QSR July 2023

DEPARTMENT FRANCHISE FORWARD

Sustainability, but in a Box A growing international franchise rethinks how pizza should be delivered. BY SATYNE DONER

well-adjusted to local markets, and its take on pizza delivery has put a larger focus on sustain ability than most brands. “We dreamed about launching reusable packaging [for our pizza] and thought that Dubai would be a great place to test it since it is a very innovative and flexible market,” says Dodo Brands founder Fyodor Ovchinnikov. “Customers in Dubai are also quite concerned about the environment.” To execute this dream, Ovchinnikov teamed up with PIZZycle, a German startup that created a minimalistic container that can be reused up to 500 times, saving up to 500 disposable pizza boxes. Tests were conducted by both Dodo Pizza and PIZZycle to ensure pizzas were kept warm and in good condition during delivery. Right now, the packaging keeps food warm for an hour. According to PIZZycle, over 3 million single-use pizza boxes have been saved by reusable containers. The idea sprung to life in March 2020 from two design students, and by 2022, the innovation was ready for use. The zero-waste containers are made from poly propylene, which is durable and 100 percent

REUSABLE PACKAGING

Reusable containers have saved more than 3 million single-use boxes, according to PIZZycle.

I n the last 60 years, the disposable cardboard box has become a pillar of the pizza segment. Domino’s alone can deliver up to 1.5 million pizzas every day. It begs the question of how much waste these boxes create each year, piling up inside residential gar bage cans and college campus dumpsters. Dodo Pizza wants to reimagine the way guests consume the staple dish. The franchise chain operates in 17 countries, recently launching reusable pizza boxes for delivery in Dubai. It is the first food and beverage company to offer this option in the Middle East, and the first worldwide to make it free of charge for customers. The concept is known for its digital-first approach and new sustainabil ity initiatives. Dodo Pizza falls under the Dodo Brands umbrella, a collec tion of foodservice concepts that are tech-powered and poised to franchise globally. These digital-first brands include Dodo Pizza, Doner 42 kebabs, and Drinkit coffee. Despite its technology-first model, Dodo Pizza has opted out of working with third-party delivery aggregators. Instead, the com pany prefers direct contact with customers. Its dine-in areas are

recyclable. This partnership has only been in the works for about three months, Ovchinnikov says. Ten percent of all orders in Dubai are already completed with the reusable boxes, which Ovchinnikov counts as “quite a good result.” “We’ve already gained a lot of insight about how to operate with these reusable boxes, so we are planning to continue this experi ment,” Ovchinnikov says. “Once we get all our operating systems to work with this packaging, we will start in other markets.” The idea for Dodo Brands, and eventually Dodo Pizza, started in a Russian city in 2011. Ovchinnikov spearheaded a mission to create a company centered around technology, transparency, and eventually sustainability. “My idea was to build a digital franchise to combine pizza delivery with an IT system to help control operational quality and efficiency,” Ovchinnikov says. “We were working on developing our own information system.” After seeking coders to join his startup and become partners, Ovchinnikov began to develop Dodo IS, a suite CONTINUED ON PAGE 40

DODO PIZZA (3), ECO ENVIRONMENT EARTH ICON: ADOBE STOCK / YURII

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JULY 2023 | QSR | www.qsrmagazine.com