I found this in my drafts and it contains scanned text from old newspapers on Trove, but I’ve not recorded all the information such as where it was published or the authors, so sorry about that. I’m assuming this was from when I was researching my Pizza Haven or 90s Pizza Hut articles.
CANBERRA BUSINESS Pizza wars: going for the big slice
The next time you buy a pizza, check out the topping. As Canberra’s pizza businesses battle to be the one satisfying your appetite, exactly what is nestled among the mozzarella, and how much of it there is, has to become a keenly contested issue.
In the past two years, the increasingly crowded pizza market in Canberra has seen a proliferation of aggressive marketing campaigns. with price cutting and cheap offers the order of the day. Pizza Haven Kingston’s weekend manager Michelle Ryan attributes this to the breaking of one chain’s monopoly: “Pizza Hut really had a monopoly before… prices were stable. Then Pizza Haven took over Capital Dial-aPizza, that’s when the prices dropped.”
The fall in the price of a pizza has been dramatic. Ms Ryan said “Prices have come down at least 25 per cent In the last two years. Our prices are the lowest that they’ve ever been… I can’t see it going any lower than it is. We can offer new deals, but apart from that 1 really don’t know where we go from
here.” The owner of Le Rendezvous in Manuka, Bruce Macklc, says”
The bigger operators are looking at grabbing market share and once they’ve got their market share, prices will start to rise again. Particularly for some of the suburban restaurants it’s crunch time.” Ms Ryan admits that small operations are at a disadvantage in tussles for market share. “We’ve really got the advertising power to back it (the price cutting) up whereas the smaller places get caught in the crossfire.”
The other big player, Pizza Hut, sees things differently. Regional marketing director Cheryl Herron denied there was a price war. Its introduction in May last year of an all-you-can-eat offer for $4.95 at lunch and $6.95 at dinner was not in response to competitive pressure, she said.
“Our US parent had been doing the bar concept and suggested that we try it,” Ms Herron said. Similarly, Pizza Hut’s two-for-one delivery offer Introduced in February last year was not an attempt to match their competitors but was done in the name of delivering “permanent value”, she said. “We’ve taken some costs out and delivered that value to the customer. “Everybody thinks it’s just about price but it’s not. “Thoro’s a price at which, below that, you think, what’s been taken out?” This is a long-term business building strategy, not a short-term grab for market share.” Ms Herron asserted the logic of her company’s strategy by claiming that Pizza Hut’s market share had grown nationally since last May, a trend she felt was reflected in their Canberra business. For local owner-operators, the chain stores’ tactics pose a threat to their viability.
The manager of Speedy’s Pizza, George Kyrgious said: “These big bloke9 is cutting the throats of just about anybody else. They’re killing us. I’m sure they’re not making any money out of it so I don’t know what’s the point …they absolutely kill any small business in Canberra, for deliveries.”
“Where the smaller guys can’t compete, shove them out of the market. It’s always what the big guys do … it’s a bottleneck- for us in here.” Steve Mastoris, of Erindale Hot Food Bar Takeaway, (seen at left in his “workshop”), agreed. “I’m just surviving,” he said. “I cut the hours [of my casual staff] down from six hours down to four or one day of the week.” Matching the chain store’s prices was not an option. “I would be out of the shop in a month. I discount my pizzas from time to time, just for my customers.”
Mr Mastoris was unsure of the next move for his business. Was he considering doing deliveries? “At this stage not. But later maybe. (I’m) already here 12 to 13 hours and don’t want to be here 15 to 16 hours, which if you deliver, you have to be here late.” Mr Kyrgious said he had kept his business alive by upgrading quality 15 months ago, because “competing against the others, we couldn’t do it, so we just went for better quality”. Mr Mackie likewise said- he was “not interested in competing head to head”. “We believe the experience [at our restaurant] is a much more enjoyable experience and we believe we’ve got a better product. At the moment we seem to be succeeding in retaining our customers and growing,” he said.’
Targeting overseas opportunities
For the first time in Australia, a compact and comprehensive seminar has been prepared to explain the financial-assistance programs available to organisations to help them win business from the international project market. The seminars, which will start In Canberra, will subsequently be held throughout Australia. If your organisation is active in pursuing international projects, this seminar may be for you. The first program that will be covered in this seminar is the Urban Export Fund. The UEF was recently revised to better meet the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises in the housing and urban development sector. The Department of Housing and Regional Development has made available $800,000.
Interest-free loans to help create export opportunities for Australian companies. The UEF is administered by Austrade and is modelled on the Asian Infrastructure Consortia Program. The Asian Infrastructure Consortia Program is a joint initiative of the Department of Industry Science and Technology and Austrade, The AICP has a $12 million fund, over four years, providing interest-free loans to consortia for large Asian Infrastructure projects. Austrade is the project manager for the fund. At the seminar, you will hear the following speakers: $ Elizabeth Hore, director urban export section of the Department of Housing and Regional Development, will explain the background, objectives and loan details for the Urban Export Fund, Ken Macintosh, manager of A1CP, Department of Industry Science and Technology, will explain the background, objectives and requirements for consortia and companies as well as the loan details for the Asian Infrastructure Consortia Program.
O Warron Stalder, manager of projects, Austrade, will describe the key elements of the finding Criteria and assessment process for both funds. You are urged to register your interest as early as possible.
Ministers launch joint govt exhibition By ABAN CONTRACTOR
An exhibition encouraging ACT businesses to tap into the lucrative government market, worth $30 billion, was officially opened last Thursday. Meet the Buyers, a joint Commonwealth-ACT Government trade show, Is part of the $3 million Commonwealth Supplier Development Program and provides a venue for department purchasing officers to meet private sector suppliers. Officially opened by Federal Minister for Administrative Services, Frank Walker, and ACT Attorney-General, Gary Humphries, it cost $200,000 to stage and the 20 exhibitors included federal and ACT departments, representatives from Canberra’s schools, hospitals, fire service, and the Institute of Technology.
A review of major pizza chains published in Woroni – Australian National University student paper in 1998:
Pizza; is the cornerstone of any student’s diet. With cooking more hassle than it’s worth, and thecupboard invariably bare, dial-a-pizza is the only food to turn to — especially when you couldn’t be bothered going further than the phone. So here is an encompassing guide to home-delivered pizzas in Canberra. Pizza Hut (phone 13 11 66) is the biggest pizza chain on earth, but not the best. For $16.95 you get two large delivered, but this only includes their standard range of pizzas, which are very crappy. To get a decent pizza you need to pay extra. The supreme range is an extra $1, Bellissimo $2 and stuffed crust another $2, which is all a bit of a con. Dominos (131 888) will deliver two large for $16.95, with the Edge pizzas, where “the topping goes all the way to the edge” costing $1 extra. Woroni reckons it isn’t worth bothering with the Edge, because Dominos make pretty scummy pizzas. Pizza Haven (131 241) costs $17.95 for two large or $19.95 for two large and two pasta side dishes. This is more expensive than the others but you get what you pay for, and the extra dollar gets you heaps better pizzas. Eagle Boys (131 433) deliver two large for $15.95. Cheap and nasty you think? No way. Eagle Boys make good pizzas and get the Woroni thumbs up for making the best home-delivered pizzas in Canberra.
