Pizza Hut is making a comeback. The NFL deal is one of the reasons
"The first year of the NFL helped us increase brand awareness and reach a new audience we had not had before," said CEO of Pizza Hut Artie Starrs in an interview with CNN Business.
In August, Starrs, who had been president of the company's US operations, was promoted to CEO of the entire chain. That puts him in charge of the company's global business, which has nearly 20,000 restaurants in around 1[ads1]20 countries worldwide.
Pizza Hut plans to be even more active with the NFL this year. The company is partnering with supporters such as top stars Todd Gurley and Aaron Donald of the Los Angeles Rams and JuJu Smith-Schuster of the Pittsburgh Steelers for a new ad campaign.
Pizza Hut also launches an interactive game called "Hut Hut" Win that will give customers a chance to win NFL goods and free food. Participants can also win tickets to Super Bowl LIV in Miami next February and NFL Draft- weekend in April in Paradise, Nevada near Las Vegas.
Starrs said it was encouraging to see much of the focus on the NFL last year coming back to what happened on the field as opposed to anthem protests, top player injuries and lower TV ratings. [19659007] "We think this will be a great year. When there are good matches and league parity, every fan feels that their team can win the Super Bowl. The NFL is a fantastic brand to partner with, "Starrs said. (Unfortunately, this reporter – who comes to the New York Giants – doesn't feel like his team can win the Super Bowl this season.)
Catches up to rivals in mobile ordering
But Pizza Hut's recent revival is not just about the NFL.
The company has also benefited from an increased focus on technology, Pizza Hut testing a "cubby" system for ordering in a Los Angeles store Think of it as an Amazon Locker for pizza, wings and garlic knots.
Starrs still believes that old-fashioned pizza delivery by drivers will be the way most people order pizza – even if they aren't calling a store to actually make an order.
"A big part of our mobile strategy is delivery. We're really passionate about it. If you can deliver on time, that's great. If you can deliver well, you can probably do and other things too," said Starrs.
Starrs said that new foods for Pizza Hut must be "authe ntic." He added that the company "monitors food trends carefully and said that plant-based orders are" possible. "
Any strange menu changes are more likely to be tried in foreign markets as opposed to the U.S. Said seafood is a popular topping in Southeast Asia, for example. The chain also adjusts pizzas for markets in Africa, Europe and Latin America.
But even without plant-based products on the horizon yet, Pizza Hut is still making a solid comeback. Investors have noticed. Partly thanks to the flourishing of Pizza Hut, Yum's shares are up 30% this year. [19659007] It's better than Papa John & # 39; s up 25% in hopes that new CEO Rob Lynch – formerly of Arby & # 39; s – can turn things around on the struggling chain, and Domino's shares are down 4% as sales growth has cool edited by.
"Det an The third quarter, globally, was one of the best for Pizza Hut in a long time. Things are going well, "Starrs said.
