Domino’s Pizza (NYSE:DPZ) shares rose Monday, on word the chain is finally releasing its own version of stuffed crust on Monday, aiming to win over the customers who are willing to spend more on the pricey pizza customization.
Thirty years ago, Yum Brands’ (NYSE:YUM) Pizza Hut debuted the cheesy stuffed crust, marketing the launch with a television commercial starring Donald Trump. As years passed, rivals Papa John’s (NASDAQ:PZZA) and Little Caesars eventually followed with their own takes. Trump went from hawking pizza to sitting in the Oval Office.
Generations of consumers have grown up with stuffed crust, including the increasingly important Gen Z diners, who are entering the workforce and buying their own pizzas now. The addition is critical for Domino’s, the top U.S. pizza chain, to compete with rivals Pizza Hut and Papa John’s, which have ceded market share to Domino’s in recent quarters but still steal the pizza chain’s customers.
“Nearly 13 million Domino’s customers each year are buying stuffed crust from our competitors, and these are our customers who have to leave our brand because we’re the only national pizza brand that doesn’t offer it,” Domino’s Chief Marketing Officer Kate Trumbull told reporters.
Domino’s has taken so long to release stuffed crust that a survey of its customers found that 73% already believed that the chain offered it on the menu, according to Trumbull.
DPZ shares jumped $2.78 to $492.49.
