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Sep, 01 2007

Learn from the masters – II Pizza Hut

THE legacy of Pizza Hut began in 1958 when two college students from Wichita, US, Frank and Dan Carney, were approached by a family friend with the idea of opening a pizza parlour.

THE legacy of Pizza Hut began in 1958 when two college students from Wichita, US, Frank and Dan Carney, were approached by a family friend with the idea of opening a pizza parlour. Although the concept was relatively new to many Americans at that time, the brothers quickly saw the potential of this new enterprise.

After borrowing $ 600 from their mother, they purchased some second-hand equipment and rented a small building on a busy intersection in their home town. The result of their entrepreneurial efforts was the first Pizza Hut restaurant; and the foundation of what would become the largest and most successful pizza restaurant in the world.

Pizza Hut has already built a vibrant global business by focusing on key growth strategies: building dominant restaurant brands in China, driving profitable international expansion, improving US brand positions and returns, driving high ROIC and strong shareholder payout.

For the past four years, the company has been recognised as one of Fortune Magazine's 'Top 50 Employers for Minorities'. It also has been recognised as one of the `Top 50 Employers for Women` by Fortune, one of the '40 Best Companies for Diversity' by Black Enterprise Magazine for the past two years, one of the 'Corporate 100 Companies Providing Opportunities for Hispanics' by Hispanic Magazine and by Business Week as one of the 'Top 15 Companies for In-Kind Corporate Philanthropy'. In addition, the company has been named as No. 1, the best place to work in America.

International presence

Pizza Hut Inc. is the world`s largest pizza restaurant chain and a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. YUM! Restaurants total approximately 34,000 restaurants, delivery-carry out units, and kiosks in more than 100 countries.

Pizza Hut specialises in Pan Pizza, Thin `N Crispy Pizza, Hand-Tossed Style Pizza and Stuffed Crust Pizza. There are more than 8,000 restaurants in the US and over 4,500 in over 80 countries and territories. In India, a total of 123 outlets are spread across the country. The company is the recognised leader in the pizza category.

Its franchising system

Though the requirements for a franchisee to become a global franchise partner vary from country to country, in general the criteria is as follows.

Criteria for being a Partner

Pizza Hut seeks partners who:

? fulfill desired qualification

? is totally dedicated to work

? is a `customer maniac` - understands that customer`s importance is related to success

? is ambitious and driven, has the vision and desire to succeed

? has professional managerial experience, preferably in the service industry, either in distribution, commercial or financial areas, with the necessary skills to successfully operate, manage and grow a restaurant business

? is prepared to bring sufficient capital to purchase or lease the land, building, furniture, fixtures and equipments necessary for the restaurant

Capital requirement

The amount of capital varies between $5 lakh and $1 lakh according to the size. Liquid assets of $3.6 lakh are required to qualify as a franchisee.

Support and training

Pizza Hut provides its franchisees with franchise support including advertising, business coaching, training, development and cooperative sourcing.

Site Selection Franchise Recruiters will help a franchisee through the new franchise approval process, from qualification to site registration. A Franchise Recruiter will show the areas of the greatest development opportunity and ensure that the site registration process, start-up costs, and training needs are understood.

Coaching Each brand has Franchise Business Coaches and/or Franchise Business Leaders to provide business insight and instruction. Coach/leader helps keep abreast of important business initiatives, organise key regional training activity, and be the primary point of contact.

Training Pizza Hut provides its franchisees a training support of 12-16 weeks. A fee may be charged for the training activity, and franchisees are responsible to staff their restaurants and train the restaurant crew.

Advertising and Marketing Pizza Hut is committed to making their big brands even bigger. These promotions are designed to excite customers and increase the store`s traffic. Many markets have local advertising cooperatives to coordinate local marketing activity. Franchisees are encouraged, but not required, to participate in system promotions.

Development Pizza Hut provides franchisees with standardised building plans for all endorsed brand combinations, including typical site layouts, exterior and interior facility design, architectural specifications, equipment cut sheets, and cost baselines.

The reason for its success

The company attributes its tremendous success to the parent company YUM! International, that has grown up as the largest food chain over the years. Four of its restaurant brands - KFC, Long John Silver`s, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell - are the global leaders of the chicken, quick-service seafood, pizza and Mexican-style food categories. The Pizza Hut chain has recently been cited by Global Finance magazine as one of the world`s best companies. Pizza Hut restaurants offer a delicious variety of pizzas that are made with a wide assortment of meats, cheese, vegetables and toppings. At Pizza Hut extra care has been taken to prepare fresh food which is prepared daily, and temperatures are monitored regularly by team of experts. Pizza Hut also involves itself in a number of social services like Yum! Brand Foundation, Yumeals Programme, Pizza Hut Book IT! Programme, and other philanthropic works. All these factors together make Pizza Hut a successful brand all over the world.

Inputs generation Rajshekhar Chakroborty

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