Pizza Majors Toss up New Tricks

It's a battle for the largest share of the pie, or rather the pizza. With the Amul cheese boy giving them a run for their money in the twin cities with their competitively priced Mozarella cheese pizza, multinational fast food chains are going all out with their market strategies and promos to lure and retain customers.

The Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation, makers of the famed Amul brand, are extremely thrilled with the response here to its common man's pizza being dished out at the exclusive franchisee outlet Swagat for a mere Rs 20.

The outlet is reported to have been getting about 200 orders a day since its launch two weeks ago, and the company aims to sell at least 10,000 pizzas a month and also introduce free home delivery.

Amul, which plans to set up 50 such outlets all over the city by the end of this month, and extend it to all districts soon, is supplying the mozzarella cheese from its own stable, while outsourcing the plain thin crust base of the pizza to Monginis, and vegetable toppings to select other vendors.

Along with the pizzas, in four varieties of Jain, margarita, garlic and mushroom, the company is also planning to come out with frozen

six inch and eight inch "heat and eat" take home pizzas.

But, Amul's attack on the high price barrier set by them is not worrying MNCs like Pizza Corner, Pizza Hut and US Pizza. While some see no comparison at all with Amul, others say they are only too happy the base of pizza eating population has now increased, giving them a greater marketsize.

"Clearly there's no comparison. Amul is comparable with bakers and vendors of the pizza base. But, Pizza Hut's focus is on the experience of pizza eating -- both in the dining and home delivery segments. The quality and consistency are very important. We have a standardised process and our base is made fresh. Therefore we aren't even looking at frozen pizzas currently," says Pankaj Batra, director marketing India subcontinent, Tricon International.

The new players only expand the market, so we welcome it. As customers get more discerning, we benefit as they upgrade to brands, he says, adding that Amul hasn't affected their sales in the outlet, which serves more than 700-800 customers a day. In fact, Pizza Hut is looking at adding two more soon.

"Ultimately, the consumer doesn't want a cheap product, he wants value for money, and he's willing to spend for value. We give that value -- a five star pizza at three star price. As we can build up scale we can leverage volumes," Batra adds.

Agrees Joseph Chen, manager of the Swedish US Pizza outlet in Secunderabad. "There will be no compromise in cost. Our customers are looking at quality and value. We have standard customers whom we keep them happy with various schemes. Moreover, there is variety here. We serve three kinds of pizzas -- Pan, Thin Crust and Italian. Our base is instantly made, therefore fresh, not handtossed," he says.

The outlet, which began the trend of value pizzas for Rs 49 in April this year even before Amul's entry, has had its share of offers. In August was a scheme of unlimited pizzas for Rs 79 per head. They had students and corporate discounts. In October, the outlet is introducing Rs 25 off on medium and large pizzas for regular customers.

"Though Hyderabad not very open to pizza concept, but the acceptance is growing. And the company will be adding a lot more units, more of delivery outlets, in future. Hyderabad is a very important take away market. So we have delivery that extends to all corners of city -- from Madhapur to Tarnaka and Old City. And with more units, we'll only be adding volumes," he says.

Pizza Corner too which introduced the Rs 49 pizza recently as part of its anniversary celebrations, is not cutting down prices on regular pizzas. "Hyderabad isn't money conscious anymore. Customers are looking at a great tasting product, the service, the ambience and a good price. We are a wholesome family destination with children as primary focus," says Antoine Bakhache, CEO and cofounder Pizza Corner India. "We already have three outlets -- two dine in and one delivery, and looking at adding more," he adds.