Papa John’s slice of success in Phl anchored on better ingredients, special promos

MANILA, Philippines - The Filipinos’ love for food and evolving taste have prompted restaurateurs and business owners to respond to the growing demand for healthy and freshly prepared food that does not sacrifice flavor.  

The Philippine pizza market has become more challenging in recent years with new restaurant chains as well as smaller players entering the market. The diversified market has also increased competition among industry players but in the midst of this, the international pizza chain Papa John’s has managed to capture the Filipinos’ taste buds and has successfully carved a loyal following.

Headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, Papa John’s was founded by John Schnatter in 1983 and has 3,500 restaurants all over the world, making it the world’s third largest pizza chain.

A top choice by US consumers, Papa John’s came to the Philippines in 2010. Now on its 4th year of operations, Papa John’s has 17 branches all over Metro Manila and continues to expand in key locations. “We have received a positive response from the local market and this has motivated us to take a more strategic approach in our expansion,” says Marian Castro, COO of Papa John’s Philippines. “While we have started opening branches in malls, we also looked into the clamor to open in business/residential areas, where dine-in and delivery services are accessible to the customers.”

Better ingredients

Pizza will always be a favorite among Filipinos and Papa John’s fresher take on this ubiquitous pie fits the discerning taste of diners who only want the freshest ingredients.

“We have come to understand the evolving taste of Filipino consumers and we are continuously thinking of new ways on how more people can enjoy Papa John’s premium pizzas,” Castro adds. “Our thrust is to be able to widen the reach and offer complimentary products that this market appreciate. Our customers can look forward to local favorites being infused into our menu line, still with the ‘Better Ingredients’ as the most basic formula.”

Papa John’s classic flavors include Simply Cheese, Garden Special and The Hawaiian while specialty pizzas include the Super Papa made with pepperoni, Italian sausage and ham. The Tuscan Six (made with mozzarella, parmesan, Romano, Asiago, Provolone and Fontina) and Meatball Pepperoni are just a couple of the must-try variety. There’s also a new flavor in the house called Chicken Carbonara Pizza made with grilled chicken, parsley, mushroom and creamy carbonara sauce all blended with parmesan, Romano and mozzarella. Whatever one chooses, eating a Papa John’s pizza is not complete without dipping it in their signature garlic sauce and munching it with a pepperoncini pepper, something that makes the dining experience unique. 

Perfect promos

Papa John’s has also been actively engaging their growing number of customers through social media and constantly come up with exciting promos. Pizza lovers always have something to look forward to at Papa John’s, especially on Tuesdays, which has unofficially become Papa John’s Day.

It started off with the hit Unli Pizza promo, Two for Tuesdays, Super-Sized Tuesdays (free pizza size upgrade) and the more recent Classic Tuesdays where classic flavors are only at a super affordable price of P199.

“We aimed not only for brand awareness but also for brand recall, and we strategized by providing wow promos and making Tuesdays alive. This also made more people to try us and transactions have tremendously increased,” she says.

Thus, this pushed Papa John’s to address the increase in repeat business, with new opening new stores and establishing a more aggressive service delivery channel in order to efficiently respond to their customers’ needs.