Little Caesar’s didn’t just get it right a little they got it right a lot when they listened to their customers.
In 1997 they piloted a $5.00 Pizza: It was a one day sale where you could get a large pizza with pepperoni for only $5.00. The response was huge. Instead of just chalking it up to another great promotional product they listened to their customers. VOC = Voice Of the Customer and it said “Build it for $5.00 and they will come.”
For the next several years Little Caesar’s continued to refine their costs, pare down their offerings, simplify their menu and rolled out the Hot-N-Ready everywhere.
In 2004, Little Caesars reaffirmed its value-oriented place in the market by making the $5 Hot-N-Ready pizza a mainstay on its menu. In 2007 and 2008, Little Caesars was named the "best value in America" of all quick-service restaurant chains for its Hot-N-Ready pizza
Little Caesar’s knows exactly who their clients are and are focused on doing one thing and they do it really well! This not only allows them to excel at their core business but also to ease the pressure on their operations.
Instead of 15 pizza toppings to choose from …there are only 2. They do offer bread sticks and soda however after speaking to one of the managers the Hot-N-Ready accounts for nearly 95% of his sales.
For you Lean people out there let’s break this down.
Each operation has succeeded in JIT (Just In Time) processing by having a pull system that replenishes the cycle stock of ready to sell pizzas. When 2 pizza’s are pulled for an order they shout : “2 IN” to replenish the stock. For seasonal demand variation AKA: Football games they will increase their cycle stock and in some instance carry safety stock.
