On its second year, CPK diners get free pizza from a selection of five new flavors for every order of its regular or thin crust pizza. Have your super fill of “made from scratch” pizza choices such as Untraditional Cheese Pizza, Hawaiian Pizza, Wild Mushroom, Garlic Chicken Pizza, and Caprese Pizza.
“National Pizza Day is a promo that we’ve created to send a thanksgiving note and our appreciation for the public’s patronage. It’s been 16 years since we opened the first CPK restaurant in 1997 and it’s still progressing, it’s still expanding. It continues to be successful,” said Manuel Zubiri, vice chairman of Global Restaurant Concepts, Inc. (GRC), the same group behind international franchise brands PF Chang’s, IHOP, Morelli’s Gelato, Gyu-Kaku, and Mad for Garlic. “August 15 is one big thank-you day to all our loyal patrons.”
Last year, the successful celebration had long lines of customers from morning till closing time—all for the love of CPK’s pizzas. Zubiri estimated about 1,000 pizzas sold in each of its nine branches.
This month, patrons have a new outlet to turn with the opening of CPK’s 10th restaurant, which has a fresh design to set the pace for CPK’s new look for all its branches. For a bit of history, the Philippines is the first international franchise to be granted by the US pizza chain. Considered a premium pizza restaurant, CPK continues to dominate this category by opening two more outlets before the year ends.
Brighter and with more light coming in, CPK’s new look has more of California beach vibe to it. “We have about three or four more restaurants scheduled for refurbishing. We want to redesign the restaurant interiors to make it look more like a California pizzeria,” shared Zubiri. “The old restaurants are dominant with the dark and yellow tones of CPK. Now, we want it to be lighter. Even the uniforms of the staff were all black. Now, it’s in a pleasant green color. “The colors of the interiors are earthier. It has beige, white, greens—we feel it’s more acceptable to our patrons.”
As the first franchise brought in by GRCI to the Philippines, Zubiri added that CPK is considered the flagship store of the company especially since it has remained successful since it first entered the Philippines. Another brand, IHOP (International House of Pancakes), which opened its first restaurant at the Bonifacio Global City last year, is currently the company’s strongest brand though, noted Zubiri, “It’s very strong, very popular, it’s a brand to watch out for. One of the powerhouse brands in the market today.”
A second IHOP restaurant is scheduled to open this year at the soon-to-open Ayala Mall along Katipunan Avenue in Quezon City (where the old UPIS used to be). For now, the GRCI vice chairman disclosed, there are plans to bring in more international brands though the priority is to continue expanding outlets based on the company’s commitment to their brand’s principal companies.
Sixteen years later and still growing, It’s all about putting customers first and making prices accessible to consumers, said Zubiri. “Of course, we all love pizzas, chicken, salads, desserts. Filipinos generally love food. But more than that, we kept the price points to a minimum. For us, we don’t mind the 20 percent margin for us long as we are selling our pizzas. We are looking more into volume.
“So we have quality ingredients, we try to give the best service, and make the price points very attractive. It’s always been about putting consumers first. Based on surveys, we’ve in fact penetrated a broader market, which now includes the upper C market. We’ve had studies, showing they’ve dined at CPK with their families and consider CPK besides the popular fast-food chains for their special occasions. It’s also perhaps because the moment one comes in, for instance, that person is not considered as a customer but more of a guest. We try to make the experience more personal as much as possible. I guess that’s also why CPK has been successful throughout its 16 years.”
source: interaksyon.com
