Domino's

Domino's ambitious experiment to launch American pizza tastes in the ancestral home of pizza has come to a quiet, predictable end.

“Having tried all of the pizza franchises in the U.S., Domino’s was the least edible,” another tweeted. In ePizza’s bankruptcy filing from April, the company cited the pandemic as the primary reason for its troubles. “Domino’s is closing its Italian restaurants. Italian entrepreneur Alessandro Lazzaroni bought the rights to distribute the chain in Italy through a franchising agreement with ePizza SpA in 2015, and trumpeted the possibilities of mixing local Italian ingredients with the American-style pizza. The U.S. company’s demise in Italy had already been in the cards when ePizza SpA, an Italian firm that Domino’s had partnered with in 2015 for a franchising agreement in the country, filed for bankruptcy in April of this year with a court in Milan. Domino’s ambitious experiment to launch American pizza tastes in the ancestral home of pizza has come to a quiet, predictable end.

The American fast food giant is shuttering its Italian business just seven years after opening its first store in Milan.

Domino's arrived in Italy in 2015, when it already had more than 12,000 stores worldwide. The company's exit from Italy was met with cheers on Twitter, where users mocked Domino's for even attempting to establish a foothold in the homeland of pizza in the first place. The fast food giant closed the last of its 29 stores on the Italian Peninsula after struggling to gain a foothold in the country, Bloomberg reports, with locals proving to be difficult to win over for the American chain.

The company that ran Italian franchises for Domino's said customers favored mom-and-pop pies.

“Is pizza the last bastion of Italian-ness?” While some defended Domino’s in Italy as being superior to the American version, many in the country were blithe about the chain’s demise. “Didn’t even know it had opened up shop.” A Monday headline in the Italian daily newspaper Il Messaggero concluded that “Italians don’t like pineapple pizza: Domino’s is shuttering all pizzerias in the country.” The article mentioned the chain’s American-style menu items such as “Pepperoni Passion” and the “Hawaiana,” noting that such fanciful concoctions had failed to impress purists. Some agreed pizza culture in Italy was just too strong for an American incursion. Representatives from Domino’s and ePizza s.p.a. did not immediately respond to emails requesting comment. But sales were down nearly 38 percent from their projections at the end of the year.

Restaurant chain hoped to export American-style slices to pizza's culinary birthplace, but Italians weren't buying it.

"We attribute the issue to the significantly increased level of competition in the food delivery market with both organized chains and 'mom & pop' restaurants delivering food, to service and restaurants reopening post pandemic and consumers out and about with revenge spending," ePizza said in a report to investors, Bloomberg reported. It was the sort of arrangement — American know-how in food delivery and Italian expertise in a cherished national dish — that may have looked good on paper. The U.S. company partnered with a franchiser, ePizza SpA, to open the first Domino's in Milan in 2015, announcing that "we're going where no major pizza brand has gone before."

The US chain entered Italy in 2015 through a franchising agreement with ePizza SpA and planned to distinguish itself by providing a structured national delivery ...

More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance. Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. US and Italian representatives for ePizza and Domino’s didn’t respond to messages seeking comment. It borrowed heavily for plans to open 880 stores, but faced tough competition from local restaurants expanding delivery services during the pandemic and sought protection from creditors after running out of cash and falling behind on its debt obligations.

Locally run restaurants and pizzerias began using food-delivery services, eating into the revenue of the Domino's franchises, according to the documents.

- SHEIN:SHEIN coupon code - 15% off You may cancel your subscription at anytime by calling Customer Service. Locally run restaurants and pizzerias began using food-delivery services, eating into the revenue of the Domino’s franchises, according to the documents.

Seven years after opening its first store in Italy, Domino's Pizza reportedly departs with its tail between its legs.

However, the rise of delivery services such as Deliveroo, Just Eat and Glovo took away any advantage the American company thought it would have, according to a report to investors in 2021 by their Italian franchise holder ePizza SpA. The last of the chain's 29 Italian stores has shut down, according to a Bloomberg news report. - Domino's thought its delivery model would give it a slice of the market in Italy