Domino's taking a slice of Taiwan

Managing director and front man for Domino's in Taiwan Scott Oelkers, left, is joined by Domino's chief David Brandon, center, and Domino's executive vice president international J. Patrick Doyle PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES

Asia countries, including Taiwan, continue to hunger for fast-food, and the CEO of Domino's Pizza Inc yesterday said he aims to make sure those stomachs don't go unsatisfied.

"We will continue to develop more sales and more stores, expand more market places and bring out more services to cater to the different consumption tastes of our customers worldwide," said David Brandon, head pizza maker at the world's second largest pizza and delivery company.

Brandon was in Taipei yesterday as part of his tour of Asian nations where Domino's has a presence.

Taiwan's hearty appetite for pizza, its openness to exotic food, its high population density and its increasing willingness to dine out were some of the factors that made Taiwan a great market to do business in, Brandon said.

Since setting up its first Taiwanese store in 1989, Domino's has grown to become a top-four player in terms of store presence and overall revenue.

According to Scott Oelkers, managing director of Pizzavest Ltd (達美樂披薩股份有限公司), the holding company of Domino's in Taiwan, the average revenue for Taiwanese shops in Taiwan is lower than that of Japan, due to the higher per pie price here.

Domino's in Taiwan * First store opened in 1989 * 102 stores nationwide, the largest of any pizza delivery chain store * Taiwan is Domino's third biggest Asian market after Japan and Australia * Taiwan has the 4th highest amount of Domino's outlets in Asia * Same-store revenue growth is expected to be 7 percent this year

In addition, the price of pizza here is about 30 percent higher than that of South Korea.

Oelkers declined to comment on the company's overall revenue in Taiwan.

Despite the rapid growth of the pizza market, Domino's officials still see large potential here, as market studies indicate that pizza consumption in Taiwan is lower than compared to the US.

Domino's sees its major competition coming from other fast-food brands, such as Pizza Hut, which also delivers.

"Our surveys in Taiwan in recent years have shown that local consumers care more about the quality of services extended to them rather than prices," said Karen Yu (余雯玲), a marketing representative.

Company officials said Dom-ino's has an edge by constantly creating new pizza tastes and side dishes.

In addition, there's guaranteed 30-minute delivery, which comes backed by NT$100 in compensation for delayed orders.

Domino's, now the world's second largest pizza brand, currently has more than 6,000 stores in 63 countries worldwide.