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Pepperoni-Beer a Hot Combo as Pizza Hut Expands Booze Delivery

Pepperoni-Beer a Hot Combo as Pizza Hut Expands Booze Delivery

(Bloomberg) -- The only combination better than an oven-hot pizza and an ice-cold beer is not having to drive to the store to get them. At least that’s what Pizza Hut’s banking on as it expands its beer delivery program to more than 100 U.S. stores.

The Yum! Brands Inc. chain is rolling out beer delivery to more locations across Arizona and California this month following a successful pilot that began in Phoenix late last year. A partnership with MillerCoors will let the pizza maker waive delivery fees for some six-packs delivered in Arizona, it said.

“In addition to our extensive delivery network, many Pizza Hut restaurants are already licensed to serve and distribute beer, without third party services, additional fees or extended wait times,” chief marketing officer Zipporah Allen said in a statement. “Expanding the pilot program is a natural way for Pizza Hut to get our customers the perfect pizza and beer combo they’re craving, delivered right to their doors.”

A growing number of fast-food chains have been expanding into delivery to keep an increasingly stay-at-home group of customers interested. Panera Bread last year announced plans to bring delivery to its roughly 2,100 restaurants by the end of 2018, while McDonald’s Corp. has tapped Uber Eats to get its burgers into buyers’ homes. Delivery has long been a staple of pizza companies, but the alcohol component brings it to a new level, said Mark Peterson, a Pizza Hut franchisee in Arizona.

“Offering beer delivery has enabled us to provide a service to our customers that others cannot, which has proven to be successful during the first few months of the pilot,” he said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Anne Riley Moffat in New York at ariley17@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Crayton Harrison at tharrison5@bloomberg.net, Jonathan Roeder

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