KUALA LUMPUR: Pizza Hut Malaysia, the country’s No. 1 pizza chain, recently kicked-off its 35th Anniversary celebrations at its newly refurbished restaurant in Pavilion here with some big announcements as it charts the course for its next 35 years.
The event marked Pizza Hut’s 35-year journey of bringing smiles to Malaysians nationwide, paving the way for a new chapter in Pizza Hut’s growth. This new chapter is marked with the launch of Pizza Hut’s new brand identity, refurbishment and expansion of restaurants and a fresh commitment to putting smiles on customers faces.
Speaking at the event, Merrill Pereyra, Chief Executive Officer of QSR Brands (M) Holdings Bhd said: “Pizza Hut started from humble beginnings in 1982 with our first restaurant in Plaza Yow Chuan.”
“We’ve come a long way since then, with almost 400 outlets nationwide, and we’ve stayed true to our commitment of bringing smiles to Malaysian customers through freshly-baked pizza. Now we’re strengthening the brand for our next chapter of growth and everything we do this year is focused on two words: “Easy” and “Better.”
“Our refreshed brand mission is to make it easy for consumers to get a better pizza and that is our focus. “Easy” means easy to order, quick to arrive and affordable so more people can enjoy our pizzas. “Better” speaks to our passion to deliver a quality product, and a fantastic experience,” he added.
Vipul Chawla, the Managing Director of Pizza Hut Asia Pacific added, “A hearty congratulations to Chairman, Dato’ Kamaruzzaman Abu Kassim, and CEO, Merrill Pereyra, as well as their wonderful team for all the hard work that has grown Pizza Hut over the years.
“It will continue to evolve through the development of casual dining and delivery stores models catering to younger millennials seeking greater meal convenience. We look forward to see Pizza Hut Malaysia grow from strength to strength.
“This is a wonderful opportunity not just to celebrate the success of Pizza Hut Malaysia but also to sincerely thank our Malaysian customers for their continued support for 35 years.”
The debut of Pizza Hut’s new brand identity and mission comes with an exciting slew of initiatives that will drive the brand’s growth and presence this year.
Pereyra explained, “There are three big things going on as we roll out our new brand identity. Firstly, we are upgrading our restaurants with a better, enhanced dine-in experience.
“Secondly, we are evolving our digital experience to make it easier for customers to order a great pizza.
“Finally, we are strengthening our marketing so it’s more relevant, fun and delivers an overall better experience.”
Malaysians can look forward to a makeover at Pizza Hut dine-in restaurants where customers can expect a fresh new and upgraded brand
experience.
Pizza Hut aims to upgrade a total of 100 restaurants by the end of 2017 with 50 dine-in restaurants already completed to reflect the new brand identity and dine-in concept.
“Our restaurants are a core part of our business; they are the real difference that Pizza Hut brings. We believe there’s real joy in sharing a great pizza; creating precious moments with families and friends,” said Pereyra.
“We strive to make this better at our restaurants with full-service, proper dining ware, and an expanded menu. With the new enhanced dine-in experience, dining at Pizza Hut only gets better.”
Apart from its new look, Pizza Hut will also roll out a new digital experience for its customers. This experience begins with a newly developed website and mobile app to make it as easy as possible for our customers to get a great pizza.
“Pizza Hut has always been innovative in its approach to enrich our customers’ experience,” said Pereyra.
“For example, way back in 1990, we launched our 755-25-25 hotline for home delivery giving customers a new and easy way to enjoy fresh oven-baked pizzas from the comfort of their homes. We’ve kept on evolving and customers can order online from the convenience of their mobile devices.”
“This year, we are taking the total digital experience a step further with upgraded digital touch points. Our new website, launched on 5 May, makes browsing, order placement and payment much easier.
“And we are already seeing results from our mobile website with nearly 100 percent increase in visits and 150 percent increase in new users. We will soon launch our mobile app to complement the website.
“We want to deliver a pleasurable and easy customer experience and we plan to do this by using the latest technology available. Stay tuned for more news throughout the year,” he added.
In conjunction with its 35th Anniversary celebrations, Pizza Hut launched its 35 Bites Challenge where consumers can attempt to finish a large pizza in 35 bites within 5 minutes and be rewarded with a large pizza for free.
“It is truly special to have been 35 years in Malaysia and for this, we have to thank our customers. So, in addition to the big changes we’re making with the brand, our restaurants and our digital experience, we will also reward customers through promotions and contests.”
“The 35 Bites Challenge is just the first of these and the perfect excuse for consumers to step into our stores and try one of our freshly baked pizzas. We’ve made the mechanics simple and fun, but at the heart of this, we want our customers to have a good time with family and friends, to have moments they can treasure,” he
added.
