Domino's Pizza Celebrates 25th Anniversary of International Operations

ANN ARBOR, Mich., June 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Domino's Pizza , the recognized world leader in pizza delivery, is celebrating the 25th anniversary of the first Domino's Pizza store opened outside the United States.

Founded in 1960 in the U.S. college town of Ypsilanti, Michigan, Domino's Pizza grew steadily throughout the United States in its first 20 years, but it was a pioneering young entrepreneur who saw the potential to deliver pizza to hungry customers in Canada. He opened his first store in Winnipeg in the spring of 1983, thus transforming Domino's Pizza into an international enterprise. A few months later, the first Domino's Pizza store outside of North America opened in Springwood, Queensland, Australia. Domino's Pizza was now operating in two hemispheres.

Domino's Pizza today, through its mostly franchised system, operates over 8,600 stores in more than 55 countries, from Iceland to New Zealand.

"Pizza has proven to be a truly universal food - it's popular everywhere," said David A. Brandon, Domino's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "The growth we've been able to attain is thanks to the incredible collection of franchisees who have joined us in the past 25 years to bring Domino's pizza to millions of customers worldwide.

"In fact," Brandon continued, "if Domino's International division was an independent company, it would be larger than Papa John's, our second largest competitor. That is an indication of the size and scope of this incredible enterprise."

In the first quarter-century of growth, Domino's Pizza International has become a phenomenal business success:

- With more than 3,500 stores outside the U.S., Domino's International division currently accounts for more than 40 percent of the company's global retail sales and 27 percent of its profit from operations. - Through the first fiscal quarter of 2008, Domino's Pizza International marked its 57th consecutive quarter (or, more than 14 years) of positive same store sales growth. - Domino's Pizza is the number one pizza company (by store count and sales) in six major markets: Australia, France, India, Mexico (where Domino's is that nation's largest quick service restaurant chain), Turkey and United Kingdom/Ireland. - Domino's Pizza is the second largest pizza company in South Korea and Taiwan.

Store growth continues to be strong, and in 2008, Domino's Pizza anticipates reaching these store count milestones:

- 500 stores in the United Kingdom and Ireland - 300 stores in Canada - 200 stores in India - 100 stores in Turkey (one of the company's fastest-growing markets)

Domino's Pizza franchisees have opened stores this year in Shanghai, China, and the first Domino's Pizza stores are expected to open this summer in Qatar.

"The beauty of pizza is that, while the base of dough, sauce and cheese remains the same, topping combinations can be tailored to an individual culture's tastes," said Michael Lawton, Domino's Executive Vice President of International. "Understanding and respecting cultures is key to growing internationally. We have found the best way to do that is through our master franchise system, in which local business leaders and entrepreneurs establish the Domino's Pizza brand in their home countries. They take our international brand, and make it local."

Among the popular pizzas around the world are: - The "L'Indienne" from France, featuring Creme Fraiche, mozzarella, provolone and emmental cheeses, roasted chicken or bacon, mushrooms and onions - The "Melt Down" from Ireland, featuring pepper jack cheese and mozzarella, meatballs, red peppers, jalapeno peppers, and yellow mustard - The "Mayo Jaga" from Japan, featuring canned sliced potatoes, canned corn, bacon, onions and Japanese mayonnaise About Domino's Pizza(R)

Founded in 1960, Domino's Pizza is the recognized world leader in pizza delivery. Domino's is listed on the NYSE under the symbol "DPZ." Through its primarily franchised system, Domino's operates a network of 8,641 franchised and Company-owned stores in the United States and more than 55 countries. The Domino's Pizza(R) brand, named a Megabrand by Advertising Age magazine, had global retail sales of over $5.4 billion in 2007, comprised of $3.2 billion domestically and $2.2 billion internationally. During the first quarter of 2008, the Domino's Pizza(R) brand had global retail sales of $1.3 billion, comprised of approximately $735 million domestically and approximately $575 million internationally. Domino's Pizza was named "Chain of the Year" by Pizza Today magazine, the leading publication of the pizza industry and is the "Official Pizza of NASCAR(R)." Customers can place orders online in English and Spanish by visiting http://www.dominos.com/ or from a Web-enabled cell phone by visiting mobile.dominos.com. More information on the Company, in English and Spanish, can be found on the Web at http://www.dominos.com/. Domino's Pizza. You Got 30 Minutes(TM).