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All about pizza! Your guide to the Canadian Pizza Show

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Volume 21 Issue 5 September/October 2014

12 SIGHTS ON THE SKY FOR PANNIZZA

A new fast-casual Canadian concept is quickly rolling out across Quebec and abroad

18 CREATIVE FOR THE CAUSE

Take away some fresh ideas for doing well, while doing good

20 QUESTIONING ONE’S LOYALTY Learn the ins and outs of designing a loyalty program

23 CANADIAN PIZZA 20

SHOW GUIDE Check out this year’s speakers, exhibitors, schedule and more

DEPARTMENTS 6

editor’s desk

pizza bites

making dough

marketing insights

the pizza chef

pizza on fire

www.canadianpizzamag.com SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 pizza 3

“Packed from Fresh Tomatoes, Not from Concentrate”...

President Tom Cortopassi (kneeling) and “Coach” Dino Cortopassi (standing) in one of our

Since 1942, our Restaurateur customers’ success has depended on the superior taste of the food they serve and of our products. As a family-owned business, it feels good knowing that so many of our customers have relied on our “Packed From Fresh Tomato” products from generation to generation.

Whether your restaurant has a long family history, or whether you’re the founder, you can depend on our family making the best “Real Italian” tomato products...always Packed From Fresh Tomatoes, Never From Concentrate...generation after generation!

Tom Cortopassi President/Owner

Dino Cortopassi Coach/Owner

Generation after Generation.

tomato fields in Stanislaus County, California

THE

StaniSlauS E

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The “Real Italian” Tomato Company 1202 “D” Street

from the editor’s desk September/October 2014, Vol. 21, No. 5

Futures far and near ummer is coming to a close… already? It is simply sinister that Canadian summers pass so fast. Publishing deadlines being what they are, as I write this the warm breezes are still blowing and I have my own unique time warp going on as my husband and I anticipate the arrival of our first child due in mid-August. This will be my last editorial before I begin a one-year maternity leave, and it is with great confidence that I hand the reins to Janine Druery. Janine is an award-winning editor and journalist with over 20 years of experience that spans working in the mainstream media, overseeing trade publications and working closely with industry associations. She has jumped into maternity leave positions before and is looking forward to creating dynamic content for the pizza industry as well as meeting our many great readers and supportive advertisers. The pizza industry is a lot of fun, and I know Janine is going to enjoy her time spent immersed in it. I have much to anticipate, Janine has much to anticipate, and I am guessing you and your business have a lot to anticipate too. The end of another year is nearing, and I find this tends to prompt reflection on the annum that has passed. Business plans for the New Year are often determined in the early autumn months. It’s a great time for preparation and it seems things are looking up. The Bank of Canada’s Spring Business Outlook survey suggested an optimistic sentiment in our country’s economic climate. Conditions in the U.S. are improving, as were reported sales, current and forecasted, for the companies surveyed. There were still people reporting negative sales growth, but on balance, when looking ahead, companies were not anticipating a deterioration in sales over the coming 12 months. Many were anticipating the sales growth to be tempered by strong competition. Responses indicated that businesses were planning to invest in equipment and

anticipated hiring. Firms also reported an easing in credit conditions in the prior three months. All in all, things are looking up, even if modestly so. This bodes well for the coming months, but what about the many years ahead? As a soon-to-be parent (and by the time you read this a new parent), I think about what the future will be like for youth coming into the workforce in 20 years or so. Pizzerias will always be an important source of first jobs for teens and income for working post-secondary students, but this transient work force isn’t the only one that benefits from the labour your successful restaurant provides. I speak with many operators who have staff members that have been with them for more than 10 years. The restaurant business is a career path, and the challenge is recognizing and mentoring those with the desire and aptitude to become lifers. Matching the right job with the right person could be easier in 20 years. Technology may bring new innovations to areas of recruitment and retention by creating better models for determining personality and aptitude. Looking ahead near or far, it is a competitive but promising future for the pizza industry. People are very interested in food these days, and that shows no signs of slowing down. I wish all our readers the best of luck in the coming 12 months. I embark on this maternity leave knowing Canadian Pizza is in great and highly capable hands, and at this point, the only one I have left to wish luck is me! •

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Editor Laura Aiken laiken@annexweb.com 416-522-1595 Associate Editor Colleen Cross ccross@annexweb.com 519-428-3471 ext. 261 Publisher Christine Livingstone clivingstone@annexweb.com 519-429-5173 888-599-2228 ext. 239 Account Coordinator Shannon Drumm sdrumm@annexweb.com 888-599-2228, ext. 219 Media Designer Kelli Kramer 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: subscribe@canadianpizzamag.com Published seven times per year (Jan/Feb, Apr/May, Jun, Jul/Aug, Sept/Oct, Nov, Dec), by Annex Publishing & Printing Inc. Printed in Canada ISSN 1203-6838 Circulation e-mail: subscribe@canadianpizzamag.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 $ 19.00 (+ applicable tax) Best pricing (Can/USA/foreign) available online at www.canadianpizzamag.com Occasionally, Canadian Pizza Magazine will mail information on behalf of industry-related groups whose products and services we believe may be of interest to you. If you prefer not to receive this information, please 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. ©2014 Annex Publishing and 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

@CdnPizzaMag

Contact your local repesentative to arrange a demonstration British Columbia Castle Agencies North Vancouver, BC, Canada Tel/Cell: (604) 904-7681 Contact: David Terretta Email: king@castleagencies.ca

Alberta MAC Sales & Marketing Calgary, AB, Canada Phone: 403-281-8540 Contact: Steve MacKell Email: mackell@telusplanet.net

Manitoba/Saskatchewan Dennis Braun Agencies Winnipeg, MB Canada Tel: 204-663-8077 Cell: 204-229-4613 Email: denbraun@mts.net

Ontario Distex M.&M. Inc. Mississauga, Ont Tel: 905 565-5990 Toll Free: 1 888 645-7324 Email:info@distex.ca

www.wowoven.com

Quebec Distex M.&M. Inc. St-Laurent (Quebec) Tel.: (514) 382-3620 Toll free : 1-800-567-3620 Web: www.distex.ca

Atlantic Provinces/Maritimes Flanagan Agencies Inc Moncton, New Brunswick Tel: (506) 387-8757 Contact Mike Flanagan Email: mike@fai.ca

pizzabites Georgian College prof competes in world pasta event eorgian College culinary professor Anthony Borgo recently took a little Ontario terroir to the world stage. Borgo was one of 27 international chefs from 23 countries to compete in the Pasta World Championship, hosted by Academia Barilla in Parma, Italy, from June 12 to 13. He and the other chefs vied for the top spot by preparing and presenting their choice of a traditional, classic or innovative pasta dish. A panel of judges evaluated the recipes based on four criteria: respect for the fundamentals of Italian gastronomy, technique, presentation and taste. The judges then chose four finalists, and from those finalists one winner. Luca Torricelli, chef of Ristorante L’Argentino in Lugao, Switzerland, was crowned the winner with his dish Spaghetti Sicily Prawns with Mojito. Borgo had just 40 minutes to prepare his dish: Pennette Rigate with Borgonzola, Mushrooms and Peas, an original vegetarian recipe incorporating seasonal food products found in Ontario. He used organic specialty mushrooms, peas and herbs and Borgonzola cheese, a specialty buffalo cheese carrying his family name that is made by his cousin’s company. Borgo said he wanted to create a recipe that was cultivated regionally – that spoke to the sustainable food production and land stewardship happening in the province. Although he is no stranger to competition, this was his first time competing at this world championship. The process took a little time and involved trying out five dishes on his own informal panel, then submitting the unanimous favourite to the jury to undergo the selection

process, he shared with Canadian Pizza. “The common link I saw that became really interesting for me was that everybody has what Barilla calls ‘Italianicity’, or the likeness of Italian culture,” he said. “How do you promote Italian culture or how do you see the expression of that cuisine through other people’s eyes around the world? It really was about focusing on the ingredients and showcasing them in a very respectful way.” A Japanese chef, in particular, impressed Borgo with his take on Italianicity and with the simplicity of his dish. “His plate was spectacular because he had five ingredients in his dish.” “We are very proud Anthony had the opportunity to compete at such a prestigious level. He represented Georgian with enthusiasm and passion – creating an

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outstanding dish that incorporated some of the best of Ontario,” said James Smith, associate dean at the Barrie, Ont., college, in a news release. Next year, Georgian plans to hold a national pasta competition, with the winner going on to compete in the world championships, Borgo shared. The college also recently signed a partnership agreement with Academia Barilla to be one of only three institutions worldwide to deliver the first level of a three-part certification program – Fundamentals of Italian Gastronomy – promoting authentic Italian cuisine. “It’s early days but it’s very exciting. I’d love to see this expand from an apprenticeship perspective, from chefs in the making. How else do you get a message of culture out there? You need the youth to adopt it.” By Colleen Cross

pizza bites

Family restaurant visits on decline estaurant visits by families with kids declined by three per cent while adult-only traffic was flat last year, reports the NPD Group. Families with kids made 51.4 million fewer visits to Canadian restaurants in the year ending February 2014 compared to a year ago, suggests NPD’s CREST service, which tracks daily all aspects of how consumers use Canadian foodservice outlets. Restaurant visits by families with kids dropped across all meal periods, with morning and afternoon snack times at quick-service restaurants hit especially hard. Of all restaurant segments, families with kids visited quick service restaurants (QSRs) less often than other segments. Visits by families with kids to QSRs declined by 23.6 million. “In order to bring back families with kids to the restaurant table, operators and manufacturers need to understand what influences and motivates them to visit,” said Robert Carter, executive director of Canada Foodservice at The NPD Group, in a news release. “They need to keep in mind that kids are also an important audience since they have considerable influence on restaurant selections.”

Left: Andrew Diveky, director of franchise development. Right: Jeff Dillon, vice-president.

Topper’s Pizza plans significant growth opper’s Pizza has a goal to grow from 35 to 140 pizzerias by 2018 and has brought in new executive faces to help facilitate the growth. In June, the Sudbury, Ont.-based chain brought Jeff Dillon on board as vice-president. Dillon, who has extensive franchising and executive leadership experience, will oversee daily operations and direct strategic growth initiatives. The company also has hired Andrew Diveky, a successful developer for A&W and Boston Pizza, as its director of franchise development. “Jeff and Andrew are consummate professionals with successful track records. Together, they have developed a carefully crafted growth plan, which will yield impressive results,” said president and chief operating officer Keith Toppazzini in a media statement. The first phase of the growth plan will focus on adding pizzerias in key Ontario markets such as Ottawa, Kitchener, Waterloo, Georgetown, London and Thunder Bay. In addition, the company intends to open pizzerias in Winnipeg, and in several Alberta cities. “Through this initiative, Topper’s Pizza is opening the door to entrepreneurship for countless individuals. This strategy will also generate more than 1,000 jobs, and we are very excited to put people to work across Canada,” said chairman and chief executive officer Kelly Toppazzini in the statement. In addition to developing its traditional delivery and takeout pizzerias, the company will provide franchisees opportunities to open and operate fast-casual, dine-in locations. In March, it opened its first such concept in Chelmsford, Ont., and has plans to open a dine-in location in Collingwood in September.

Happy National Pizza Month! SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 pizza 9

making dough with Diane

High-tech training 5 reasons online training for employees works Diane Chiasson

n order to run a successful foodservice operation, you must be able to hire the right personnel and train them properly. However, many owners and operators are not professional teachers or trainers. That’s why many foodservice operations are turning to online training to help in this area. There are basically two different ways to set up online training for your pizza operation. You could either build your own training website from scratch, or use a web-based service called a learning management system (LMS) that allows you to upload your own training materials to a proven platform. Online training also eliminates a great deal of expense, as there is no need to constantly print and reprint training materials. However, online learning platforms should never replace the need for person-to-person guidance. It is still essential to your operation’s training program to create a dialog and relationship with all your employees and offer praise and constructive criticism at all times. Here are five reasons training your employees online might be the way to go in the future.

1. IT’S CONVENIENT People are constantly busy and on-thego. Online training allows your new employees to train on their own time using their mobile devices. This is especially important if you are hiring young people to work in your pizza operation. Since many of today’s youth are attached to their digital devices, it makes sense to train them digitally as well.

2. YOU GET CONSISTENCY online. This method allows employees With an online training program, you en- to remedy their errors right away instead sure that all your employees are learning of waiting hours or even days for results the exact same materials. It is especially to come back in. ideal for teaching technical skills such as Your training program can also include how to use the POS system, how to pre- interactive games that could make the pare products, or how to set up displays, process more fun and entertaining. as trainees can review the material over and over again until they understand and 5. TRAINING ONLINE GIVES YOU pass the test. ACCOUNTABILITY Visual training comOwners and operators can Online training monitor each employee’s ponents are also very handy, especially in the and receive test allows your new training foodservice industry. Onresults automatically. line training also allows Most training platforms employees to you to use videos, which have a reporting mechatrain on their can be especially effective nism that allows managers when training on how to own time using to monitor the progress of use new equipment, new each employee’s training, their mobile products, and key safety as well as the ability to see issues. With consistent employees’ training scores devices. training, it is easier to and results. maintain certain levels of Some platforms will standards that you may also indicate which areas have in your pizza operation. specific employees had difficulty with. Having this information allows owners 3. IT USES TIME EFFICIENTLY and operators to work on that area with It is much easier to update materials the individual employee on a more intiusing an online training program. Any mate basis. addendums, changes or additions you Consider using today’s technology to wish to add to your training program make training your new hires more effican be done within seconds, keeping cient and effective. it relevant at all times. If you have any Better-trained employees make for new materials you wish your employees better business. • to see or review, you can send them a text message to let them know that there Diane Chiasson, FCSI, president of Chiasson Consultants Inc., has been helping foodservice, hospitality is new information they need to check. and retail operators increase sales for over 25 years. 4. IT CAN BE BOTH FUN AND INTERACTIVE An online training program offers immediate results because all testing is done

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She provides innovative food and retail merchandising programs, interior design, marketing and promotional campaigns, and much more. Contact her at 416-9261338, toll-free at 1-888-926-6655, at chiasson@ chiassonconsultants.com or visit www.chiassonconsultants.com.

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Sights on the sky for Pannizza New fast-casual Canadian concept is quickly rolling out across Quebec and abroad BY JULIE FITZ-GERALD

aking a new business idea from concept to grand opening in under six months is no easy feat, but the co-founders of Pannizza Restaurants had a concept that was too good to sit on. Derek Massad, CEO, and Terry Faulconbridge, COO, are upping the ante in Canada’s fresh-baked pizza and panini market, cooking the pies and sandwiches at lightning speed in just two minutes and 15 seconds. Their first location opened this spring in Laval, Que., and 150 more locations are either sold or in development. Massad and Faulconbridge became friends while working at Imvescor Restaurant Group, where Massad was a brand leader and Faulconbridge held an executive position as chief procurement officer. The pair was travelling across the United States when they saw a similar pizza/panini concept and began taking notes. With over 45 years of combined experience in the restaurant industry, they knew they had a winning idea. “We did our research in the Quebec and the Canadian market and we realized that there really wasn’t anything of its kind at all. Pizza is the second most recognizable food in the world. Sandwiches are number

three, so we decided to blend a couple concepts that we saw in the United States and make it into one,” says Massad. The idea is fresh and simple: One size, one price point per product, short bake time, and fresh ingredients. Whether customers opt for a carefully crafted signature Pannizza menu item or wish to create their own delicious concoction, the price remains the same: Paninis are $6.95, salads are $7.95 and nine-inch pizzas are $8.95. “We’re getting a lot of rave reviews from landlords, potential franchisees, existing patrons, banks; they want to do business with us because of our price points that we’re coming in at, both at the consumer level and at the franchisee level, as well as the new fresh look and new fresh concept. Our business model is adaptable to food courts, drive-thrus and street-front properties, so it’s easy for us to find good real estate to really expand our franchise network,” Massad explains. With an emphasis on fresh, all vegetables are cut in-store by hand and there’s an assortment of quality meats including steak, two types of pepperoni, chorizo sausage and meatballs. Pannizza also offers

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six different cheeses including soya cheese for vegan diets as well as various types of dough, including a gluten-free option. “With gluten-free there are two scenarios: one is if the customer prefers gluten-free, and the other is if the customer suffers from celiac disease. Our staff is trained to ask if it’s a preference or an allergy. We have separate containers and separate ingredients stored in a separate area for those with an allergy,” says Massad. The panini bread is a custom-made recipe that’s baked in the same fashion as the pizza, meaning it’s never pressed or grilled like a traditional panini, instead remaining soft and fluffy. For the pizza dough, a local company was able to create a recipe that met Massad’s and Faulconbridge’s expectations. For the purpose of ease and consistency, the pizza dough is par-baked in a stone oven before it’s sent to the restaurant, where it is then baked to order. “We still want to have a fresh product and we still want to offer the clients the baking experience with the nice smell in

The concept operates on a pizza bake time of two minutes and 15 seconds.

Photo credit: Pannizza Restaurants

the store, which you get because the product is baked on site. For the franchisees, we want to make it as easy of an operation as possible. That’s why a certain amount of the process is done off-site and shipped, but it doesn’t compromise the quality whatsoever,” Massad explains. A TurboChef conveyor oven cooking with both heat and convection air helped bring the duo’s vision for a fast bake time to life. “When we discovered this oven it gave us the possibility to produce our store the way we wanted. Part of the challenge of any fast-casual restaurant is the time of service. We wanted to make sure we could do it as quickly as possible. Customers are amazed how fast the line goes when they’re in it. They can choose the ingredients of their product and within five minutes of choosing it’s in their hand,” says Faulconbridge. The oven can handle 102 pizzas or 180 paninis per hour and is stackable, allowing for a second oven to be added if needed. In anticipation of high volumes, Pannizza

locations will be pre-wired for a second oven so that the addition can be easily integrated. In Quebec, four more Pannizza locations are already under construction and four are in development and awaiting construction. A 100-store development deal has also just been signed for Quebec, while a development deal signed for the Middle East will see 30 locations open in Dubai and 20 in Libya. As for the rest of Canada, Massad and Faulconbridge say they’re working on several development deals that would see locations open up across the country. “We want to develop across Canada using a development agent level. The development agent is basically the person that would find franchisees, find sites, develop each territory and be responsible for that territory... We have one [development agent] signed up for central Quebec and we’re in negotiations for at least three others: one from eastern Quebec, one from western Quebec and one from B.C.,” Faulconbridge explains.

“They’re an extension of us basically,” adds Massad. The pair has been able to generate such a tremendous response in part thanks to their previous connections, performance, and reputation within the industry. “I was an executive at many different levels, so I’ve had a lot of exposure to many different companies and contacts. Derek was more of the entrepreneur, where he developed a chain of restaurants and had the contacts from that level, so together we both have extensive reputations in terms of dealing with franchises and developing a brand. “When you have a network like that and you come up with something new, they tend to come to you right away because they know what you’ve done in the past and they want to be involved. When it comes to the other contacts – construction companies, banks, landlords – the same also applies. They know what we can achieve and they also want to be involved,” Faulconbridge says. Faulconbridge left his job at Imvescor last August to focus solely on Pannizza, and Massad followed suit in September. “It was all-consuming, but when you’re passionate you don’t mind putting in the extra hours,” explains Massad. Just shy of six months since opening their first location, these restaurateurs are motivated by the possibility of future growth with the right partners and getting their product into as many hands as possible. “We don’t want to open just to open. We want to choose our partners strategically, both at the franchisee level and the development level. Our goal is to have a presence across the country and to continue our international extension. This product is extremely portable; we can adapt to any market,” says Massad. If the first half of Pannizza’s inaugural year is any indication, Massad and Faulconbridge are well on their way to realizing their goal. • Julie Fitz-Gerald is a freelance writer based in Uxbridge, Ont., and a regular contributor to Canadian Pizza.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 pizza 13

marketing insights

Romancing the food Michelle Brisebois

hose of us who love pizza have been waiting for years for the masses to revel in its potential as an artisan menu item. According to Forbes magazine, its moment has finally arrived. In a recent article on business trends, Forbes announced that “The era of cheap pizza with low-quality ingredients is ending, with the rise of artisan, gourmet pizza chains such as Blaze Fast-Fired Pizza, MOD Pizza, Patxi’s, and many more.” Forbes cites the investment of big money and larger chains’ participation as evidence upscale pizza has shifted from a niche play to a full-on trend. If you are eager to benefit from the customer enthusiasm and higher price point associated with upscale pizza, then get ready to up your game. As a luxury item, its perceived value is very much tied to the story behind the product. Generally speaking, the more exciting and romantic the story, the better the return. Food and thinking about food occupies a great portion of our day. Research conducted at Cornell University indicated that the average person is inundated by decisions about food. In fact, their research suggests that we make more than 200 decisions about food every day. Many of these decisions are made unconsciously, including choosing a menu item. Think about the last time your food was described to you before you ate it – chances are you were salivating before your first bite. There are a number of ways to tell the stories of your menu but resist the urge to use the menu itself as your first line of communication. Lots of wordy descriptions will overwhelm diners visually and it’s not as effective as having that story delivered to you personally. Your most important asset in your quest to romance the menu is your team, so choose your people wisely. Hire great storytellers. When you’re in-

terviewing potential team members, include the menu and then getting beverages, you’ve a question that reveals this skill, such as, helped guide the decision process and en“tell me about a meal you made or ate re- hanced the average cheque. At this stage, cently that you feel was special and why.” a quick overview of the dish should entice The response may showcase great tableside the customer to choose. When the plate is strategies. You want to hire people who love dropped, the server should take three to five food and love sharing their passion. Don’t seconds to describe each entree. A verbal compromise on this. Make tour of each dish could insure the chef is reviewing the clude the way the crust was menu items with the team. If your operation brushed with special oil, the Tensions between front and delicate smoked flavour of focuses on or back of house are common the mozzarella and the way in restaurants so a chance includes delivery, the meats were cured. This for the chef to connect with pause to appreciate the artyour packaging istry before the customer’s servers around his or her creations can foster better can tell the story first bite enhances the sense understanding and commuof anticipation, which in for you. nication. Let the team taste turn amplifies the enjoyand ask questions at prement of the meal. shift. Create a corkboard in If your operation focusthe kitchen where labels from the cheeses es on or includes delivery, your packaging and other ingredients used can be posted can tell the story for you. Write five or six for quick reference. Buy a copy of The Food sentences to describe the food as vividly as Lover’s Companion, a food dictionary that one of your team members would and then includes definitions, historical lore and pro- have this printed inside or on top of the box nunciations. Keep it handy for the team to lid. It could also appear on a sticker or card. refer to. During pre-shift meetings, have the For maximum impact, the story should be team share success stories and encourage revealed just as the customer prepares to each server to make the customize their de- eat it. A study by the University of Illinois scriptions by inserting their own personality reports that products carrying descriptive into the delivery of the story. labels sold 27 per cent more than those that There are generally two stages where don’t. Described products caused diners the server describes the food. The first oc- to form more positive attitudes toward the curs during the customer decision phase. restaurant, and the restaurant was seen to be People often have questions about how the keeping up to date on the latest food trends. food is prepared or what tastes good when A sense of anticipation heightens the they review the menu. The server should be enjoyment of any activity. As Harriet eager to recommend one of their favourites Van Horne said: “Cooking is like love. It because they’ve actually eaten everything on should be entered into with abandon or the menu themselves. Insist that your serv- not at all.” • ers not hand over the menus and then run off with drink orders, leaving guests to their Michelle Brisebois specializes in brand strategies. Michelle can be reached at briseboismichelle@sympatico.ca. own devices. By taking a quick verbal tour of

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guest column

Top 7 reasons customer service slides Jeff Mowatt

hen I’m asked to speak at conferences on how managers can boost business, they often assume we’re going to focus on gaining new customers. Ironically, that’s the last thing we should focus on. Neglecting existing customers to chase new business is akin to gathering water in the proverbial leaky bucket. We can exhaust ourselves trying to collect more water when we’d be further ahead by simply fixing the holes. The more sustainable approach to growing business is ensuring existing customers are so thrilled that they’ll not only return but also recommend you to new potential customers. The challenge is that, without proper attention, customer satisfaction often atrophies. To ensure that doesn’t happen in your organization, consider these top seven ways managers and staff let customer service slide.

employees end up redirecting customer concerns when they should be addressing problems themselves.

1. ASSUMING CUSTOMERS NOTICE GOOD SERVICE They don’t. Customers are too busy and distracted by their mobile devices to notice when service is merely good. Employees need to provide service that’s remarkable. Fortunately, that doesn’t mean working harder. It just means choosing words more carefully. Compare “Do you want us to deliver it?” with “Would it be helpful if we delivered that for you to save you a trip?” The second phrase didn’t take more work, yet the wording made the offer more noticeable.

4. REWARDING LONGEVITY OVER SERVICE It’s fine to have service awards for longterm employees. However, length of service isn’t nearly as important as quality of service. Customer-service cultures that thrive are those where recognition is focused more on internal and external customer service than on just showing up.

2. ESTABLISHING CUSTOMER SERVICE AS A DEPARTMENT If you set up a customer-service department, it by default means other employees will assume that taking care of customers isn’t their job. That means

Technical skills deliver the work. Soft skills create the customer relationship.

6. LACK OF RECOVERY SKILLS 3. MEASURING SALES VERSUS When customer service training consists SATISFACTION of providing customers with informaIt’s tempting for managers to evaluate tion, performing transactions and being the business by focusing polite, that skill set will on monthly or annual take the employee as far Sales measures as the nearest foul-up. If revenues. That’s fine for measuring how the orgaemployees aren’t trained success today. nization has been doing on how to interact with Customer up till now. But the faccustomers when things go tor that determines how wrong, then they’re not satisfaction the business will do in fully trained. Ironically, predicts how the future is not sales; customers don’t notice (or it’s customer satisfaction. appreciate) your service you’ll do Sales measures success when everything goes well. today. Customer satisfacThe time when they actutomorrow. tion predicts how you’ll ally notice and judge you is do tomorrow. when things go wrong.

5. TRAINING FOCUSES ON TECHNICAL VERSUS INTERPERSONAL SKILLS The term “soft skill” somehow implies that customer communication skills aren’t nearly as substantive as technical skills. The irony is that customers take for granted that employees have basic technical skills. What customers do notice are the interpersonal and communication skills employees use to interact with them.

7. LACK OF REINFORCEMENT Without regular reminders and reinforcement, employees revert back to old habits of focusing more on transactions than on customers. That’s why we advocate a three-phase approach to building a customer-focused culture. Phase 1 is conducting a customized customer-service seminar. In Phase 2 we provide employees with monthly bulletins and biweekly tips. And finally, for Phase 3, we teach managers how to stage their own regular CAST (Customer Service Team) meetings. That way you’ll convert a one-time customer-service training event into an ongoing improvement process. •

Jeff Mowatt is a customer-service strategist, award-winning speaker, and bestselling author. For more tips, training tools or to inquire about engaging Jeff for your team, visit www.JeffMowatt.com.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 pizza 15

feature

Creative for the cause Take away some fresh ideas for doing well, while doing good BY COLLEEN CROSS

he pizza industry is no slouch when it comes to promoting and supporting good causes. Judging by the number of charity efforts linked to independents and chains, community giving is in its DNA. We know why it’s good to give our time, money and talent to charity, but just how to go about it is another matter. The most successful giving strategies are tied to the culture of a company, says Corey Diamond, a partner in Realized Worth, an international firm with a Canadian office in Toronto that helps companies engage employees in corporate volunteering and giving. Diamond suggests you take a threetiered approach to giving: raising funds for or promoting a visible cause such as breast cancer research, supporting a local cause, and getting behind causes that mean a lot to your employees. These strategies work for all businesses, he says. “People are motivated by three things: mastery, autonomy and purpose. No matter what they do, they are searching for meaning and purpose in life. Any business, from a small pizza business to a large multinational corporation, has the opportunity to connect their employees to a grander purpose.” Sherri Sodhi, marketing consultant for Pizza Depot, headquartered in Brampton, Ont., learned a thing or two about cause marketing last year. In 2013, she guided the company in raising $15,000 for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation through various fundraising efforts. Pizza Depot’s main purpose, says Sodhi, was to raise funds to fight breast cancer and create awareness in the community. “We noticed there were a lot of businesses out there in our South Asian

Cory Boast of Gabriel Pizza says it’s important to encourage ideas from staff. “Sometimes the best ideas are not your own.”

community but we also noticed a lot of them were not linked to any charity group. A lot of South Asian women are affected by [breast cancer]. Either they are ashamed or they ignore it. They don’t have the support of their husbands.” They decided to think, literally, outside the box. Working with the foundation, they designed a symbolic pink pizza box. Customers at all 20 franchises were encouraged to upgrade to the pink box at a small cost knowing a percentage of that purchase would go to the cause. The campaign required a mammoth effort of planning, marketing and co-ordinating. “We sent out 100,000 flyers every two weeks for each of 20 stores. So it was a lot of work.” But success could be measured in boxes. “We’d count each box, and because we’d designed special boxes for the campaign…we knew how many were

18 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014

going out. It was easier to measure. “For that campaign we put the logos on the flyers as well and had a coupon underneath. So that’s how you measure success as well in terms of how many flyers are coming back with the coupon.” There were challenges. “Pizza doesn’t fall under the heading ‘healthy eating,’ ” she says. To convince the foundation they would make a good partner, she visited the director in Brampton and got approval from the Toronto office. “The best thing to do for each store, when you send out your mailers or flyers or post cards, is to make sure you keep the radius to the stores,” she says. “Also, change the box around for each campaign to help measure your results.” Richard Ames, president of Daddio’s Pizzeria in Grande Prairie, Alta., has a different take on targeting his efforts. Ames has developed some avenues for

corporate giving. “We will now give a donation of pizza to any worthy cause and go a step further to help the causes with feeding their volunteers. When we are aware of an event for charity we supply each of the volunteers at the event with a gift certificate for a free personal pizza.” He is now offering prize kits containing a t-shirt and 8-1/2 by 11 magnetic memo board – both bearing the Daddio’s name – along with a gift certificate for one pizza. He pegs the retail value of the prize at $60 but says the cost to the pizzeria is $5 for the shirt, $1 for the memo board plus the price of the pizza named on the certificate. Items are appropriately housed in a Daddio’s pizza box bearing the slogan “Think about pizza.” Ames hatched the idea after noticing silent auction announcement pages for community causes on Facebook, some boasting more than 3,000 Friends. Organizations and events they’ve provided with silent auction gift certificates, volunteer gift certificates and prizes in-

clude the SPCA,, firefighters associations, a senior citizens golf fundraiser, HIV North, YMCA, Ronald McDonald House and the Royal Canadian Legion’s “Repair the Roof” campaign. The money spent brought tangible results, Ames says. In the last three months, he gained 600 new customers, far and above the roughly 175 new customers he has added to his database over the life of the business. Shares and Likes on the Facebook page are way up. “We believe it is a triple-win situation,” he says. “The charity wins because they are able reward the volunteers, the volunteers win by receiving a token of appreciation, and we win because we get a chance to have people try our product.” Gabriel Pizza, an Ottawa-based chain, has a secret to corporate giving success – keep things local. The 31-location chain, whose locations are largely in eastern Ontario and Hull, makes special pizzas for local causes. Its CHEO, Bluesfest and Dragon Boat pizzas have proven to be big

fundraisers and hits with customers. The company donates a portion of the sale of each pizza to three causes, namely, the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO), the Ottawa Bluesfest and the Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival. Gabriel Pizza also serves as food sponsor for CCS Relay for Life events in Ottawa, donating more than 300 pizzas each year to teams and volunteers at the event. The company is something of a sponsor extraordinaire, assisting Run for Dad, Cystic Fibrosis and many other grassroots community projects, sports programs and education programs. Cory Boast, vice-president of operations, oversees the company’s marketing. He says Gabriel likes to put its efforts into community causes and events that are close to home in every sense. Five years ago, after a staff had firsthand experience with the good work done by the children’s hospital, Gabriel Continued on page 21

2013 Winner The Muntains of TJ’s Pizza

Put Your

on our cover

The Muntains of TJ’s Pizza

ARE YOU MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN YOUR COMMUNITY?

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Winners of the Pizza with PurpSaputo Foodservice ose award

Nominate your pizzeria for the Pizza with Purpose Award sponsored by Saputo Foodservice and share the spirit of generosity with your fellow pizzaiolos.

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We want to hear about your fundraising, sponsorship, participation in community events and creative contributions. Activities can be local or national in scope. The winner won’t be determined just on an amount of money raised, but on all the ways, big and small, that your pizzeria is touching lives.

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2014 Entry Deadline Oct. 15th! SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 pizza 19 Pizza_Purpose_Saputo oct 14.indd 1

2014-09-05 9:56 AM

feature

Questioning one’s loyalty Learn the ins and outs of designing a loyalty program BY MICHELLE BRISEBOIS

’ve come to believe that I need a separate wallet to house all the cards for the various loyalty programs I belong to. Apparently, I’m in good company. According to Consumer Reports Online, the average American belongs to 22 loyalty programs. Marketing/Advertising Magazine reports that the average Canadian belongs to 8.5 loyalty programs. This statistic is worth pondering because, clearly, your customers are going to need a compelling reason to join any loyalty program you might offer. Everybody’s already swamped. If all of us are juggling so many programs as it is – what on Earth could compel someone to want one more? All loyalty programs are ideally designed to accomplish one thing: to get more business from existing customers. Loyalty programs are designed to help businesses get more business from their existing customers, ideally by stealing share from competitors. They show you loyalty by forsaking all others and you show them the money. You must, however, “begin as you mean to go on” and make sure that the loyalty program you develop drives the right kind of business your way. There be dragons when it comes to designing your program. If it’s not crafted properly, you could end up incenting your customers to do what they would have done anyway, eroding your margins as a result. Vouchers and coupons are helpful to invite new customers to try your products. These tools are designed to attract new customers

via sampling or discounts. If you simply leave it at that, you run the risk of giving away the farm without making your new fans “sticky.” A good loyalty program will cement your bond with customers, but it must have several clear mandates. Your loyalty program should be based on these four pillars: 1. Focus on the best customers that you already have; 2. Optimize the profit that can be made from them; 3. Increase the period in which they remain customers; 4. Ensure you can measure the program’s success. Here’s the curve ball though: it may not be your loyalty program itself that accomplishes these objectives – it may be the information it allows you to harvest. Your ability to collect data on your customers is a benefit of having a loyalty program; if that data can be used to identify and understand your best customers and then tailor offers that appeal to them, consider it a success. A loyalty program allows you to connect names and contact information to customers. Transactions are no longer anonymous and you can start to track behaviour and truly understand who your best customers are. This means you should have some kind of customer relationship management (CRM) program. Take a look at your point-of-sale system: it may well have some means of creating and tracking a customer base already built in. When people sign up, make sure you at least get their postal code and email address with their express permission. To maximize the

20 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014

profitability of customers enrolled in your loyalty program, design it to reward them for spending more. When customers get to a certain dollar threshold, the benefits should expand. If the benefits are attractive enough, the customer will want to get to a higher level sooner and will spend more with you to do so. Your loyalty program can also direct daily traffic and give a lift to certain parts of the day or week. If Tuesday nights are slow, consider offering extra points for purchases made on that day of the week. As for what sorts of rewards a customer might obtain with their points, the more straightforward the reward is to get and the easier it is to claim, the better. The grand-daddy of all loyalty programs, arguably, has been Canadian Tire money. It’s simple – you get money that can only be spent at Canadian Tire with each purchase. Created in 1958, the loyalty program has since its inception circulated more than $1 billion Canadian Tire “money” notes. Through its loyalty programs, Canadian Tire awards more than $100 million dollars to customers every year. Not all of it is spent

back in the stores, as the mammoth stack on top of my microwave can attest. The company is attempting to migrate customers to their card-based loyalty program because, you see, the “funny money” doesn’t allow them to track their customers’ behaviour. The Canadian Tire money offers customers 0.4 per cent back while the new program will give people one to three per cent of their purchase total back. Finally – measure, measure, measure. You need to know if it’s working and how to continue to develop the program to grow your business. Loblaws’ new and very smart loyalty program actually awards points based on shopping patterns. In other words, if I tend to buy lots of fruits and vegetables, then that’s what I’m incented to buy with extra points. Am I interested as a consumer? Does it make me loyal? You betcha. Canadian Grocer reports that Loblaws is experiencing a 50 per cent email open rate, three times the lift in sales (compared to printed flyers), a 12 per cent increase in visits and a five per cent increase in basket size. The American Society for Quality reports that most customers are lost through neglect. In fact, 68 per cent of the time, neglect is why people take their business to a competitor. Only 14 per cent of customers list dissatisfaction of a product or service as their reason for leaving a retailer. It’s not enough to just not screw up anymore. You have to show some appreciation too. Loyalty works best when it works both ways. •

Continued from page 19 did its first CHEO radio station promotion. Each year since, listeners vote for an official CHEO pizza: $1 from every medium and $2 from every large CHEO Pizza is donated to the fund for operating rooms at the hospital. It isn’t always easy keeping up with so many events, but having a mobile kitchen has allowed staff to attend them while at the same time promoting the business. In turn, Boast says, the company’s involvement gives worthwhile causes good visibility. The company’s efforts have got great results. Case in point: Gabriel raised more than $36,000 through the CHEO pizza radio promotion. The large volume of calls tied to various cause-related products is another measure of the initiatives’ success. They need only consult their database to see that a program is working. He encourages everyone to got to staff for ideas. “Sometimes the best ideas are not your own.” “The key is to just get started. Pick something you love and start doing it. It’s good for business and it puts you in a different light with your customers. Every company should be giving something back.” •

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the pizza chef

Rockin’ renovations When is it time for a re-brand? By Diana Cline

f you’ve been in business for more than five years and you haven’t done any improvements or renovations to your location, you probably already know that your place could use an update. Whether that just means some fresh paint, a new sign and some new kitchen equipment, or a full-on, total re-design of an area that no longer serves its purpose, it’s something to consider carefully. I’m a big believer that little hinges swing big doors and just fresh paint and new signage can breathe life into any tired, old place. But is it enough? Consider that all major chains update their look every five years. If you’re a franchisee, you know that sooner or later you’re going to need

to comply with your corporate brand update. This often includes the store interior and exterior as well as the logo and a review of all menu items. For the independent pizzeria owner, you might want to consider hiring a consultant to help you with this process, but before hiring that consultant, do your homework and ask for and check references! A menu overhaul is a great place to start. Keep the most popular items on your menu and ask yourself if your kitchen can gain efficiencies from adding equipment like another oven to increase capacity. Or maybe you want to put in a panini grill and create a signature line of grilled sandwiches to feature on your menu. Research the type of equipment you need and then make a list of other improvements you intend to make. If you have restaurant seating space that you haven’t updated in a few years, consider new flooring, fresh paint and some wall art. Take a good look at your service areas, there may be great efficiencies to be gained by moving a server station, or reorganizing the bar layout. One of the biggest expenses of renovations is down time. Some operators choose to shut down completely, while others are able to schedule the work to be completed in stages, over several nights. It really depends on the scope of the renovations and whether you can find tradespeople that will work overnight. The other caveat is ensuring who you hire will complete the work on time. If one of them falls behind schedule, it’s highly likely that another contractor cannot begin or complete his or her jobs punctually as well. Consider electrical and plumbing upgrades and add extra time for the inspections before allowing a finisher to close up the walls. A job needing to be redone is certainly a costly pain in the neck. It never hurts to call your local health inspector ahead of time to make sure your kitchen improvements are on par with current codes of practice. • Diana Cline is a two-time Canadian Pizza Magazine chef of the year champion, internationally recognized gourmet pizzaiolo, was a co-owner of Diana’s Gourmet Pizzeria in Winnipeg, and served as a director for Restaurants Canada (formerly the CRFA) from 2009 to 2013. In addition to creating award-winning recipes, Diana is also a consultant to other 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 dianaslcline@gmail.com.

22 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014

A hearty welcome It is with great pride and enthusiasm that we welcome you to the 3rd annual Canadian Pizza Show.

s the show’s host and media sponsor, we at Canadian Pizza magazine are particularly keyed up about the 2014 show. It has really taken off since its inception – grown legs, if you will – and this year we are excited to have additional exhibitors involved, more attendees registered, and a greater variety of events on offer. We will bring you several outstanding speakers and panelists who will share their knowledge and expertise with you. This includes a special keynote address by Domenic Primucci, president of Pizza Nova, who will offer up insight into making your own business a greater success. There will also be a Dough Demo by Peter Jacobs, one of Canada’s only master bakers. And, new to the show in 2014, is our Chef of the Year contest. While the competition is now in its 10th year, this

is the first time that chefs will battle it out right on the show floor for the esteemed title of “Canadian Pizza Chef of the Year.” This year’s champion will win, among other prizes, a trip to Las Vegas to compete in the 2015 International Pizza Challenge at Pizza Expo. We want to extend a very special thank-you to our great sponsors, exhibi-

tors and speakers for their participation. It is their enthusiasm and support that make this an event of which our entire industry can be proud. Of course, nothing would happen without our attendees, so hats off to all of you. We hope you enjoy the show – and all of the delicious experiences in store for you! – Canadian Pizza magazine

AN EXCITING EVENT

inning Chef of the Year in 2013 was an amazing feeling for me and for the restaurant where I work! The experience of winning was more than just personal since I make Neapolitan pizza, which has a different appeal than the thicker pizza that Canadians are used to. It’s great to see that the Neapolitan is making a large impact on this side of the Atlantic and it doesn’t look like it’s slowing down. The winning trip to Las Vegas was amazing as well. I was able to compete with some of the best in the world and also see new trends and old friends who have the same business goals. Thank you to Canadian Pizza for the amazing experience and the memories!

24 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014

Carlo Raillo, The Parlour Italian Kitchen & Bar

Better Ideas. Better Pizza. Better Business. It’s that Simple. FLOOR PLAN | EXHIBITORS PIZZA CHEF SPONSORS Monday October 27, 2014

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22 Handtmann PLATINUM SHOW SPONSOR For more information, contact: Chris Livingstone I 1-888-599-2228 ext. 239 or 519 429 5173 I clivingstone@annexweb.com 23 Ardent Mills 1 PizzaMaster 24 Media Inc. (Dist. By Alfa Cappuccino Imports) 26 P & H Milling Group Pizza Show Floor Plan Print Ad.indd 1 2014-09-17 4:08 PM 27 J. Cipelli Wines & Spirits Inc. BRONZE SHOW SPONSOR 28 On Green Go Solutions 3 Dairy Farmers of Canada 29 CCS Creative 30 E. Formella & Sons Inc. 5 XLT Ovens (Dist. by SP Sales Canada). GOLD SHOW SPONSOR 6 Stanislaus 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 20

Reuven International Box Top Inc. Lasaffre Yeast Corporation Master Bilt (Dist. by SP Sales Canada) Somerset Industries (Dist. by SP Sales Canada) Covertex Corporation Crown Customer Metal Spinning Mr. Donair Sugardale Foods Burke Corporation Viau Finica Food Specialities Ltd.

PIZZA CHEF GOLD SPONSOR 32 Moretti Forni Canada (Dist. By Euro Milan)

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PIZZA SHOW GOLD SPONSOR PIZZA CHEF PLATINUM SPONSOR 33 Saputo Foodservice 34-35 36 37 38 40 41 44-45 47-51

Toppers Pizza Franchise Reiser Salamina Foods Neil Jones Food Company Lallemand Inc. Bonte Foods Collis Group Inc. C.W. Shasky Associates Ltd.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 pizza 25

9:30 a.m.

10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Registration Open

Pizza Chef of the Year LOCATION: SHOW FLOOR, ORION ABC New at the show this year, the Chef of the Year competition will run from 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on the show floor. Come cheer on our chefs and sample their creations. (Please see page 28 for more details on the contest).

10:00 a.m. – 3:45 p.m.

Tradeshow Floor open LOCATION: SHOW FLOOR, ORION ABC Exhibitor booths will be open all day. Come meet and greet those in your industry and see what they have on display.

10:30 – 11:15 a.m.

Keynote Address: Domenic Primucci, president of Pizza Nova From One Store to 130: The Road to Pizza Success LOCATION: PHOENIX A Domenic Primucci will share his insights on making the business side of your pizzeria a success. Domenic is a recognized business and community leader. In April of 2012, with Domenic’s leadership, Pizza Nova won the Grand Prize Award of Excellence in Franchising, which is the Canadian Franchise Association’s highest and most coveted honour. He also recently guided Pizza Nova into securing a three-year partnership as the official pizza of the Toronto Blue Jays. In addition to his amazing business prowess, Domenic has been the lead in Pizza Nova’s numerous charitable initiatives. Listening to Domenic will inspire you not only to get down to business, but also to give back.

12:00 – 1:00 p.m.

Lunch Lunch for attendees is not included but available to purchase at the Craft Eatery located in The International Centre

1:15 – 2:00 p.m.

Dough Demonstration For the Love of Flavour with Peter Jacobs

Domenic Primucci

LOCATION: PHOENIX A Are you looking to improve the flavour of your crust? Peter Jacobs, one of Canada’s only master bakers, will show you how different flours, fermentation times and levain can change the taste and functionality of your dough. This is an interactive session sure to intrigue the mind, eyes and taste buds.

26 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014

Peter Jacobs

Better Ideas. Better Pizza. Better Business. It’s that Simple. SCHEDULE OF SPEAKERS AND EVENTS

2:15 – 2:45 p.m.

Panel: Three Minds, One Powerful Industry LOCATION: PHOENIX A Hear three different perspectives on where pizza is headed and what tools are needed to compete to ensure your pizzeria’s profitability. The three panelists are:

Tom Stankiewicz

Tom Stankiewicz, Bondi’s Pizza Tom has been in the pizza business for more than 15 years. He is a columnist for Canadian Pizza magazine and specializes in delivering gourmet pizza in a take-out/delivery environment. Jason Harris, Garlic Democracy Italian Eatery Jason launched two locations of Garlic Democracy, his new fast casual concept in Italian fare, in March. Jason has a strong focus on using technology to cut costs. John Chetti, Queen Margherita Pizza John Chetti is co-owner of Toronto’s Queen Margherita Pizza, which opens its third city location this fall. John will share his vision for the pizza industry and offer insights into how QMP became a contender in Toronto’s good-natured “pizza wars.”

3:00 p.m.

Jason Harris

John Chetti

Announcement: Pizza Chef of the Year Winners LOCATION: SHOW FLOOR, ORION ABC The winners of the Pizza Chef of the Year contest will be announced.

3:15 – 4:30 p.m.

Social, featuring Zoltan Szabo, Sommelier LOCATION: SHOW FLOOR, ORION ABC The Canadian Pizza Show social gives you an opportunity to network with your peers and a chance to hear from Zoltan Szabo, one of the most recognizable personalities on the Canadian Sommelier scene. Zoltan has two decades of industry experience spanning three continents, and his TV, radio and video blog appearances have helped him become a fixture on the global wine scene. Wine is a perfect pizza pairing, so why not enjoy a glass while gathering expert advice on how to improve your wine menu?

Zoltan Szabo

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 pizza 27

CHEF OF THE YEAR CONTEST! Canada distributed by

Canada

New at the show: Chef of the Year contest!

or the first time at the Canadian Pizza Show, talented chefs from across the country will compete for the title of ‘Canadian Pizza Chef of the Year’ during the Canadian Pizza Show. The event, which take places right on the show floor, is platinum-sponsored by Saputo Foodservice and Gold-sponsored by Moretti Forni. The competition 2015 contest marks the 10th anniversary of this Canadian culinary showdown. The contest began in 2005, when it was a written recipe contest. In 2009, the format was changed to allow contenders to supply their pizza ingredients for assembly, bake and taste at the Moretti Forni showroom. Canadian Pizza magazine is now proud to announce to the next step in the Chef of the Year challenge: pizzaiolos going headto-head for a chance at the Canadian title. Let the flour fly! BIG PRIZES! Three winners will be chosen at this year’s event. The first-place champion will win a trip to Las Vegas to compete in a guaranteed spot in the finals of the “Traditional or Non-Traditional Category” at the 2015 International Pizza Challenge at Pizza Expo and a $1,000 cash prize. The second-place winner will also receive a trip and a guaranteed spot in the finals of one of the categories. The winner will choose which category he or she wishes to compete in, and the runner-up will default to the other of the two. For the first time this year, a third-place finisher will be recognized as well. Accommodations, flight and admissions/registration fees for the first-prize winner and runner-up are included in the trip packages. DETAILS… There will be one division in the competition, Open, and competitors may enter a pizza with any combination and number of toppings they choose. Pizzas must be traditional crust, round pies (no deep dish).

Chef Carlo Raillo, head pizzaiolo at The Parlour Italian Kitchen & Bar in Edmonton, won the title of Chef of the Year last year with his Hangover Breakfast Pie.

Contestants will have 20 minutes to bake and present their pizza to the panel of judges. Each entrant will be given a bake time and an additional 10 minutes of preparation time. The judging panel is composed of impartial culinary experts, including chefs, food consultants and pizzeria owners. Pizzas will be scored on the following criteria: • Crust (texture, flavour, appearance, crumb, etc.) • Toppings (Do the flavours complement each other? Bland, strong, appetizing, correct preparation, etc.) • Creativity (innovation in ingredient preparation and use, “wow” factor) • Bake (not burnt, undercooked, etc.) • Presentation (visual appearance) Come cheer on the chefs as they show off their skills on the show floor, starting at 9:30 a.m.

Past Chef of the Year winners 2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

Carlo Raillo The Parlour Italian Kitchen & Bar, Edmonton

Rocco Agostino Pizzeria Libretto, Toronto

Cory Medd Two Guys and a Pizza Place, Lethbridge, Alta.

Pasqualino Oliveri Ottawa

Dave Housman franchisee, Famoso Neapolitan Pizzeria, Edmonton

Tom Stankiewicz Bondi’s Pizza, London, Ont.

28 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014

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Burke ..........................................................11 Canadian Pizza Show ......................... 16 & 17 Canadian Pizza Show Guide ...................23-28 Middleby Marshall ........................................9 Pizza with a Purpose ...................................19 Ricco Food Distributor ................................21 Salerno........................................................21 Saputo ........................................................32 Springer’s Meats .........................................22 Stanislaus .............................................. 4 & 5 Viau Food ......................................................2 XLT Ovens ..................................................31 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.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 pizza 29

pizza on fire

Super sides Tom Stankiewicz

pizza menu wouldn’t be complete without featuring various side orders that your customers can purchase with their pizza. Whether in a restaurant or a fast food place, customers are used to seeing these menu additions and expect them to be there, just in case they feel like ordering them. At a first glance, it might not seem important to include these items on the menu, but I would strongly advise offering them. Besides meeting the set expectations of your customers, they are also the most profitable entries on the menu. Most customers don’t call a pizza store specifically to buy side orders, but it is part of your job to tell them that you do offer them. Like many pizzerias, our side orders include salads, garlic bread, nachos, and bruschetta, just to name a few items. I can purchase the ingredients for all these side dishes at a very low cost, which guarantees a high profit. It is important to review your sales on a regular basis in order to determine how much needs to be purchased for each day. It is always better to buy more if you run out of certain food than to throw it away. This is not easy to predict, but you should, for example, have a general idea of how many salads are typically sold on Fridays versus Mondays. Some side orders are more difficult than others to deliver to customers in perfect condition. Specifically, nachos and bruschetta can cause a lot of headaches. Most of us have encountered customers who called back and complained that the bread was too soggy. Through experimentation, we discovered that what works best is to put the bruschetta in a cake box with a wax paper. To keep the nachos fresh, we put them in a pizza box

How to serve up your menu’s high-profit side dishes with style

with a steak paper. These methods seem to A nice way to introduce side orders keep these items fresher for a longer time. to your customers is to incorporate these If you are not telling all your customers add-ons into your weekly pizza speabout your side orders yet, you’re mak- cials. Usually, a family deal pizza will ining a mistake that is potentially keeping clude salad and garlic bread. If you want your sales revenue down. You can con- to find out if bread sticks will be a popular duct an easy experiment that will show choice, it might make sense to give your you the difference in your sales when side customers an option to substitute them orders are offered by your sales staff to all with garlic bread. customers versus only the ones who ask Another way to upsell your salads for it. The results might surprise you, or could be introducing a special deal – for maybe not, but it has been example, that every Monproven many times that day all salads cost the when you ask for business same low price. If you Some side the customers are more orders are more notice that many of your likely to take you up on customers order cheese or difficult than it. With the summer seapepperoni pizza for their son in full swing, you could others to deliver kids, it might be worth concentrate on upselling exploring how big this to customers your fresh salads. Insist specific group of customin perfect that your staff tell every ers is. It could be worthcustomer about the side orwhile creating a special condition. ders available at your pizza kids meal deal as a way to store. It will have a positive differentiate yourself from impact on your sales reveyour competition. nue and translate into satisfied customers. With the ongoing emphasis on healthy Well-planned preparation of side or- eating habits, I think that promoting ders could also help you with time saving healthy side orders will benefit any pizza and efficiency at your pizza store. Many business. The challenge is to recognize side orders, such as salads, could be pre- when and how to let your customers pared in advance, which means they know that side orders such as salads are a could be made in a less busy time, and, great addition to their pizza meal. It you’re more importantly, you could decide well thinking of introducing a new side order, in advance when to make them. This is a do your research first and plan ahead to win-win situation because it allows every- incorporate it into your existing specials one to concentrate on other orders. What to minimize cost. But most of all, think of I have seen that works really great is to many ways to let our customers know that place fresh, pre-made salads on display you have something new to offer. • right beside the front counter. You would Tom Stankiewicz has been in the pizza business for more be surprised how many customers pick up than 15 years. He has been the proprietor of Bondi’s a salad just because it is there and it looks Pizza in London, Ont., since 2000 and is president of the Canadian Pizza Team. delicious.

30 pizza SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014