Pizza Today - November 2020 - 40

COVI D-19

S PE C I A L

RE P ORT

Which unavailable products affected
your business operation?
0

40

20

60

Which of the following new technology equipment did you
invest in to operate more effectively during the pandemic?
80

Cheese
Meats

20%

Vegetables

40%

60%

Sauce
Oil

POS

FLour

Text Marketing

Yeast

QR Codes

Soft Drinks

Online Ordering

Alcohol
Boxes

Text Ordering

Packaging

Phone System

Utensils
Paper Products

Other

Cleaning Supplies
PPE

Menu Changes
Many operators had to make drastic
changes to their menus in order to
provide guests quality products in a
DELCO model. Roughly 47 percent
of pizzeria operators altered their
menu offerings due to the pandemic.
Over 70 percent of those streamlined
or decreased the number of menu
items offered. Though pizza-making
kits were a trending topic during the
pandemic, only 14 percent of pizzerias
offered make-at-home-pizza kits.
Did you alter your menu offerings
during the pandemic?
71%
Streamlined
decreased
number of menu
items

11%
Added
Menu
Items

4% Sold
ingredients/
items
retail
14%
Offered
pizza kits

Leveraging Tech to Get
Through the Pandemic
Technology has played a pivotal role
for successful restaurant operations
throughout the pandemic. For
many operators, transitions to new
technology, that typically take months
to fully integrate, were being launched

overnight.
By far, online ordering has been the
most pivotal technology investment
that pizzeria operators have made to
be more effective during the pandemic
at nearly 55 percent. While online
ordering has steadily increased to be
an industry standard, operators have
invested in better execution, increased
efficiency and tools to increase the
ticket averages of online ordering.
A quarter of those surveyed invested
in POS systems and phone systems.
We also saw QR codes make a
comeback this year with 23 percent of
respondents deploying the technology
since March. Thought to be a trend
that faded years ago, restaurants
discovered QR codes' full potential
as a way to provide menus with zero
contact. The camera on many of today's
smartphones can scroll over a QR code
and send users directly to a hot link
containing a restaurant's menu.
Others used text marketing, as
well as text ordering. Some operators
even indicated they invested in tablet
ordering, contactless credit card
machines and e-commerce sites.
Big Picture: Operational and
Capital Improvements
With dining rooms closed across
most of the country and many pizzerias
shifting to concentrated operating
hours, over 50 percent of operators

surveyed used the time to make
improvements in their business.
Deep cleaning has been the most
top-of-mind investment for pizzeria
operators during the pandemic. We
asked operators what kind of operational
or capital improvements they've made
since March. The answered were varied.
The emphasis for many operators was
enhancing dining and kitchen spaces, as
well as building or upgrading outdoor
seating. Many focused on maintenance
and repairs.
Operators responded that they
have painted their interiors, replaced
flooring and seating. Others repaired
furniture and updated the décor. Several
completed full remodels of their dining
area. Many changed the layout and flow
of their front of house space. Some even
expanded their footprint.
Equipment purchases made were
focused on big kitchen items, as well
as HVAC and air handling equipment.
Some focused on the reconfiguring/
building prep areas and rooms. A
complete list of improvements will be
available at pizzatoday.com.
Pizzerias have proven their resiliency
in the face of months of uncertainty. The
most primary concern for operators right
now is keeping their staff and customers
safe and keeping their businesses open. n

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Pizza Today - November 2020

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