Domino’s: fast food giant pulls out of Italy, the home of pizza

The business that managed Domino’s Pizza’s sites in Italy filed for bankruptcy, and as a result, sources claim that Domino’s Pizza’s final outlets there have been closed.

According to Bloomberg, which first reported the story, franchise owner ePizza SpA was impacted by the pandemic.

Since 2015, when it first opened shop in the city of pizza, Domino’s has had a hard time drawing in customers.

When the fast food juggernaut announced it was leaving the country, some social media users celebrated.

Coronavirus restrictions harmed EPizza SpA, which first filed for bankruptcy at the start of April.

According to the company, “ePizza has been greatly damaged by the COVID-19 outbreak and resultant and ongoing financial restraints.”

Additionally, the company claimed that as more traditional restaurants started using delivery apps, the competition was increasing.

In the bankruptcy procedure, the business earned 90 days of creditor protection. But that defence ran out last month.

The Italian business has already started to scale down its operations since 2020, and deliveries stopped at the end of July.

The company operated 23 outlets in Italy directly as of 2020 and six more through sub-franchising, according to the bankruptcy filings.

The UK and Ireland together make up by far the largest Domino’s market in Europe, with more than 1,200 sites.

The largest pizza chain in the world is primarily controlled by franchisees with more than 18,300 stores spread over more than 90 nations.

Seven years ago, Domino’s set out to set itself apart from the nation’s established pizza makers by providing a full home delivery service and a distinctive menu that included US-style toppings like pineapple.

However, it faced increasing competition during the outbreak as nearby restaurants joined food delivery services like Deliveroo and Just Eat.

The news that Domino’s was leaving the pizza capital was praised by several social media users.

I’ve long wondered how Domino’s could operate in New Jersey, let alone Italy, as the journalist Dave Jamieson wrote on Twitter.

Another Twitter user named Alicia Smith compared opening a Domino’s in Italy to trying to sell snow at the North Pole.