With costs going up on almost everything these days, and with the cost of mozzarella cheese in particular climbing to record levels, we are certainly aware that an interesting situation is developing in regards to pizza prices. 

The instinctive reactions to this situation are predictable:
Our analysis is that about half of the restaurants will be raising their pizza prices, and about half will be skimping on the amount of toppings, the quality of toppings, or both.

So, which way will Flying Pie go?  The answer (obviously) is… neither!

Our response to the situation is unorthodox (and perhaps unique).  While the bulk of the industry will cut quality or raise pizza prices, we are going to try a different tactic:  Talk with our customers and fans about it, and see if they will bring enough of their friends into our restaurants to make it work well via increased volume, to offset the increased costs.

In January '08 we printed 84k menus - 10k more than usual for our crews to share with our interested customers.  As our crews are happily explaining, “We’re doing an experiment: if you’ll bring enough friends, we won’t have to raise the prices; would you like an extra menu?”

We know that having the restaurant be busy on both sides of the counter is less negotiable than anything else. We are hopeful that by forming an alliance with our crews and customers, we can serve our best interests well, while also serving our customers well.

Our anticipated path to success will include gaining customers from places that react to the increased costs with the predictable responses detailed above.  We expect that by picking up the most attentive folks from other places, we can make enough money to remain successful, and probably have a lot of fun all the while. It is fun to find ways to serve people that include delighting them.

We know that the financial pressure on EVERYONE right now is pretty intense and that it may not be a short-term issue. 

That is why we will hold our pizza prices the same and determine whether this experiment proves to be bravely visionary or pure folly.  Obviously, we’re focused on orchestrating a terrific success!