Pizza Hut is being re-named Pasta Hut to give the business a healthy, modern makeover. Or is it?
In a slick piece of PR, Pizza Hut's boss Alasdair Murdoch says the chain is being designed to attract new customers in an £35m revamp. In future, customers will be able to order tomato and mozzarella mezzaluna and crayfish arrabiata as well as unhealthy pizzas.
Now, making a fast-food chain slimming its menu is good news. But not everything is what it seems. It turns out only 30 of Pizza Hut's UK outlets are being renamed Pasta Hut - and then only "temporarily." Canny Alasdair, eh?
PS. Would branding consultants have ever recommended keeping the name 'hut'?
What kind of pasta are these huts going to made of? The walls will be all soggy and the roofs will cave in.
Posted by: Neil McGowan | Monday, 06 October 2008 at 09:02 PM
i think calling it Pasta Hut is a stupid name. Pizza Hut has been going for years. Generations of families have visited and tasted the delights of Pizza Huts deep pans, thin & Crispy, and of course not forgetting The irresistable Ice Cream Factory. Pizza Hut is well known throughout the UK and is a legend among pizzareras. So,Please do not spoil this with childish and pathetic names. Its unecessary and not needed. Thanks :-)
Posted by: tulula | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 03:57 PM
why bother changing pizza hut to pasta hut? many people know pizza hut and are still going to buy pizzas regardless of the pasta dishes. come on how many people go to pizza hut and buy a pasta? exactly.
Posted by: amie | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 04:26 PM
i think pizza hut SHOULDN'T change its name. i mean... you don't seen mcdonalds changing its name when it adds a new item to the menu. ANY business actually. i guess it WOULD get a sort of attention, but in the wrong way. pizza hut should stay pizza hut, and i'll stay a customer =P
Posted by: kalvin | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 04:47 PM
PASTA HUT IS STUPID. do they really think calling it this will promote better because of 'healthy' foods?. OF COURSE NOT. PIZZA HUT RULES
Posted by: pasta hut is gay | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 04:51 PM
This is stupid, people love it as Pizza Hut, and want to go there for the pizza, not for a plain boring pasta!!!
Posted by: michael | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 06:46 PM
This is hilarious me and another very high brow friend went to pizz hut and had pasta, we said they should call it pasta hut. Obviously we are better than you peasants who think it isnt good
Posted by: James Mole | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 08:03 PM
a pasta hut, a pasta hut, kentucky fried turkey and a pasta hut...it just doesn't have the same ring.
Posted by: jessysquire | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 08:58 PM
Hmm. I must make a note of this-in my diary.
Posted by: Samuel Pepys | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 09:00 PM
this is such a stupid idea... ont heir own website more than 70% of people voted against it... what idiots.... if there not prediominatently a pizza takeout place anymore then i for one will take my custom elsewhere... i hope whoever thought of this idea is an idiot they should be fired!
Posted by: scottyd | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 09:09 PM
It maybe thought of, as a stupid idea, but hey, any surge of publicity is good publicity. Should Mc'D's changed the name, albeit temporarily in a percentage of properties, how much extra revenue would it generate, due to intrigue? It sure wouldn't deter the customers if they realised they could still get the same old menu, but with an enhanced offering! For all those that believe it is a bad idea, how often do you go, and knowing you can still get the cheap lunch buffet, will you boycott it? I don't think so! :-)
Posted by: Scosgrove | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 09:28 PM
im 12 years old and when i wants a pizza i thinks pizza hut but now its rubbish calling it pasta hut i have changed my ways i prefer domino pizza now
Posted by: dan nutbeam | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 09:57 PM
I dont think its a bad idea, everyone each day is eating less pizzas due to the high calories, pasta is much better for future ongoing bussines....
Posted by: Dritero Shala | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 09:58 PM
I think its ridiculous I have worked there for years and feel stupid having to explain to people continously that it is not a permanent change just thought up by people who paper push and have no idea what is like to serve customers. Also Alister is one of the rudest men I have ever met in my life and deserves no attention.
Posted by: Anonamus | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 10:01 PM
We have two Pizza Hut's within a mile radius. Neither deliver, whoever heard of that, a pizza place that does not deliver......ridiculous.
Posted by: Richard | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 10:19 PM
It seems obvious to me...
heres a quick breakdown:
Pasta: healthy diet food, eat by athletes.
Hut: a recognised brand 'Pizza hut' keeping the hut means the company also manmages to keep its identity.
Posted by: ben | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 10:19 PM
...plus, how can they say that calling it pasta hut will give it a 'healthy' image?
since when was pasta healthy?
Ha!
Posted by: alice | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 10:19 PM
I love Crayfish Arrabiata.
They should have called it; " No Longer Called Pizza Hut But Crayfish Arrabiata Hut' instead!
Posted by: liam oleary | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 10:24 PM
it doesent sound that bad thier get new custurmers
Posted by: pasta king | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 10:30 PM
mmm pasta
Posted by: pasta prince | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 10:32 PM
pasta rules pizzza great
Posted by: pasta queen | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 10:33 PM
I work for Pizza Hut nd i think if they wanna change it they should call it The Hut. It sounds loads cooler. And as for the comment earlier bout the pen pushers i totally agree. The ppl at head office DO NOT know wot its like workin on a shift thats really busy and only letting us have 2 staff on. We all really struggle at the best of times than they run 50% off promotions and again we take double the money and are STILL alllowed no more staff. It is a joke. Maybe they should put some of the 35million pound spent on advertising into the business to give us more staff on shifts and actually show us mere little thought of staff that they do care at least a little bit for our wellbeing!!
Posted by: UnNamed | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 11:31 PM
I wonder if they will deliver a bowl of Arrabiata... Hmmmm... Its political correctness gone mad again. If I want Pasta, I'll buy some, boil it up and eat it in 10 mins time... If I want a Pizza, I'll go to Domino's.
Posted by: Jetzt | Tuesday, 07 October 2008 at 11:39 PM
This is hilarious. They paid millions for this! How did this one get past the board, where they all sniffing solvents at the time!!!!
So instead of selling tastelss pizza they've now decided to sell tasteless pasta instead, on a temporary basis. Maybe they couldn't afford to change the second part of the name. I give them a few suggestions for free; Pasta Shack, Pasta Tent, mind you Pasta Bungalow has got a nice ring to it.
Nice work if you can get,this rebranding malarky. I must say I was inspired! Theres a chipper round the corner from me called Mr Chips, I've offered my services as a rebranding consultant, for the paltry sum of 200K I've suggested he rebrand to: Mr Fish.
Genius.
Posted by: Bitwize | Wednesday, 08 October 2008 at 09:43 AM
This is a ridiculous idea. Pizza Hut is trusted name. The most important thing is that first and foremost it is a pizza resteraunt. Pasta was introduced as an an unnecesary extra for people who could not appreciate what was on offer. The chain's official poll to see if the name change is a good idea as of right now is 86% for Pizza Hut to a pathetic 14% for Pasta Hut. This idea will be rejected by the public, no need to worry.
Posted by: Jamie Miller | Wednesday, 08 October 2008 at 10:05 PM
Why do so many people seem to believe that pasta is healthy anyway?!
Posted by: JB52 | Thursday, 09 October 2008 at 09:15 AM
What does it matter. The food is not changing you are just getting MORE options! the name is nothing to do with the quality!
Posted by: Lee Porteous | Thursday, 09 October 2008 at 11:11 AM
coco pops or choco crispies? pizza hut or pasta hut?
its just a knee jerk reaction once more to media manipulation and brainwashing. Once the world has moved onto the next 'big thing' that the general public are not allowed to do anymore and away from obesity/eating, then i get the impression that the name will revert back to pizza hut which is a brand which consumers are familiar with. Its just like what happened when coco pops changed to choco crispies just because some dim wit thought it was racist and the media went to town on the topic about 10 years ago. and when it blew over the name changed back to what people were familiar with.
Posted by: dave f | Thursday, 09 October 2008 at 12:41 PM
I think that the whole re-branding of pizza hut to pasta hut is actually a good idea albeit it is still hilarious that it went past the board and cost them 35M.
but think for a second how many people will go to 'pasta hut' out of intrigue. just because they rebranded it they will have a larger amount of people who will go to see whats changed and what hasn't and that in effects creates a larger income for the people at the top.
so I guess that although this idea probably came from a monkey with a typewriter or something to that effect it is probably a great idea. GO MR MONKEY!
Posted by: Jake B | Thursday, 09 October 2008 at 02:05 PM
i think its a good name, and great marketing over time it it will improve sales of pasta though still sell great pizza and boost profits, dont understand why people freak out, its only a name, they haven replaced the menu
get over it
Posted by: bobby | Thursday, 09 October 2008 at 03:08 PM
why cant the make a sort of sister branch and call it Pasta House! keep the Pizza Huts as they are :) so then people can go both
x
Posted by: Sara | Thursday, 09 October 2008 at 07:39 PM
you guys are all getting so dramatic about it!
its only for 28days
and it will always be pizza hut in our hearts
chill your beans pizza hut lovers!
xx
Posted by: Sophie | Thursday, 09 October 2008 at 08:40 PM
This IS a PR stunt. I have heard that from an employee. There is no intetntion to call it Pasta Hut long term. All will be revealed in due course. Well done to them though, they have got a lot of people thinking.
Posted by: Spag Bol | Friday, 10 October 2008 at 09:59 PM
I love Pizza hut pizzas, they are the best as far as i'm concerned. What bugs me now though having been on the web is that the american restaurants have some other yummy things on their menus we dont have in the uk... boo hoo!
Wish they delivered too thats a bummer. As for the name you ask well...it has to be said we brits and i think i can speak for most of us thinks it STINKS!!!
Posted by: marly | Friday, 10 October 2008 at 11:35 PM
To quote William Shakespeare, of all people:
"A Pizza Hut, by any other name, will still taste as...err, it always did."
Publicity stunt. It's not likely to affect the clientèle; anyone who wants something marginally more upmarket will continue to flock to Pizza Express anyway...x
Posted by: Annabelle Lovell | Saturday, 11 October 2008 at 06:39 PM
Oh come on you lot!!!!!! remember Opal Fruits? Marks & Spencer? Marathon? What differance does it make. Except of course for the tens of thousands of Pizza buying Brits all talking about it. I believe the marketing guys have captured the attention of the nation, which at the end of it all is what they are paid to do. And as for 35 million on changing some signs on a handful of businesses - come on, WAKE UP! No business is going to be spending that on changing signage in this current economic climate. I believe that is a loose figure attached to refitting the 800 odd businesses across the UK?
Or, Do the signs really have gold inlayed into the wording????? Some people really cannot see the wood for the trees
Posted by: A N Other | Sunday, 12 October 2008 at 11:08 AM
Just don't ever piss-off George Lucas and his dozens-strong army of copyright infringement lawyers. A local coffee drive-thru set up in a long-ago defunct Photo-Mat dared to call itself "Java the Hut" and was slapped with a cease and desist by Lucas six-months after it opened. Guess he's gotta pay the bills somehow now that he's out of fresh ideas.
Why not plan to allow for future menu changes: Just call it "Food Hut" or "Edible Products Hut." @commenter Neil McGowan, ha ha! uncooked elbow macaroni and Elmer's glue of course! protected by a glaze of spray-on clear-coat polyurethane.
-from San Francisco, CA, USA
Posted by: Brucee Lucy | Sunday, 12 October 2008 at 07:59 PM
Based on two pseudo-scientific nonsenses, one of calorie counting, (as if the human body has no thermogenic effect nor other homeo-stasis abilities), and two, of a so-called food pyramid, pasta is now deemed healthy. Let it be known that grains contain lectins that de-sensitise cell mambranes, forcing more insulin production and therefore causing obesity and increasing diabetes risk. Also that grains are high in carbohydrates, that apart from causing obesity, raise tri-glyceride levels, in turn causing arterial narrowing. Mainstream science, running 50 years behind, and controlled by big food and big farma are not injterested in these factual matters. You have to be interested in them if you wish to be healthy. You need to make the changes on your own, in these days of controlled press, and controlled doctors, dieticians and sports trainers. So if they want you to believe that pasta sounds healthier than pizza, dont be fooled, at least the pizza had some cheese on it, (and dietary cholesterol does NOT cause heart disease). !
Posted by: ThomasT | Monday, 13 October 2008 at 04:11 AM
who actually really cares? Does it really affect all your lives so much? pizza hut have had the exact response they wanted, boring mindless people who have nothing better to talk about discussing their restaraunt. well done pizza hut
Posted by: christine | Tuesday, 14 October 2008 at 10:03 AM
To be honest pasta and pizza are both only healthy in moderation and not at all if your a fat lazy slob tht never exercises.
Its true pasta is given to athletes but this is because it is a carb, carbs will give you energy and will easily be burnt off by doing exercise.. but if you don't burn carbs off they will eventually turn into fat. Think about pizza huts main target market.. overweight families who like to get more for their money. Chances are it will not make any differences to the size of their waists.
Also pastas like carbonara are made from double cream and mozarella cheese.. please tell me how this is healthy.
I don't believe that changing their name to something as stupid as pasta hut will make a lot of difference to their profits... After all people including me love pizza and know pizza hut for the great pizzas that they make and you cannot make them as good yourself or buy a supermarket version that tastes as nice.
Pasta takes just minutes to make and costs about £2 and tastes just as good home made. i am starting to believe that pizza hut have changed their name and menu becuase of the recession as pasta costs less and so they can sell it for less. Which is effective because during a recession less people will be able to treat themselves to a meal out/ take away.
I LOVE PIZZA HUT AS IT IS
Posted by: Shmoo | Tuesday, 14 October 2008 at 11:19 AM
spag bol, what do you mean by all will be revealed in due time if I may ask?
also as I said before although people still seem to think that it is a bad idea... if product sales in a specific area fall, then there will be more advertising for that product so that it starts to sell more, and changing the name is just a marketing campaign... and an effective one at that.
The whole nation is having a petty (and slightly humorous) pizza hut vs pasta hut debate and it is making more and more people aware that they actually sell pasta.
because of this publicity stunt pizza hut are selling more pasta and getting people to talk to each other about the whole name change.
after contemplating the whole name change ordeal i think that it was a brilliant idea as the 35M they spent on the name change has got everyone talking about pizza hut and also its going to have a large impact on england which will have people talking about it for a while.
as we talk about the name change and build up our intruige we will all eventually end up going in for a look and to try the pasta, so at the end they are making a large profit.
and as they say "the end justifies the means"
Posted by: jake b | Monday, 20 October 2008 at 10:09 AM
Is my prior comment really the closing comment for this debate or can people just not be bothered to read it?
I am waiting for someone to contradict me so that I have something to do during my business studies lesson.
Posted by: jake b | Wednesday, 19 November 2008 at 12:06 PM
Pizza Hut will never ever re-brand fully as Pasta Hut, unless bankruptcy is their desire, and the big-wigs know this. People choosing to use Pizza Hut want a pizza and don't are about the calories involved. When I worked at Pizza Hut we sold hundreds of pizza's and a couple of pasta's a day. If you want a pasta meal, those types generally go to an Italian restaurant, with family or friends for a sit down evening event lasting an hour or two.
Pizza Hut/Pasta Hut wants bums on seat for 45mins or so max, a completely different working principle.
Trust me this change will never happen.
Posted by: jamie | Sunday, 23 November 2008 at 09:55 PM
They have re-branded pizza hut temporarily as an advertising scheme, and a few weeks ago when i visited the pizza hut near me i noticed that there were a lot more people ordering pasta than there used to be, pizza hut wont go bankrupt through the name change, they will sell more pasta and then when they change their name back to pizza hut they will have a larger target market than before.
the only aim of re-branding pizza hut is to make people aware that they sell pasta aswell as pizza
Posted by: Jake b | Tuesday, 25 November 2008 at 10:51 AM