Domino’s boosted by online demand

Domino’s Pizza today said internet orders regularly topped £1 million a day after another year of strong growth for the delivery firm.

The company, which has 726 stores in the UK, Ireland and Germany, received total orders worth £145m in the 13 weeks to Christmas Day, an increase of 9.5 per cent on a year ago and including £53.1m online.

The web boom has been fuelled by the increased use of smartphones, which now drive 12.6 per cent of Domino’s online orders, while hit shows such as The X Factor have kept customers glued to their seats at home.

The company, which has sponsored ITV shows including Red or Black and Britain’s Got Talent, said like-for-like sales in 604 stores open for more than a year were up by 3.6 per cent in the 13-week period. This was achieved despite tough comparisons with a year earlier and the 2.5 per cent rise in VAT in January.

Overall, sales across the year were 9.4 per cent higher at £530.6m.

New chief executive Lance Batchelor said the company entered 2012 with “confidence and optimism” and pledged to continue the growth of the business through new products and locations. It opened 58 mostly franchised stores in the UK and Ireland during 2011, as well as four in Germany.