JOHN'S PAPA MURPHY'S PIZZA CASEY'S CARRY-OUT PIZZA MARCO'S PIZZA OLIVE GARDEN THE GODFATHER'S PIZZA HUNGRY HOWIE'S PIZZA CHUCK E. CHEESE'S PIZZA PRO MOD PIZZA ROUND TABLE PIZZA CICIS JET'S PIZZA SBARRO BLAZE PIZZA CARRABBA'S ITALIAN GRILL CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN MOUNTAIN MIKE'S PIZZA ROSATI'S PIZZA FAZOLI'S FOX'S PIZZA DEN PIZZA RANCH MELLOW MUSHROOM VILLA FRESH ITALIAN KITCHEN SIMPLE SIMON'S PIZZA DONATOS PIZZA PIZZA INN PIEOLOGY PIZZERIA MAZZIO'S ITALIAN EATERY PIZZA FACTORY OLD CHICAGO PIZZA & TAPROOM

The PMQ/CHD Top 400 Pizza Chains

THE AUTHORITATIVE GUIDE TO PIZZA CHAIN MANAGEMENT AND BUSINESS RESEARCH

PMQ and CHD Expert have collaborated to present the Pizza Industry's most authoritative directory of pizza chain management and pizza chain business information. This 2020 Pizza Chain Directly Identifies the top 424 Pizza Chains with headquarters, management contacts and unit locations. • • • • • •

Yearly Chain Sales Number of units Average Check Headquarter Locations, Titles, Contacts 11,000 Email Addresses 55,000 Phone Numbers

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For purchasing information, visit pmq.com/pizzachain400

PIZZA 2020 MediaKit.PMQ.com

STRONGER THAN EVER PMQ has the largest business audience with over 200,000 business connections in the pizza restaurant industry.

PMQ Print + PMQ Digital #1 Pizza magazine with the power of print persuasion! #1 Digital media with the power of measurability

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PIZZA HALL OF FAME

(Clockwise from top left) Jack Weinrich, with wife Lillian, was one of Riverview Inn’s original bartenders; Arthur Wille works in the kitchen; Arthur perfects a pie; customers relax at the restaurant; a jukebox added indoor tunes; the original pizza oven baked up Riverview Inn’s popular pies; Arthur and his wife, Darlene, take a break at the bar.

Has your pizzeria been in business for 50 years or longer? If so, contact us at tracy@pmq.com.

RIVERVIEW INN A vintage recipe unearthed from an old toolbox meets a brand-new larger-than-life mascot in this quaint Wisconsin pizzeria and tavern. BY TRACY MORIN Arthur Wille’s wife, Darlene, wasn’t initially sold on the abandoned building the couple spotted in Saukville, Wisconsin, in the early ’60s. Once a tavern somewhat disguised as a residential home, it had been sitting vacant for years—busted plumbing and all. But Arthur, a former Milwaukee bar owner, was ready for the challenge and opened Riverview Inn in 1963. “My mom thought he was crazy,” says Lisa Burich, the couple’s daughter and current owner. Arthur, of German heritage but with a passion for pizza, wanted to make his homemade thin-crust pies the house specialty. They were so successful, in fact, the owners later decided to purchase premade crusts instead to keep up with demand. After the couple’s 35 years of ownership, Lisa and her sister, Cindy, took the reins, but Lisa soon moved on, leaving Cindy and her husband, Joe, in charge for the next 20 years. But after Arthur passed away, a key discovery changed the crusts’ course: The daughters found his original pizza recipe in an old toolbox and returned it to the menu, alongside medium- and thick-crust options. In 2016, Lisa returned to take over the business, now with help from her daughter, Jessie. Though the cozy restaurant sports just 10 barstools and six tables, Lisa has since nearly doubled pizza sales, thanks to popular pies like the Christmas Tree, washed down with a hand-muddled

old-fashioned at the bar (or the new outdoor-deck tiki bar). The pizzeria also offers frozen pies for those on the go and a punch-card system to reward loyal customers. Meanwhile, involvement with the local chamber of commerce, fundraisers for causes like breast cancer and dog rescues, and donations to local nursing homes and hospitals help engage the pizzeria with its small-town community. Last March, Riverview Inn initiated delivery and brought in a quirky “spokesperson,” Uncle Crusty—employee Tyler Davenport, in an oversize, inflatable chef’s costume with a flair for the dramatic. Lisa says he’s truly taken off as he appears in fun video skits, posted on social media, to promote specials and new menu items like the Uncle Crusty, which sandwiches a 10-ounce Italian sausage patty between two 8” cheese pizzas. Innovation aside, Lisa believes that old-fashioned approaches have also helped cement Riverview Inn’s legacy. “My mom always made homemade bread, and we still make it today to serve with every dinner,” she says. “Every day, we’re rolling crust, grating cheese, cutting vegetables to maintain our quality. We’ve had employees for 20-plus years. And I’m there every single day, talking to customers. You have to really embrace your customers and get to know them.” Tracy Morin is PMQ’s senior copy editor.

82 PMQ PIZZA MAGAZINE | THE WORLD’S AUTHORITY ON PIZZA

EXPERIENCE THE FLAVOR AND TRADITION OF THE PAST. INFIBRA GIVES US MORE OF WHAT NATURE INTENDED!

For a sample and questions answered weekly live via webinar, please text or email Jeanette Catena: eur1source@gmail.com, 908-627-1858

Joey Todaro, III, Wing King

We are all in this together... We will all get through this together.

www.LANOVA.com

*Samples must be sent to food service customers

CALL FOR A FREE SAMPLE* 716-984-5666