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Volume 15 Issue 2 March 2009
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10 DOWNLOAD YOUR NEXT EMPLOYEE Find out what you need to do to hire the right candidates online.
15 DOUBLE DOUBLE PIONEERING TURKEY TOPPINGS 15
Find out how a kitchen experiment led to what the Double Double chain believes is the next big thing.
18 FOOD FIGHTS FOR ITS ROOTS The Food Roots program is bringing awareness to authenticity.
20 PART 2: SETTING UP SHOP IN A HOTEL Learn what to watch out for when signing your lease.
24 COURTING THE SCHOOLS 18
Schools can be a great source of revenue. Learn what they want to hear from you and earn their business.
25 A LAUGH A DAY HELPS
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DINO’S PAY For pizzeria owner Claude Ayoub, a sense of humour and camaraderie have been the cornerstones of his successful operation.
www.canadianpizzamag.com
DEPARTMENTS 4
editor’s desk
6
pizza bites
12
canadian pizza online
14
marketing insights
16
the pizza chef
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making dough
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pizza on fire MARCH 2009 pizza 3
from the editor’s desk March 2009, Vol. 15, No. 2
The new work ethic t 28 years old, it’s possibly a little early to be speaking of things as “back in my day,” but I am nearly a dinosaur when it comes to the Internet and its place in the job sphere. Monster, the world’s first online job board, launched in 1994. That wasn’t very long ago. In fact, this position as editor of Canadian Pizza magazine is the first opportunity I’ve landed through online job hunting. My first foray into the pizza business certainly didn’t begin on the Internet. Ten years ago, I walked into a Pizza Pizza restaurant with a help wanted sign in the window and asked for a job. I filled out an application, explained I had a licence, had just finished high school and wanted to work for a while before going away to university. I was asked to start the next day as a delivery driver. Unprepared for the impromptu start, I had to borrow my dad’s mint-condition 1965 Thunderbird until I got my hands on a “beater” car the following week. I’m pretty sure they thought they’d hired a crazy person when I showed up to deliver pizza in that beauty of a car, but they kept me on for the next year and a half working as many hours as possible and doing a bit of every job in the store. I learned to work hard and hustle, and it’s been easy to apply the ethic to every position I’ve had since. Knocking on the door and asking for the job was what I was raised to do. If I hadn’t been hired on the spot, I would have called every other day to see if they had made a decision yet. Skip ahead 10 years, and 18-year-old job hunters are sitting online looking to apply through the career sections of company websites, cruising the job boards, waiting for a reply or attempting to follow up by e-mail. Most of the job postings they reply to will ask them to please not contact the company and to wait for an
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interview request. This somewhat passive process does not continue past the onboarding stage. Today’s teenagers are light years away in work ethic from previous generations, notes teen employment expert Ken Whiting. Many carry the attitude that they are in high demand in the hospitality industry, want their schedules totally customized, and generally appear to lack gratitude for their paycheques. As employers, you can learn how to hire them, engage them and retain them for as long as possible, but the best thing you can do for their future is teach them how to work hard, respect authority and produce results quickly. Unfortunately, many of today’s teens and young adults are not equipped to bridge the gap between their perceptions of work and career reality, where “make your own hours” doesn’t really exist for the majority. The soft economy may be a reality check for young people. Stories abound of restaurants being overloaded with thousands of resumés as layoffs ripple through North America. Those restaurant jobs that always seem to be there might be tougher to find this year and thus feel luckier to have. This may be compounded by recent news reports that job postings are down as well. Finding staff may not be your biggest concern in 2009, but investing in a long-term hiring strategy is ongoing. People are spending more and more time online, to the point that it makes one wonder when Internet surfing will eclipse television in time spent. Erecruiting should be an active component of everyone’s campaign.
Editor Laura Aiken laiken@annexweb.com 416-522-1595 National Advertising Manager Christine Livingstone clivingstone@annexweb.com 519-429-5173 888-599-2228 ext. 239 Sales Assistant Ryan Culver rculver@annexweb.com 519-429-5183 888-599-2228 ext. 219 Production Artist Emily Sun Group Publisher Martin McAnulty mmcanulty@annexweb.com President Mike Fredericks mfredericks@annexweb.com Mailing Address P.O. Box 530, 105 Donly Dr. S., Simcoe, ON N3Y 4N5 PUBLICATION MAIL AGREEMENT #40065710 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESS TO CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT, P.O. Box 530, Simcoe, ON N3Y 4N5 e-mail: cnowe@annexweb.com Periodicals postage paid at Buffalo, NY. USPS 014-059, ISSN 1203-6838. Published eight times per year (Jan/Feb, Mar, Apr/May, Jun, Jul/Aug, Sept/Oct, Nov, Dec), by Annex Publishing & Printing Inc. U.S. Office of publication c/o DDM Direct.com, 1223 William St., Buffalo, NY 14240. U.S. Postmaster send address change to P.O. Box 1042, Niagara Falls, NY 14304 Printed in Canada ISSN 1203-6838 Circulation e-mail: cnowe@annexweb.com Tel: 866-790-6070 ext. 207 Fax: 877-624-1940 Mail: P.O. Box 530, Simcoe, ON N3Y 4N5 Subscription Rates Canada – 1 Year $ 19.26 (includes GST - #867172652RT0001) USA – 1 Year $ 40.00 From time to time, we at Canadian Pizza Magazine make our subscription list available to reputable companies and organizations whose products and services we believe may be of interest to you. If you do not want your name to be made available, contact our circulation department in any of the four ways listed above. No part of the editorial content of this publication may be reprinted without the publisher’s written permission. ©2009 Annex Publishing & Printing Inc. All rights reserved. Opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the editor or the publisher. No liability is assumed for errors or omissions. All advertising is subject to the publisher’s approval. Such approval does not imply any endorsement of the products or services advertised. Publisher reserves the right to refuse advertising that does not meet the standards of the publication. www.canadianpizzamag.com
pizzabites Gluten-free research project yields tasty results
mama rosa Hello everyone! Mama Rosa here. What a smart bunch of pizzaiolos we have in Canada! I sure hope you are staying cool in those steaming hot kitchens. So, I hope you’re ready for this month’s trivia contest question. Remember, it’s easy – I’ll ask the question and you find the answer somewhere in this month’s issue of Canadian Pizza magazine. Then fax, mail or e-mail your answer to me. If I pick your name from the answer bag, you win!
AIT Polytechnic’s new continuing education courses on gluten-free cooking will be welcome news for those living with celiac disease. The Letting Kids be Kids program brings recipes for pizza, hot dogs and cupcakes to kids (and adults) who can’t tolerate gluten or wheat products. And a course in gluten-free Italian cooking means celiac sufferers no longer have to pass on the pasta. It shows how to create tasty pastas, aromatic breads, tiramisu and more gluten-free treats. The courses were developed from an applied research project carried out by This monthʼs trivia question: Kerry Bennett and Sandy Cutts, two Are you ready? What clause do you want recent graduates of SAIT’s professional This month’s trivia to include in your lease cooking program. The pair received question is: What support from SAIT’s applied research with a hotel in case it clause do you want fund to develop gluten-free recipes for the doesn’t work out? to include in your lease School of Hospitality and Tourism. Their with a hotel in case in goal was to develop products that compare doesn’t work out? in taste and texture to regular baking, to increase the shelf life of gluten-free products Deadline is March 14, 2009 e-mail: pizza@annexweb.com Fax: 519-429-3094, Attn: Mama Rosa Mail: Mama Rosa, Canadian Pizza Magazine, P.O Box 530 105 Donly Drive South Simcoe, ON N3Y 4N5
did you know? CRFA statistics show that quick-service and casual restaurants experience an average yearly turnover of 67 per cent for hourly paid employees.
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and to produce a commercially viable bun that can be frozen and par-baked. A taste test at SAIT’s Highwood dining room in October capped off the research project. Guests, including representatives of the Canadian Celiac Association, rated the taste, texture and appearance of six breakfast, lunch and dessert products created by Bennett and Cutts. As a result of the project, SAIT will also incorporate gluten-free cooking into the curriculum of the professional cooking program. It is estimated that one in 133 Canadians suffers from celiac disease, a digestive disorder that damages the small intestine and interferes with absorption of nutrients from food. People with celiac disease cannot tolerate gluten – a protein in wheat, rye and barley. There is no cure for celiac disease and treatment is strict adherence to a gluten-free diet for life. Studies also indicate that a gluten-free diet could benefit people with autism, colitis, irritable bowel syndrome and arthritis.
RenewABILITY Energy product qualifies for retrofit incentive enewABILITY Energy Inc., announced that its Power-Pipe Drain Water Heat Recovery systems qualify for the Ontario Power Authority’s Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program (ERIP). The ERIP targets commercial and industrial businesses throughout Ontario. Expected applications for the ERIP incentive include: apartment buildings, condo buildings, hotels, universities, laundry facilities, salons, spas, farms, and restaurants.
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“Most people don’t realize water heating is the second largest energy demand in Canadian multi-unit residential homes and a huge cost for businesses. Specifically, water heating for cleaning, washing and processing accounts for a significant amount of the energy used in commercial and institutional operations,” notes Gerald Van Decker, president and CEO of RenewABILITY Energy. “Power-Pipe systems can cost-effectively reduce water heating costs by up to 60 per cent.”
Survey shows employee retention top concern
SpeedLine launches Technology Network
recent survey suggests today’s employers are most worried about hanging on to good employees, even in the current economy. When asked about their greatest staffing concern, 35 per cent of senior executives interviewed cited employee retention, while 23 per cent said staff morale. Recruitment was named by 22 per cent of respondents. The survey was developed by Robert Half International, the world’s first and largest staffing services firm specializing in accounting and finance. It was conducted by an independent research firm from Sept. 15 to Oct.15, 2008, and is based on interviews with 100 senior executives in Canada. “Many firms are operating with lean teams in which every staff member plays a key role in the business, making retention a greater concern,” says Max Messmer, chairman and CEO of Robert Half International and author of Human Resources Kit For Dummies. “Companies that lose top performers may not only experience declines in productivity but also incur significant costs in replacing these professionals.” Mike Gooley, branch manager for the Toronto operations of Robert Half International, adds, “Maintaining employee morale will assist with retention efforts. One of the best ways to accomplish this is through effective communication, making it is essential for executives to engage in frequent dialogue with staff members to keep them updated on company news and offer praise and encouragement.”
izza and QSR point of sale developer SpeedLine Solutions has introduced the SpeedLine Technology Network. “The SpeedLine Technology Network provides a forum for technology vendors to reach the broad SpeedLine POS user community,” says SpeedLine marketing manager Jennifer Wiebe. “And it gives SpeedLine users access to an array of valuable products and services that they can be confident will work seamlessly with the POS systems they already own.” More than a dozen technology vendors have joined the Technology Network to date, offering value-added services to SpeedLine POS users that include a range of online ordering, database marketing, kitchen display system, gift and credit card processing, and enterprise reporting choices. “Everyone benefits,” Wiebe adds. “Technology providers gain access to a receptive new market, and we can provide our customers with a rich selection of new tools to manage their restaurants.” SpeedLine is actively working with several member companies to develop technology solutions that cross boundaries and create new possibilities for SpeedLine users. The companies plan to announce new co-operative service offerings later this year.
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Restaurant owners unfairly targeted by government he province of New Brunswick is imposing millions of dollars in new costs on bar and restaurant owners, and clawing back an important revenue stream, even though many bars and restaurants are struggling to survive during the economic downturn. The provincial government announced $1.2 million in new fees for licensed restaurants and bars on Feb. 2. In addition, the government has already clawed back VLT commissions and removed a large number of machines from small operators to subsidize racetracks and a new casino. These changes, along with the increase in minimum wage last week, add up to more than $11 million in new costs, and millions of dollars in lost revenues. “This is the worst possible time for government to be increasing costs for restaurant and bar owners,” says Luc Erjavec, vicepresident Atlantic Canada with the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association (CRFA).
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Government creates Restaurant industry resource to help welcomes federal budget industry reduce energy tax relief, access to credit isa Raitt, minister of natural resources, announced the release of a new, comprehensive guide to energy efficiency for industry. The Energy Savings Toolbox, developed in conjunction with provinces, territories and industry stakeholders, provides a step-by-step methodology to help industry identify and capitalize on energy savings. The Toolbox, published on CD and available at no charge from Natural Resources Canada, offers a detailed reference for understanding and managing energy use in every phase of an operation, from designing and conducting an energy audit to carrying out a cost-benefit analysis. “The benefits of using energy more efficiently are very clear. Energy efficiency means fewer emissions and lower costs. That is why energy efficiency is a key element of our Turning the Corner plan to fight climate change,” says Raitt. “But in a complex industrial operation, the savings are not always easy to spot. With the Energy Savings Toolbox, Canadian industry now has a startto-finish guide to managing energy consumption.” The toolbox includes an extensive technical supplement with spreadsheet tools for costing, analysis and other related calculations. It is available on CD at http://oee.nrcan.gc.ca/ industrial/technical-info/index.cfm?attr=24.
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Domino’s Pizza Canada opens 300th store omino’s Pizza has opened its 300th store in Canada. The milestone store is located in Kelowna, B.C, and is owned by franchisee Jamie Banner. Banner owns three stores in British Columbia, two in Kelowna. Banner has been with Domino’s Pizza for more than two decades, beginning his career as a pizza delivery driver. In 2008, Banner’s original store in Kelowna was the first in Canada to have annual sales top $2 million, a new Canadian record for Domino’s Pizza. Canada is home to the first Domino’s Pizza opened outside of the US. Franchisee Michael Schlater opened the company’s first international stores in Winnipeg in 1983. Domino’s Pizza marked its 25th anniversary in Canada in 2008, and Schlater has since gone on to become president of Domino’s Pizza Canada, based in Leamington, Ont. Domino’s Pizza was founded in 1960 and experienced global sales of over 5.4 billion in 2007 through its 8726 franchised and company stores. Domino’s Pizza Canada currently has locations operating in all 10 provinces as well as the northern territories.
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ax relief for consumers and businesses, along with better access to credit for restaurant owners, was welcome news for Canada’s foodservice industry in recent federal budget. The foodservice industry, which employs more than one million Canadians and generates just under four per cent of the country’s gross domestic product, is expecting a 4.6 per cent real decline in sales in 2009 due to the slowing economy, according to a forecast by the 33,000-member Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association (CRFA). “Putting more disposable income in the hands of consumers, reducing the tax burden on small business owners, and allowing credit-worthy restaurant businesses to access much-needed lending are positive moves for our industry,” says CRFA’s Vice President Labour and Taxation, Justin Taylor. CRFA strongly supports the following budget measures: • The increase in the Basic Personal Income Tax exemption and the Working Income Tax Benefit, which will increase disposable income for low-income Canadians and help restaurants by encouraging more people to enter and remain in the workforce. • The steps the government has taken to increase access to credit for restaurants by increasing the maximum loan guarantee under the Canada Small Business Financing Program and by increasing lending through the Business Development Bank of Canada. • Increasing the small business tax rate threshold from $400,000 to $500,000. This allows more small businesses to take advantage of a lower income tax rate. • The steps the government has taken to ensure unemployed Canadians have access to the EI benefits they need without increasing costs for employers. • The federal government’s continued support for apprenticeship programs through increased tax credits for businesses that hire apprentices through the Red Seal program. Restaurant owners are disappointed the government did not act to rein in rising credit card fees. “While the government has taken steps to protect consumers from predatory practices of credit card companies, they must remember that businesses are consumers of these financial products as well, and must take steps to ensure that fees charged to businesses are fair, transparent, and predictable,” says Taylor. In total, the federal budget pledged $84.9 billion in deficit spending over the next five fiscal years to stimulate the economy. The expected deficit for the 2009 to 2010 fiscal year will fall just short of $34 billion. News of the stimulus package is hoped to raise consumer confidence with prospects of job creation.
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Download your next employee BY LAURA AIKEN
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inding and retaining talent is an ongoing game for quick-service and casual restaurants, which experience an average yearly turnover of 67 per cent for hourly paid employees. In addition, the foodservice industry employs nearly one in five youth jobs in Canada, with 44 per cent of all restaurant employees aged between 15 and 24. These statistics reported by the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association (CRFA) mean you’ll be hiring this year and some of your hires are going to be young people. With minimum wage increases affecting six provinces in 2009, it’s important to be cost-effective in your recruitment and ensure that your business is using the Internet to its greatest advantage.
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Ken Whiting is a California-based human resources expert on the entrylevel workforce. He operates a program called WAVES for Success that works with companies to solve the challenges of recruiting, motivating and retaining teens and young adults. No stranger to the pizza business, he is also the licensee of two Pizza Hut locations. Whiting says there are three key components to downloading your next employee. 1. GET YOUR JOB POSTING LISTED ON THE APPROPRIATE SITES There are a multitude of online job boards, and it can be difficult to determine the best places to start recruiting. There is also a wide range of rates being charged by different sites.
“My sense is that they [youths] are not going to Monster,” says Whiting. “If I was hiring a full-time manager then I might want to be on Monster because that’s the kind of person you’ll find there, someone a little more career-focused.” Websites like Craigslist are much more likely to reach the entry-level youth. There are a number of U.S.-based websites that cater to young job seekers, but aside from Craigslist they aren’t as obvious in Canada. A Google search pulled up the website www.weblens. org/youth.html, which contained links to several Canadian youth job resources and is worth investigating. However, doing a simple search for restaurant jobs on Monster returns a significant number of entry-level positions, so this
is not to say you won’t find who you are looking for there. Cost is a definite consideration. There is a $695 price tag to access Monster’s job seekers for 30 days, as compared to Craigslist’s $0. Workopolis ranges from $325 to $725 across Canada for a 30-day period. The website www.getajobyoufreak. com is free to post to. The hospitality specific job board www.hcareers.ca bills $469. Consider which positions you are looking to fill and where those applicants are more likely to be looking. To put in perspective how fast internet use has grown in a mere decade and a half, consider that Monster launched the first online job board in 1994 and it was only the 454th commercial website in the world at the time. By July of 2007, Monster reported a ratio of 58 job seekers per posting. According to the company, the Internet became the first stop for job hunters, surpassing word of mouth referrals and newspaper ads in 2005.
website costs $360. A job listing module can be added for $340. For additional fees, Bateman will handle updates and changes to the website if you do not want to manage it yourself. In total, you would be looking at around $700 to add a career section to your existing website, and $1,550 to create a whole site from the ground up with self-administration and employment components. Rates will vary by design firm but these prices reflect a competitive market average. Finally, there will be a yearly fee charged by a hosting company to keep your website in cyberspace and store what you put up there. It’s wise to obtain a number of quotes, as well as determine what kind of storage space they offer.
3. EXPLORE THE SOCIAL NETWORKING SPHERE “It’s mind boggling still how many hours and how regularly people are on these sites,” says Whiting of social media forums such as Facebook 2. DEVELOP AN and MySpace. “Check out Monster EMPLOYMENT the big chains in Canada, launched the COMPONENT TO find their sites, see how YOUR OWN WEBSITE they use it and model first online job “Everybody ought to have yours after that.” board in 1994 a website that current and While there is a wideprospective employees spread awareness of how and it was can go to. Use videos to popular social media is, only the 454th explain things, be attrachow much it increases tive to that age group ROI is still in the expericommercial [youths] and include mental stages, let alone website in the testimonials of those how well it serves your who are currently workhiring process. What it world at the ing there,” says Whiting, does offer is a place for time. adding the use of onpublic engagement and line application forms is an opportunity to brand growing in popularity. yourself as hip, an imporUpgrading your existing website or tant factor to your 15- to 24-year-old canlaunching one comes with a price tag, didates. Revenue magazine offered tips on but one that must be weighed against how to effectively use social media in a the long-term gains. If you have no web- recent issue. The article titled ”Show me site and need one designed, a basic site the Money”, written by Declan Dunn, consisting of up to 10 pages will cost looked at several business models. about $850, says Julie Bateman of the One case study involved the t-shirt Bateman Design Group in Barrie, Ont. maker www.threadless.com. The business Basic means no Flash or complex pro- encourages customers to judge, promote gramming. In addition to the initial site and take pictures of its product. In return build, an administration area that allows they are offered points towards future you to update and manage your own purchases, or win cash if their designs
are selected. By encouraging customers to become involved in the creation of the project, the company has become part of the online social community, increased its visibility and ultimately its profits. While this example is not directly linked to recruiting, making potential employees aware of you is half the battle and you want to appear as a great company to be involved with. Another company, Zappos, has a training program that empowers employees to use Twitter to answer questions from people and customers, adding a new dimension to the level of customer service and engaging their staff. The use of social media is still in its infancy in the big picture, but the use of the Internet is becoming standard, if not mandatory. Even if the web isn’t the direct link to your next hire, it stills plays a critical role in the recruitment process. “We have a program where our current employees get paid to bring people in and that’s our number 1 recruitment tool,” says Whiting. “Our employees tell the potentials to go to the website and it takes care of everything from there.” This is where building a employment section into your website will go a long way to streamlining the process between referral and hire. Directing candidates to your website allows them to find out more about your company and hopefully this means you’ll get more of the right applicants who want to work for you. E-recruiting is only part of a successful human resources strategy, but it should be a well-worn plan. Upgrading your web capabilities also opens up many new doors with employee relations. Schedules can be posted online and changes can be e-mailed or texted out. Texting far surpasses e-mail in terms of timeliness and coolness, notes Whiting. If you can get your customers to opt into texting, you can send job notifications that way too. Remember, no matter where you place your job ad, your existing employees and customers are your best sources of new staff. Being technologically savvy allows you to connect with the group as a whole and promote yourself as an attractive place to work. •
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NEWS HIGHLIGHTS •
MCCORMICK CANADA INTRODUCES NEW LINE OF EXOTIC SPICES
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BIG CHAINS TO DISCUSS SALT REDUCTION IN FEBRUARY
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PANAGO PIZZA OFFERS ‘FRUGALICIOUS’ SURF ’N’ TURF FOR TOUGH TIMES
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RESTAURANT INDUSTRY WELCOMES FEDERAL BUDGET TAX RELIEF
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WEB EXCLUSIVES LOSING SLEEP? DON’T STASH YOUR MONEY UNDER THE MATTRESS Under the mattress? In the freezer? In the cookie jar? Canadian investors report they are anxious about finances, but stashing money in different places throughout the house is never the best investment strategy, according to TD Waterhouse. Read recommendations on how to invest this year from Patricia Lovett-Reid, the company’s senior vice-president. For full details, go to www.canadianpizzamag.com
BE AWARE OF YOUR REPUTATION IN A RECESSION AGC Communications, the Montreal-based reputation management agency, published its five commandments for organizations looking to reinforce and protect their reputation in the face of an economic recession. Ahmed Galipeau, APR, president of AGC Communications and a 25-year veteran in the reputation management field, states: “It is essential for all organizations to stay present in the minds of their respective publics and community of interest, especially during a recession.” Many studies have shown that companies with sound reputations, that defend them vigorously through thick and thin, are the ones that survive through difficult times and better the fate of their clients, administrators and employees. For full details, go to www.canadianpizzamag.com
READ THESE STORIES AND MORE AT WWW.CANADIANPIZZAMAG.COM
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NEW PRODUCTS Dutchess Bakers’ Machinery Company revealed the newest additions to their line of dough make-up equipment. BOOKSTORE Being equipped with the latest inside pizza-industry information allows you to not only compete, but win in the exciting world of pizza. Go to www.annexbookstore.com to order. DIGITAL MAGAZINE Visit www.canadianpizzamag.com to sign up for a free trial of Canadian Pizza magazine – the digital version. POLL Participate in our monthly polls. How do you use social networking sites (Facebook, MySpace, etc.)? Visit our website to vote on this month’s question. BLOG Have your say on a variety of subjects pertaining to the fresh pizza market in Canada: • price points • recruiting • customer service
marketing insights
Perfect pairings Michelle Brisebois
hink of your menu as an edible strategic plan. This means everything on it must fill a market niche for the consumer and address a business objective for you. The wine list can enhance your customer’s dining experience, increase your cheque average and make your restaurant a destination point. Unfortunately, most restaurant wine lists are a bit of a motley crew. Often they offer a collection of merlot and chardonnay warhorses without integrating vintages into the menu at all. While your winery sales representative is the best resource to help you match wines with your menu items, there are a few rules that may help you decide whether your old standbys still belong in the mix.
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MATCH THE WINE TO THE STRONGEST FLAVOUR IN THE DISH If the menu item is a Mediterranean pizza with grilled vegetables, then perhaps the sun-dried tomatoes will be the dominant flavour. In this case, a light red wine such as a rosé or gamay noir would work well. If the pizza has spicy pepperoni as one of the ingredients, then a bold red with peppery notes such as a shiraz or cabernet sauvignon might be a fit. PLAY THE WEIGHTING GAME Make sure that the weight of the wine is balanced to the weight of the food. A full-flavoured meal needs a full-bodied wine; a lighter dish calls for a lighter wine. A hearty beef stew or spicy chili would dwarf a light white, while a delicate fish would get lost beside a bold red. It is possible to have red wines pair with foods traditionally matched with white wines, such as chicken or fish. It’s simply a matter of ensuring there’s a bridge
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flavour in the dish to connect it to the wine. A fish in a tomato sauce or chicken with spicy barbeque sauce would make both of these foods red wine friendly. WHITE WINE WITH STEAK? YOU BET! Dishes that are rich or fatty work best with a dry wine with acidity to clean the palate. This is why oaky, dry chardonnays work well with a turkey dinner and gravy. Oaked chardonnays are fuller bodied and their creaminess complements rich sauces like Alfredo. For customers who would love to try white wine with steak, suggest mushrooms sautéed in butter as a topping and pair it with a buttery chardonnay. SALTY AND SWEET Salt is a flavour enhancer. Pairing it with sweeter wines will bring out the lovely fruit flavours of the drink. Gewürztraminer, muscat and riesling wines all work beautifully with Asian inspired dishes. Make sure the wine boasts full fruit flavours, moderate acidity, lower alcohol and no tannins to strike the right balance. JUST DESSERTS Canadian wines are booming in popularity. Wine regions in a number of provinces are gaining international recognition with their award-winning vintages. Localvores – those consumers who prefer their foods grown close to home – are rising in numbers as well. Canada is known for its icewines and these delicacies can make your dessert menus sing. Make sure the dessert wine is sweeter than the dessert and keep in mind that a beautiful cabernet franc icewine is the most amazing complement to a chocolate dessert.
While pizza and beer is a traditional match, well-paired wine can really make your dishes shine.
RARE, MEDIUM OR WELL DONE Rare meats need young tannic reds because the tannins cut through the protein in these cuts that coat the tongue. A nice, dry merlot works well with rare meats. If your customers request their meats well-done, older or fruity reds with few to no tannins will offer a better balance. WHAT TO DO ABOUT THOSE TANGY TOMATO SAUCES Foods high in acidity are complemented by wines high in acidity, so while one merlot may be very smooth and mellow, another merlot may offer more acidity.
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Double Double pioneering turkey toppings BY LAURA AIKEN
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ouble Double Pizza & Chicken is now offering their customers turkey as a topping, making them the first and only North American chain to put it on the menu. The new item will be exclusively provided by Butterball, who has created a precooked turkey topping that has less fat than chicken and tastes and smells like bacon – taste-tested and true. “I think this will be the next big thing,” says Sheila Jalili, the chain’s general manager, adding that there hasn’t been a major trend with staying power since chicken was introduced. It’s at the point where chicken can be boring for consumers now, says Jalili, and the market is ripe for a new topping with mass appeal. Jalili, who experiments with new recipes in her home kitchen, tried out leftover Thanksgiving turkey with gravy on a pizza first, then decided it tasted better with tomato sauce. She took the next step and went in search of the tastiest turkey. Once the company decided to stay local and choose an Ontario provider, she says Butterball was picked for having the best product and name recognition. The topping has only 17 per cent fat, the lowest of all meat choices on the menu, yet does not have the mouth feel at all of a lean food. The first promotion will feature a medium signature turkey pizza and 10 wings for $16.99. The last new product Double Double brought to their menu was ribs about a year and a half ago. If turkey goes over well, the company plans to introduce more turkey products, such as turkey pepperoni, says Jalili, who expects it will take about six weeks to properly gauge customer response as you need enough time to see repeat orders.
Double Double’s new turkey club takes a twist with ranch dressing for sauce.
Their staff’s positive feedback was the best indicator of how tasty the product really was, she says. “Chicken was the last big trend in pizza and now it’s a staple. Now turkey will not only be recognized and appreciated as a seasonal choice for Thanksgiving and Christmas, but now will be associated with everyday lunch and dinner.”
Double Double Pizza & Chicken is a Toronto-based chain founded and owned by Arman Jalili that has grown to over 50 locations across Ontario. Double Double was the first company to bring a 2-for-1 concept to pizza, wings and chicken combinations. They were also the first chain to offer delivery of southern style crispy fried chicken. •
Double Double is offering five signature turkey pizzas: • Turkey Lovers: double turkey and double cheese with tomato sauce and mozzarella • Turkey Aloha: turkey, pineapple, smoked ham with tomato sauce and mozzarella • Turkey Supreme: turkey topping, pepperoni, Italian sausage, tomato sauce and mozzarella • Turkey Club: turkey topping, smoked ham, chopped tomatoes with ranch dressing and mozzarella • Turkey Gourmet: turkey topping, sun-dried tomatoes, feta cheese, tomato sauce and mozzarella
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the pizza chef
The water must be different here Diana Coutu
ne day I checked my e-mail and found an e-zine from American Pizza Marketplace with the headline: Dairy industry works to boost pizza sales. It seems that the U.S., dairy industry understands that the average American gets more dairy from cheese than from the bottle. In a combined effort to increase consumption, officials at Dairy Management Inc. (DMI) have partnered with U.S. Domino’s stores to roll out a pizza using 40 per cent more of the melted gold. “Pizza sales directly affect overall cheese sales, as about 25 per cent of total cheese is used on pizza and that represents more than 25 billion pounds of annual milk production. DMI’s partnership with Domino’s and others in the pizza category can help lead to increased cheese sales on behalf of U.S., dairy producers,” says industry expert Joe Bavido. American pizza makers pay approximately half of what Canadians pay for a pound of cheese. Even with that cost advantage, the U.S., dairy industry is still working with pizzerias to help grow consumption. The water must be different here. Last year a few cheese producers worked with fresh pizza makers to create a cheese with less full-fat milk and more milk solids, essentially creating more from fewer raw ingredients in order to provide a lower cost product. Instead of rewarding their ingenuity, the government slapped the dairy cheese producers with a new federal regulation limiting their ability to create lower cost cheeses intended for fresh pizza makers. We do not get the discounted price that our neighbours get and we don’t even get the same price as frozen pizza
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Dairy farms are a critical piece of the pizza pie, and American farmers are setting an example of how the two industries can work together.
producers. However, we do get to run higher overheads and collect and remit government taxes while we pay more for our dairy every year. We get to do all this while trying to compete with all the frozen pizzas in the grocery store freezers. It’s no wonder that fresh pizza makers are aggressively looking at ways to cut high priced dairy from their menu by using and even sourcing imitation cheeses made from alternatives like soy and canola. We have been struggling for years to maintain our profit margins while providing customers with a quality product for the budget-minded. Frozen pizza prices still beat even the cheapest fresh pizza. On top of that, the consumer doesn’t pay any taxes when they buy frozen pizzas because they’re considered groceries. Adding insult to injury, we are
affronted by frozen pizza ad campaigns claiming superiority to all fresh pizzas. Several months ago we began an informal survey at Diana’s Gourmet Pizzeria that posed the question: Does the average Canadian consumer know the truth behind those big savings on frozen pizzas in the grocery store or do they assume that fresh pizza makers must be gouging them? You can probably answer the question without knowing the results of our impromptu survey. Like it or not, fresh pizza makers have been forced to compete with the frozen pizza market, if not on quality, most definitely on price and we are competing with a severe disadvantage. The cards have been stacked in the frozen pizza makers’ favour. Unfortunately, the Canadian Dairy Farmers and the Canadian Dairy Commission don’t seem to realize
what their U.S., counterparts know for a fact: fresh pizza is the key to increasing dairy consumption in every household across North America. To the best of my knowledge, the two tiered pricing structure doesn’t exist in any other dairy market in the world. When I talk with friends from around the globe they are completely flabbergasted. My good friends Bruno DiFabio and Tony Gemignani from the World Pizza Champions Team pay significantly less. DiFabio pays $1.74 U.S., per pound and Gemignani pays $2.38 U.S., per pound for high quality, full-fat brick mozzarella compared to our $4.29 per pound. How much more money would you have left over if you could buy good quality mozzarella at those prices? What should we do about this unfairness? Should we all get into the frozen pizza business? Should we continue to use less dairy and find palatable substitutions? I’d really like to hear from you about how you’ve changed your operation or menu in light of the never ending high priced dairy. Will you raise your prices? If you knew of a palatable substitution that cost 30 per cent less than your dairy cheese, would you switch? One thing for certain is that we need to educate the Canadian consumer about two tiered pricing for dairy cheese. There will always be a difference in the taste of a frozen pizza versus a fresh pizza, and many frozen pizza makers use ingredients that few can pronounce because of the need for shelf stability and to mimic characteristics of a fresh pizza. Fresh pizza makers will never need yellow dye 64, or msg, or encapsulated fat flakes in our recipes and this is a good point, health conscious Canadians need to consider. • Diana Coutu is a two-time Canadian Pizza Magazine chef of the year champion, internationally recognized gourmet pizzaiolo and co-owner of Diana’s Gourmet Pizzeria in Winnipeg, Man. In addition to creating award-winning recipes, Diana is also a consultant to other independent pizzeria owner/operators in menu development, creating systems to run a pizzeria on autopilot, along with marketing and positioning to help operators grow their business effectively and strategically. She is available for consulting on a limited basis, for more information contact her at Diana@ dianasgourmetpizzeria.ca.
PERFECT PAIRINGS Continued from page 14 If your menu includes many dishes featuring tomato sauces then it would be a very good idea to choose a slightly acidic red wine as your house wine. Make sure your house wine is special as well as being affordable. It must deliver on taste and versatility as it will be one of your signature items. THINK PINK One of the fastest growing wine segments is rosé wine. The sweet incarnations of the 1970s gave rosé a bad reputation, but the French wine industry has spent a lot of energy promoting pink wine with good reason. Rosé wines are very food friendly and offer the perfect complement to Mediterranean dishes. It’s a great way for a couple
to share a bottle of wine if one likes red and the other prefers white. Make sure you note under each menu item which wine you recommend pairing with the meal. It will take the guesswork out of the process for your staff and your customers, and probably increase your wine sales. Don’t forget to include a sparkling wine on the menu. It’s not just for special occasions; it cleanses the palate between courses. Winston Churchill once noted of the bubbly: “In victory I deserve it. In defeat I need it.” Michelle Brisebois is a marketing professional with experience in the food, pharmaceutical, financial services and wine industries. She specializes in retail brand strategies.
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MARCH 2009 pizza 17
feature
Food fights for its roots BY LAURA AIKEN
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chairman, says the Italian community in Canada is a major starting point for the DOP and GI movement. “The presence of Italian agrifood in Canada is extremely important. As it occurs in the U.S.A., the appreciation for Italian quality leads to large-scale imitation of our products with the subsequent problem related to unfair competition and market access of a variety of Italian products. It should be noted that the North American market – U.S.A., and Canada – represents a global turnover of 21 billion Euros made up of Italian-sounding products, with a true to counterfeited ration of 10 to one,” says Brunello. Statistics on Italy’s food export to Canada showed an increase of 9.2 per cent during the segment of 2008, which Brunello says is noteworthy considering the low population density of Canada with respect to its geographical extension. For products to attain a DOP logo, they must show the following as defined by EU regulations: “The name of a region, a specific place or, in exceptional cases, country, used to describe an agricultural product or foodstuff.” They must pass a set of criteria that proves origination, and quality or characteristics that are due to the environment with its inherent natural and human factors. The processing and preparation of the product needs to take place within the defined geographical area. A GI certification has basically the same requirements except one, not all phases of production must take place within the identified zone. “The logos are already out there . . . It is a matter of buyers making the sellers understand that they are looking for these products and for the sellers to identify these products better to these clients. For the retailers as well, in the long run, any restaurant who will state
Photo courtesy of the Food Roots program
magine if another country started playing a sport and called it hockey, but it was played with different rules and equipment. As Canadians, we would be angry that something dear to our nationality and patriotic hearts had been expropriated and misrepresented as something else. This is precisely what Food Roots, a European co-operative, aims to overcome in the food industry by educating on the importance to local economies of protecting food and its production processes as it relates to designated regions. Specifically, the program is spreading awareness of two certifications of authenticity, DOP (Designation of Protected Origin) and GI (Geographical Indication). “We hope to make the consumers and buyers more aware that there is a way to purchase with attention to the origin and the quality. DOP will certainly attest to the quality and origin of the product. There is a way to purchase with knowledge,” says Piero Titone, assistant trade commissioner of the Italian Trade Commission in Canada. One of the main concerns of the Food Roots co-operative is to address the blatant misrepresentation of some products in the marketplace. For example, prosciutto di parma is a GI product in the EU, but consumers can find prosciutto parma style with an Italian-looking logo on the grocery shelves. The use of the name can be misleading, certainly if consumers thinks they are buying prosciutto from Italy, let alone of the traditional place and method. In effect, it is not the “real thing” but consumers are not widely educated on the difference. The Buonitalia Spa was launched in July 2003 to organize projects and resources directed at promoting Italian food throughout the world. Walter Brunello,
Paolo Ponti, Italian trade commissioner, educates a group on the Food Roots mission.
on the menu that the particular product is made with DOP products is giving an extra value and level of service to the Canadian consumer,” says Titone. “Consumers must be provided with this kind of information in order to allow them to make the difference between quality certified products and fake Italian sounding products,” says Brunello. “Moreover, we should set a premium on the added value for the food production and the local communities, in economic terms as well as for the brand-image, stemming from and adequate system of protection of geographical indications.” “The adequate spreading of the geographical indication system should be useful not only to developing countries, whose economy could be heavily influenced by national and foreign investments in the industrial sector, but indeed each individual and country should be interested in protecting their national cultural roots,” says Fred Kingston, senior advisor, economic and commercial affairs, delegation of the EU commission in Canada. The extension of the program does not affect prior uses, trademarks and generic names, notes Kingston. For example, Parmigiano Reggiano is a GI product, but parmesan is still a generic term for it.
Local food production is an important part of the Italian economy. Pier Maria Saccani, secretary general of the Italian Association of Geographical Indication Consortia (AICIG), notes that “certified agrifood productions make up approximately 10 per cent of the
national GDP of the food sector, with an annual value of allied activities of nearly 20 billion Euros and 200,000 jobs.” The AICIG represents 46 affiliates, including Parmigiano Reggiano, Prosciutto di Parma, Prosciutto di San Daniele, Gorgonzola, Chianti Classico
Farro della Garfagnana DOP This ancient cereal passed on to our own contemporary consumption was already cultivated in the seventh millennium BC in Mesopotamia, Syria, Egypt and in Palestine. The Garfagnana area is likely the only area in Tuscany where the cultivation of spelt has never had any interruptions, even when in other areas of production this cereal started to disappear at the end of the last century. The Farro della Garfagnana has been rediscovered because of its excellent dietetic properties and because its fibres are beneficial for the digestive system. This cereal is an ingredient in salted cakes, but in the kitchen it can be used in soups and minestrone: together with beans and other vegetables it makes up a simple dish but with different tastes and aromas. Spelt grains can also be used in other ways to make bread, pasta, and biscuits.
and Mozzarella di Bufala Campana. The World Trade Organization plays a central role in coordinating the legislative framework between EU and non-EU countries so that the different approaches taken by different places become standardized. A step beyond products stamped as fair trade, DOP and GI creates a more authentic marketplace by protecting each facet of the product’s authenticity. “We just hope that the program will develop into a second phase, which will be getting Canadian marketing boards, associations and agricultural producers to basically attend special tours and seminars and learn how the local economies can really benefit from developing such denominations and protection for their product,” says Titone. “There is such economic value to the local economies, better fair trade for the farmers, for the producers, and for the benefit of everybody.” •
MARCH 2009 pizza 19
feature
Part 2: Setting up shop in a hotel What are the downsides? BY LLOYD R. MANNING
I
n Part 1 of this article we explored the upsides of opening your pizzeria in a hotel. However, like all business arrangements for a restaurateur, there are going to be downsides. In a hotel, you can’t operate exclusively as a pizzeria unless it is completely detached from the other facilities and service areas. The exception to this is the larger property that may have a pizzeria in addition to its other restaurant and banquet facilities. Although pizza may be the number one menu item, the standard staples still must be included in the fare. No longer will you prosper or fail based entirely on your own actions and decisions. It will be necessary to adapt your operating style, including hours of service, catering, pricing, pizza delivery and carry out, to that of the hotel. The opportunity to fixture the restaurant to your own taste and theme is usually denied. This also applies to the menu. Although you are not an employee, you are subject to the whims, wishes, and operating style of the hotel management. The final word is theirs. If management is weak and their mismanagement is driving away customers, you too will suffer. But, if they are aggressive merchandisers, you will benefit. Patrons will never completely separate the management of the hotel from that of the restaurant. Being experienced, financially capable, willing and able as a prospective hotel restaurant lessee, your first concern is to structure an agreement that is beneficial to both parties. If either takes unfair
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advantage of the other it will soon fall there are many contingencies and your apart. Establishing a fair rent is probably negotiating ability comes into play. the most difficult part. The National Know how much money the hotel Restaurant Association, whose American is losing now and how badly you are figures on this subject are quite appli- wanted. The starting point is to detail, cable in Canada, indicates that most other than floor space, what the hotel restaurant rentals range from five to 10 will provide by way of fixed costs, inper cent of gross sales with a median of cluding utilities, janitorial services, eight per cent. Per cent variances depend property taxes, insurance, parking lot on what is included in the rent and maintenance, security, etc. Your charge the negotiating ability of both parties. for these should be based on the per However, in recent years these percent- cent of the gross area of the hotel your ages have been declining. Where all restaurant occupies. For example, your FF&E is provided, which restaurant occupies 15 is typical with hotel leases per cent of the total floor You will want (as are utilities, security, area of the hotel you billing, janitorial service should pay 15 per cent renewal and maintenance), the of the applicable costs. options if hotel would be entitled If you are responsible for to more where these are maintaining the FF&E everything additional. A percentage and small wears replacegoes as of the sales is the easiest ment, ensure everything way to determine a rental is in good condition planned amount, yet it could create and working when you and an early a host of problems. For start. If something is example if you have a not, trash it now. Count termination/ pizza carryout service the knives and forks you kick-out clause and deliver pizzas to the will be responsible for rooms late at night, is the replacing. When you if it does not. hotel entitled to the same get to the bottom of the rental as it would be if all hotel’s expenses, which your customers sit down? you would pay in a free And, if you are a very successful opera- standing pizzeria, you have the basics. tor, on a per cent of gross, you will be Add to this a fair return on the hotel’s penalized, but if a poor one the hotel investment for your portion of the real will be a loser and looking to terminate estate and on the FF&E provided and the arrangement. you have structured what the hotelier The alternative, which works better would like to have. Now negotiate. Alfor both parties, is to calculate a fixed ways keep in mind that there are three per month rental amount. However, prices on everything; what the hotelier
Lease negotiation is something like getting married. If it all works out, you are in it for a long and happy time. In case it doesn’t, you need to establish your options beforehand.
would like to have, what he wants, and what he will settle for. For many hotel restaurants, banquets, catering, weddings, conventions, carryout pizzas are a bonus. There is a lower labour cost, better pricing, and as most events are usually in the evening, more profits are produced at a slower time. The hotel would argue that they should have a rental amount above the fixed basic from these sales where a fixed monthly rental formula is used, or even a higher per cent when everything is on a per cent of gross sales. There is no fixed formula for liquor sales at these events in regards to who owns the liquor, who sells and who pours. This is still truer if the hotel does the booking and controls the scheduling. On the other hand, room service, because of its inconsistency and odd hours, may be entitled to less rent than the normal operation. Many overcome this problem by having a higher menu pricing schedule for room service. The restaurant will want to be compensated where a complimentary breakfast is included in the room charge and hors d’oeuvres are served in the lounge in the afternoon. Lease negotiation is something like getting married. If it all works out, you
are in it for a long and happy time. In case it doesn’t, you need to establish your options beforehand. The starting point is a well structured, well written, lease agreement where you and the hotel management understand and have agreed to all of the terms and conditions. Leave nothing to chance. You will want renewal options if everything goes as planned and an early termination/kickout clause if it does not. Have the lease drawn up by a qualified lawyer who understands commercial leases, particularly restaurant leases. Not all do. Never use one of these preprinted forms you can buy in a stationary store or get off the internet. They don’t work. Principal negotiating and agreement points centre around the premises and property use including common areas such as lobbies and parking lots, care and control, length of lease, the rental structure, division of fixed and variable operating costs, hours of operation, menu structure, pricing, definition of gross sales if it is a percentage lease, liquor service in the restaurant, banquet and meeting room food and liquor service, on and off premises catering, carryout pizzas, complimentary food and beverages for hotel guests, guest
billing for restaurant services, replacement of lost, broken or worn out FF&E and small wares, premises maintenance and repair, health and safety standards, hotel management’s imposed standards, marketing and advertising. The bottom line is that leasing the food services facilities in a progressive hotel can be a win-win for both the restaurateur and the hotel. But, if not properly set up and judiciously supervised it has as much potential to become a nightmare. Both parties are forming a quasi partnership, perhaps not a legal partnership, but one for day-to-day functions, marketing and performance. Ensure you know your partner’s objectives and management styles beforehand. Although it is the hotel management who is in control and they can add to or detract from your operation, nothing pleases most hoteliers more than to be relieved of the responsibilities of the foodservice department. • Lloyd Manning is a semi-retired commercial real estate and business appraiser, broker and financial analyst. He has had four business books published. He now writes articles for trade magazines on business topics. Lloyd resides in Lloydminster, Alta., and can be reached at lloydmann@shaw.ca.
MARCH 2009 pizza 21
making dough with Diane
Five simple tips to great visual merchandising Diane Chiasson
o one used to talk about the importance of food merchandising, especially in the pizza business. Pizza sells itself was the motto. Over the years, merchandising has slowly crept into the food service lingo and is now considered a must for any type of operation. Visual food merchandising is an art and a science, covering every aspect of a restaurant including design, layout, merchandising, display, menu and product development, signage, lighting and customer service. The goal is to bring your products to life using visually appealing food displays that evoke feelings of freshness, quality, vibrant colours and quantity. All these aspects must come together to create an environment to attract customers into your store and keep them coming back for more. By combining the use of colours, textures, lighting and composition with descriptive signs and point-of-sale (POS) materials, you can get your customers to buy more impulsively, therefore increasing sales. It’s time to apply the theories of retail merchandising to your pizza business. Here are five simple steps to get you started.
N
1. CLEAN, CLEAN, CLEAN TO MAKE A GOOD FIRST IMPRESSION First and foremost, you have to make sure that your store, storefront, parking lot, and entryways are clean. Nothing turns people away faster, especially in the food service industry, than a dirty-looking operation. Customers will probably look through your window to see what’s inside before they walk through your door. Make sure you create a view from your front window that conveys an inviting setting through a
22 pizza MARCH 2009
well-lit, fresh environment. Your menus should be clean, wiped free of greasy fingerprints and up to date with the most current specials and prices. If you post your menu outside your operation, make sure it is placed in a clearly visible glass panel, and offer mini paper menus for potential customers to pick up as well. 2. DISPLAY YOUR FOOD TO SELL IT It seems pretty straightforward to display the pizzas you want to sell, but consider using the ingredients you put in or on your pizzas as display items to add eye appeal and vibrancy to your food. Display fresh and abundant ingredients wherever space is available to create excitement. Cartons of bright red, fresh tomatoes can be displayed to let customers know that your pizza sauce is made from scratch. If one of your selling features is organic pizza crusts, use large sacks of flour imprinted with the word organic to boldly show your customers what you offer.
Place large bins of colourful red, orange, yellow and green peppers; strings of garlic, whole eggplants and zucchini; large jars of olives; big wheels or wedges of cheese; and whole slabs of salami, pepperoni or prosciutto around your counter. Vary the height and depth of your displays by using risers, boxes and pedestals. Feature a fresh “pizza of the day” from a highly visible angle, and surround it with products that have a wide range of colours, contrasts and textures. Ensure that everything is fresh and clean, and change your displays regularly. 3. FREE SAMPLES AND STAFF KNOWLEDGE DRIVE SALES Offer free samples so potential customers have the opportunity to taste what you sell before they have a chance to turn around and walk out. There’s no better way to get customers to buy something than by getting them to try it. You should offer free samples of something different every
day at different time periods. One product an extra layer of service. They might not sample should be offered at a time. have to wait to make personal contact Make sure your employees know your with a store employee to have their quesfood and menu items intion answered, or find what side and out, including the they want to know but are Nothing origins of all your produce too shy or busy to ask. turns people and ingredients, so that All of your signage they will be able to answer and point-of-sale materials away faster, any questions about any should be consistent in especially in of your products and be size, layout and font, and able to offer extra product the food service should complement your insight to your customers. store’s image and brand. industry, than This knowledge will go a Everything in your store long way toward driving should have continuity a dirty-looking your sales. that flows right down to operation. the use of graphics and 4. PROPER SIGNAGE colour scheme. INFORMS CUSTOMERS Use signs to tell your AND REINFORCES YOUR BRAND customers a story behind your products, Signage and POS materials are some the or the special ingredients you use to make simplest and most cost effective ways of your pizzas, or perhaps the unique way getting your message across. The infor- in which your pizza was prepared. Always mation you post offers your customers make sure that every item is priced
correctly so that there are no surprises when it is time to pay the bill. 5. HIGHLIGHT YOUR SWEET SPOTS WITH GOOD LIGHTING People are very sensitive to the colour and appearance of their food and their surroundings. Use a combination of natural light, and different types of lighting such as spotlights, to direct your customer’s eyes towards certain food areas and highlight your signature items. If you have an open kitchen concept in your operation, most of your lights should be directed at the kitchen to create a centre stage, since it is the main attraction. • Diane Chiasson, FCSI, president of Chiasson Consultants Inc., has been helping food service, hospitality and retail operators increase sales for over 25 years. She provides innovative food and retail merchandising programs, interior design, marketing and promotional campaigns, and much more. Contact her at 416-9261338, toll-free at1-888-926-6655 or chiasson@chiasson consultants.com, or visit www.chiassonconsultants.com.
MARCH 2009 pizza 23
feature
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Photo by Timothy Twydell
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ourting the elementary school business is quite profitable and an excellent way to increase brand recognition. There are key strategies to take in approaching the school system and pizzerias should keep in mind the introduction of Ontario government legislation in 2008 that mandates healthy food in schools. Charlton Public School in Thornhill, Ont., orders Panago pizza for a variety of school functions and pizza days. Steven Kim, head of phys-ed for Charlton and the athletic representative for a number of schools in the western York region, says he orders pizza for every tournament. “Pizza can be a healthy choice, given the various options that are available. With tight budgets and limited funds, pizza was not only a healthy choice but also made sense fiscally.” Kim considered a few options when researching what to feed his hungry student athletes.
Baska Nagalingam, owner and operator of Reginos Pizza in Thornhill, currently delivers to four local public schools on a biweekly basis.
“I shopped around – subs, burgers – all of which were too pricy. As a cost-effective measure, pizza was the best possible product to feed the athletes. Per child the cost of pizza was minimal compared to other food items. Panago has set forth some key strategies through dedicating a section of their website to schools. The chain provides a downloadable order form and promote the healthy aspects of its food – pizzas are rennet free, the cheese is 2 per cent partly skimmed mozzarella and vegetarian pepperoni or chicken are menu options. Panago also offers freshly squeezed juice as an alternative to soft drinks. Large pizza chains are not the only ones to tap into the school revenue stream. Baska Nagalingam is the owner and operator of Reginos Pizza & Wings in Thornhill. He currently delivers to four local public schools on a biweekly basis. Nagalingam used old-fashioned leg work to court the schools. “I offered free samples to all the schools and visited them all talking to the principals. They tried them and liked it. I sell 60 individual pizzas to each school for lunch.” Nagalingham considers his school business an excellent marketing tool and has these words to assuage any fears that parents might have about their kids eating pizzas. “We at Reginos are parents as well. I am very conscious of the food I serve at school. I would not sell anything that my children could not eat.” If you are a parent, providing this information could be helpful in building your relationships with the schools. Parents can also be a source of new business and may choose your product after learning about it. There are many benefits to having a good relationship with your community. Help your local schools understand what health and cost benefits your products provide for their children. This proactive approach will help earn you more profit in the school market. •
feature
A laugh a day helps Dino’s pay BY LAURA AIKEN
SUBSCRIBE TODAY ! BUY 1 GET 1 FREE! 2 Years for the price of 1
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“I
used to call him the flash,” jokes Rob Gushue of his former boss Claude Ayoub, who runs Dino’s Pizza in Charlottetown, P.E.I. “I’ve never seen anyone as quick as Claude at putting out pizzas.” One night Gushue says he watched 70 pizzas go out in an hour. Ayoub runs the business with his brother Rami, and says food quality and the clientele are driving their business through word of mouth. But what Gushue and Ayoub became most talkative about when it came to Dino’s was the workplace itself. “It’s a good environment to work in. Everyone’s happy, laughing, it’s not stressful like you usually find in a pizza restaurant,” says Ayoub. “Everyone’s happy and I try to keep everyone happy. I’m here most of the time, working seven days a week with no days off.” Gushue, who has spent a little over 18 years in the restaurant business, learned much about how to treat staff in the time he spent working for Ayoub. He saw that Ayoub was always respectful and had a method of training that involved showing the first time, helping the second time and just watching the third time, all the while speaking to you like a good friend. “Staff is very friendly, delivery drivers like to have fun, and that translates into the business itself when customers always see people laughing,” says Gushue. “He’s always joking about something, it’s kind of infectious.” Ayoub must be taking equally good care of his clients. He says he receives about two callbacks a day from customers who have just received their orders and
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are phoning the store with compliments. Charlottetown isn’t the easiest place to succeed as a restaurant, says Gushue. “You can’t walk 15 feet without bumping into a restaurant. There are not too many independents left on the island, a lot of Arabic food and many corporate chains. He’s getting a lot of repeat business, knows his customers by name, talks to them personally and when customers pick up their pizza they often end up talking to all the staff.” Ayoub worked at the original Dino’s with his uncle in Halifax while he was taking computer science, and decided the business was right for him. The brothers opened Dino’s in Charlottetown in June 2007. The business has grown almost completely through word of mouth and an ad in the yellow pages. With the success of the past two years, Ayoub says he is definitely looking at opening another location. Although the economy is looking bleak, he’s hoping for a good 2009 and stresses staying positive. Aside from pizza, the Dino’s menu includes Mediterranean food, subs, nachos, fish, burgers and donairs, one of their signature items. The Ayoub’s buy the meat fresh and prepare it for the donairs themselves, which Ayoub says you don’t see too much of anymore. The menu prices are very good for the quality, he says, adding that he buys the highestquality cheeses. A large three-topping pizza only comes to $18.76 after tax, and delivery is free. Great-tasting food at a good price is an asset to any restaurant, but the secret to Dino’s success lies in creating an atmosphere that clients and staff want to be a part of, and as a result, do business with. •
Name: ________________________________ Business: _____________________________ Address: ______________________________ City: __________________________________ Prov: _________________________________ P.Code:________________________________ Tel: __________________________________ Fax: __________________________________ e-mail: ________________________________ 1. TYPE OF BUSINESS (Select only one): O Independent Pizzeria O Pizza Chain/Franchise O Italian Restaurant/Full Service Restaurant O Other Non-Pizza Restaurant O Take & Bake O Catering Service O Government, Library, School O Distributor, Supplier, Manufacturer O Other ______________________________ (Specify) 2. IF PIZZERIA RESTAURANT, ARE YOU A: O Quick Service Pizzeria O Family/Mid Scale Pizzeria O Casual Dining Pizzeria O Gourmet Casual Pizza Dining 3. WHAT IS YOUR JOB TITLE? ______________________________________
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MARCH 2009 pizza 25
feature
Small change leads to big loss BY ALAN BURT
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hrink, loss, theft, call it what you will. The bottom line is that some employees help themselves to company cash at an alarming rate. The statistics tell a rather grim tale. Industry studies show that more than 50 per cent of shrink is from internal theft, and half of that comes from employee fraud right at the register. According to U.S. News and World Report, 34 per cent of all employees aged 18 to 29 believe it is justifiable to steal from their employer. The Quick Serve Restaurant (QSR), like other retail industries, is especially susceptible to employee-related theft. Despite the fact that most employees are reliable and trustworthy, some may be less than honest, and others may be challenged by difficult socioeconomic circumstances. What’s truly amazing about this dilemma is how small an amount is typically removed in each instance – perhaps only 25 or 50 cents at a time. Shrink in the QSR segment falls into two distinct categories: unintentional (cashier error) and intentional (theft). It may occur in a number of ways, depending on your point of sale (POS) system and the security mechanisms in place. Unintentional, or accidental, shrink is a byproduct of errors that result from employees making mistakes during the processing of a transaction. There are a variety of reasons accidental shrink can occur, including employees who maybe frazzled by long lines at the checkout, distraction, limited math skills, intentional deception by a customer or even because bills and coins are placed in the wrong section of the cash drawer. Then there’s intentional shrink. It is pri-
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marily achieved through the practice of that employees are not thrown into the under-ringing, as in when an employee fire before they are fully prepared. If accepts more cash for a sale than he or possible, schedule newer employees for she has entered into the POS system. slower shifts to reduce potential stress. For example, during a morning shift, a When it comes to fraudulent actidishonest employee may continuously vity, an individual must have means, ring in a medium cup of coffee when a motive and opportunity. The fact that large is ordered. Knowing the difference your business accepts cash and stores between the costs of each, he or she adds inventory provides employees with the the difference to the price, accepts the means to steal. That part is essentially higher amount from the customer, and unavoidable. Motive, by and large, is pockets the difference. The reasons be- outside the control of owners and manhind intentional shrink are diverse but agers. Opportunity is the only element not overly complicated. Revenge for real that is ultimately in the owner’s direct or perceived slights by managers, greed, control. By eliminating or at least reducneed (particularly in a down economy), ing an employee’s opportunity to steal, or pure thrills provide shrink can be reduced. powerful catalysts for this There are a few simple Shrink is simply all-too-prevalent crime. ways to reduce employee one of the There are effective ways theft, as summed up by to combat intentional and Missouri Small Business unavoidable accidental shrink, but the Development Centers. Percosts of doing process must begin with form thorough employee recognition of the problem. background checks. Don’t business. Often, there is a sense of assume that well-paid denial; owners can’t believe employees won’t steal that someone would actually want to steal and remove the chances to steal. Crefrom them and they refuse to acknowledge ate a non-threatening environment that they’re being duped and aren’t savvy with employee empowerment and boenough to catch it. However, shrink is not a nuses. Avoid double standards and reflection of their managerial or ownership favouring certain employees. Have skills. What’s more, shrink is simply one of employees discourage theft among each the unavoidable costs of doing business, other and be a role model yourself. and good retailers look for ways to reduce There are also technological advances it as cost. to diminish opportunity. Choices range On the unintentional side, sound in complexity and cost, from sophistiemployee hiring practices may be the cated surveillance systems to tighter cashsingle most effective tactic. Ensuring up processing procedures and controls. One of front that prospective employees have the most effective solutions can be a digital the requisite math and communication video recorder (DVR)-based surveillance skills is a must. Proper training can also camera system, which records all in-store have a significant impact. Make sure activities, including the POS. It is capable of
producing an exact digital replica of every sales receipt in order to track transactions. While the cost can be steep, the return on investment (ROI) may be achieved in as little as six months. Several POS peripherals are available on in the market today that assist the store owner in combating cash-related shrink. Order confirmation boards eliminate the opportunity to short-ring and/or underring a sale. Customers can see their orders on screen, including the total due, prior to approaching the payment window. Credit/ debit card readers reduce the amount of cash handled by your cashier. A tried and true solution that has proven successful in reducing shrink is the coin dispenser. Automated coin dispensers increase accuracy and help to eliminate specific opportunities in the cash flow transaction process. An automated coin dispenser requires the cashier to ring in the customer’s order on the POS system in order to execute
the transaction and dispense the correct change. The better brands integrate with most popular POS systems via a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port and in many cases they can also tie into the financial reporting system. With the coin cup facing the customer, the cashier does not handle the coin going to the customer, making it difficult for the cashier to substitute a different amount of change in an attempt to short-ring an order. The coin dispenser also frees up the cashier to concentrate on bills, eliminating potential mistakes making change, particularly in time-constrained situations. Consider the real-life example of a major sandwich chain and one location that installed just one of these automated devices. The increased transaction speed (an average of five to 10 seconds shaved off each transaction) has allowed the establishment to handle 20 more customers per day and five extra customers
per peak hour. This translated to an increase in revenue per day of $118 US, and just over $3,500 US per month. Gross profit per month jumped by $1237 US, or almost $15,000 US per year. At a cost of approximately $1,000 US for the dispenser, the product paid for itself in under a month. Despite improved hiring practices, technological aids, and increased vigilance by QSR owners, shrink will not be completely eliminated. However, the theft of actual cash, which represents such an overwhelming obstacle to the QSR segment, can be addressed through a myriad of avenues. Once store owners bring that problem under control, they can concentrate a little more on serving their customers. • Alan Burt is the vice-president of finance for Crane Payment Solutions and Site Leader for Telequip. Telequip, a Crane company, has been manufacturing automated coin dispensing solutions since 1974. For more information on Telequip’s products and solutions, please visit www.telequip.com, or call 1-800-225-0580.
MARCH 2009 pizza 27
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Advertisers' Index Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page # Abaro Group Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Arla Foods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Burke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IBC Crown Custom Cookware . . . . . . . . . . 5 Diana Coutu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Dutchess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Faema . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Hot Bag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Middleby-Marshall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Olymel S.E.C. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 On Trend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Ricco Foods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Salerno Dairy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Saputo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OBC Springer’s Meats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Thunderbird Machinery . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Viau Foods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IFC Use these advertiser contact numbers to find out more about a product advertised in this issue or to place an order. This index is provided as a service. Canadian Pizza Magazine is not liable for errors or omissions.
MARCH 2009 pizza 29
pizza on fire
Key tips for tightening up in 2009 Tom Stankiewicz
verywhere you turn people seem to be preoccupied with the media. Media outlets keep making predictions and business analysts forecast mixed theories. However, in general, they all agree that this year will be tough for many. With so much uncertainty in the air, businesses could suffer as consumers cut back on their spending. What effect will all of this have on pizzerias in Canada? Partly that will depend on how well you are prepared. We could see our sales decrease as people become more careful about where and how they spend their money. For those who have been putting off reviewing their business practices, this is the perfect time to take a close look at necessary improvements. Staffing is one area where we can tighten up. This could mean picking up some extra hours to cut down on labour costs. It’s a simple idea that will add up in savings week over week. Pay extra attention to employee training to ensure your store is running as efficiently as possible. Unfortunately, tightening up could translate into cutting down on work hours for your employees. This might be a necessary step to ensure the business survives if your profits take a serious fall. If you decide to go this route, don’t forget that your customers are still expecting fast, high-quality service. If you have to reduce employee hours, make sure you balance the two factors equally. There is no point in making changes that would significantly decrease your service and quality as this will drive your customers away. In fact, you might find that in stressful times people can be more demanding and impatient than usual. Another human resources challenge that will affect your decisions is the rise
E
in minimum wage occurring in most provinces across Canada this year. While it’s great for workers, it could mean some adjustments for your business. Increases in pizza prices may be necessary to offset this change. If you have employees who are paid more than minimum wage already, then their hours might have to be cut to compensate for the increase in order to pay for the rest of your staff. Look at this simple calculation: 10 employees at $9.50, the new minimum wage in Ontario as of March 31, will cost you $7.50 more an hour. If they all work an average of 20 hours a week, your costs will increase by $150 per week or $600 per month. In order to attract new clients and keep existing ones coming back, many businesses are advertising huge sales and specials on their products. This might not be the right solution for everyone. A big special could very well mean that twice as many customers have to buy your product to generate the same profit. Rather than offering a huge discount on everything, consider attaching a special offer to the purchase of a regular order. This would guarantee that you are generating additional profits rather than cutting existing ones by 50 per cent. Be sure to look carefully at your own business, as this strategy will benefit some more than others. Just like our customers, we have to think twice before we decide to make new business purchases. Most of us think of ourselves as business owners first, but we are consumers as well. Other businesses depend on us for their survival. The purchases to really question are major ones that might not be necessary.
Tightening up is the theme of 2009 as consumers close their wallets in the face of a recession.
All it takes is one big wrong decision to hurt your bottom line enough to make it difficult to survive a recession. Plan for sales volumes to decrease this year, and if they don’t you will be in an even better position. On the bright side, Canada goes through a recession about every 10 years and, every time, businesses bounce back. The important thing is not to panic and always plan ahead. Have a safety net in case it’s needed and take it one day at a time. • Tom Stankiewicz has been in the pizza business for over 15 years. He has been the proprietor of Bondi’s Pizza in London since 2001. Tom is an international pizza competitor. H
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