Pizza Pizza bets big on sauce

Pizza Pizza is launching a new limited time offer (LTO) to reach students in the back-to-school and college season.

The new product, Dip Keg, is a mini-keg filled with Pizza Pizza’s creamy garlic sauce, which has a pump to make it easier for consumers to sauce their slices.

Adrian Fuoco, chief marketing officer at Pizza Pizza, tells strategy that the back-to-school season is important for the brand in terms of sales. The team has also seen that developing a relationship with young people is key, as this demo tends to be loyal to the brand, says Fuoco.

“Our positioning, ‘Everyone Deserves Pizza,’ is at its core a belief that great pizza for a great price helps bring people together for a good time. So developing a fun item like this, which can add to the party, aligns nicely with that commitment,” he says.

The new product also helps the brand encourage people to visit its stores at a time when high food prices are making them hesitant to go out to eat, Fuoco adds.

The Dip Keg is being promoted through a campaign created by Zulu Alpha Kilo, which includes OLV, social media ads and display, with media planning by Media Experts and PR managed by spPR.

A co-branded partnership with Tabasco

For the first time, Pizza Pizza has partnered with Tabasco to launch new co-branded LTOs.

The pizza chain’s latest offerings include Spice Meter Pizza, a pizza with Tabasco red pepper sauce in the centre and the brand’s Scorpion sauce on the outer edge; TB&J pizza with Tabasco sauce, bacon and jam; the TB&J Chicken Sandwich and Combo with the same ingredients; Wings and Bites with Scorpion sauce; Shaker Fries with Tabasco sauce flavour; and Spicy Dough Bites with Sriracha. The items launched at Pizza Pizza locations across Canada last week. 

The partnership with Tabasco follows other LTOs introduced by the QSR in recent months that, along with recent campaign work from the brand, is aimed at reaching a broader customer base.

In April, Pizza Pizza expanded its “Everyone Deserves Pizza” platform with a seasonal campaign targeting cannabis consumers. As part of the campaign, the brand launched new pre-roll strombolis and a Hot Box that offered incognito storage for cannabis and a lighter. In February, the company launched its Valentine’s Day offer, which allowed participating locations to offer a free medium pizza with one topping to anyone accompanied by a partner between certain hours. And in January, in response to the rise in food prices, the company reintroduced a fixed-price promotion promising to deliver an XL pizza with four toppings at $17.99 all year long.

Meanwhile, Tabasco has been expanding its flavour offerings. The latest addition to its range of sauces came in March with the Buffalo Style flavour.