For a long time, the average pizza lover was considered a frat boy, gamer or beer bellied football fan. It is the image that still comes to the minds of many people when they think about hardcore football fans. But that seemingly cannot be further from the truth. According to surveys in the past few years, millennials are getting in on the trend. The pizza lover image used to be a predominantly male thing, but surveys show that up to 63 percent of pizza lovers are female. Out of this number, up to 41 percent of them are millennials. Another stereotype that has been shattered is that the pizza lover is an unhealthy individual. The numbers show that up to 68 percent of the pizza lovers exercise twice or thrice every week, with most of them falling between the ages of 25 and 44. Only 5 percent are older.
One thing is for sure, the pizza market keeps on changing, but not always in the direction that some people want it to go. There is bad news especially for the smaller, independent operators, those who have 10 stores or less. Since 2014, their sales numbers have been dropping regularly, with some even closing their doors altogether. The signs point to a shrinking market, and they now make up around 39 percent of all sales. One of the possible reasons suggested for this drop is the fact that some of these small time operators have been slow to adjust to technologies and modern techniques like online and mobile app ordering and delivery tracking. According to some of the biggest players, their online orders are now as much, if not more, than their other sales channels. In fact, online customers, it has been found, spend more on their orders than those that buy through other channels. Pizza places in Charlestown SC should also remember that customers who have placed their orders online have a 67 percent chance of returning.
Even with a gloomy outlook for the smaller players, the industry has still been growing. The growth has been attributed to the strengthening economy, but still remains lower than what one would expect post-recession.
