Why is a coffee restaurant menu adding pizza?

Tim Hortons has started testing pizza for a limited time at more than 20 stores in the Greater Toronto Area, a step aimed at the lunch and dinner dayparts. The chain, long tied to coffee and donuts, has already added burgers, hot dogs, milkshakes, soda, and juice, moving away from its traditional coffee positioning.

Public relations director Michael Oliveira said in an email statement that the pizza is still in an early testing stage, and stores continue to try creative items. Parent company executives point to afternoon food as a large opportunity. For Canadians used to a Double Double and a donut in the morning, the coffee restaurant menu now looks quite different.

Tim Hortons, known for coffee and donuts, recently launched pizza products for a limited time at some stores in the Greater Toronto Area of Canada, sparking widespread discussion among netizens. This move is seen as an important step for Tims to test the lunch and dinner market, and also marks the brand's gradual departure from its traditional coffee and dining positioning. Previously, Tims had successively added non-coffee products such as burgers, hot dogs, and milkshakes, and the recent launch of pizza has surprised many consumers. Some netizens expressed support, saying the new product tastes good; others questioned whether the brand is undergoing an "identity crisis," and even joked that the "Back to Basics" plan has been forgotten. Executives of Tims' parent company have pointed out that food offerings in the afternoon period hold huge opportunities, and the pizza test is a continuation of this strategy.

For many Canadians, walking into Tim Hortons in the early morning and ordering a Double Double with a donut has long been a habitual breakfast combination. For a long time, Tims, this coffee chain brand, has been widely known for coffee, donuts, and other fast food items. However, Tims' recent actions have changed many people's fixed impressions of the brand.

Previously, Tims had successively added burgers, hot dogs, milkshakes, soda, juice, and other new items unrelated to coffee and donuts to its menu. When people discovered that Tims had started selling pizza, many netizens said they were shocked.

According to foreign media reports, this chain brand known for coffee and donuts is offering pizza for a limited time at more than 20 stores in the Greater Toronto Area of Canada. This move is part of Tims' trial run, but it is not hard to see that the brand is trying to break through the boundaries of traditional coffee dining and further expand its share in the lunch and dinner market.

Michael Oliveira, public relations director of Tim Hortons, mentioned in an email statement that Tims stores across Canada are trying every day to offer consumers creative products they may be interested in, and this new pizza product is still in the early testing stage.

Some netizens said on the short video platform Douyin that this new product tastes very good and they hope it can remain on the menu. According to the information in the short video, the prices of Tims' new pizza are CAD 7.99 and CAD 6.99 respectively.

Many netizens expressed surprise at Tims' launch of the new pizza product.

One netizen commented that decades ago people might have imagined flying cars on the roads in 2022, but they would never have thought Tims would sell pizza.

Another netizen pointed out whether Tims is undergoing an "identity crisis."

Some netizens also believed that Tims has completely lost its brand characteristics.

Some netizens even joked that Tims' "Back to Basics" plan announced in 2020, focusing on coffee, donuts, and breakfast, seems to have been thrown behind their minds, and now it has even started offering pizza; they cannot wait to eat sushi at Tims next year.

Jose Cil, CEO of Restaurant Brands International, the parent company of Tims, once said at a quarterly conference call that considering the popularity of the Tims brand, Canadians' emphasis on value for money, and the advantages of the lunch product market, food offerings in the afternoon period contain great opportunities.

Image source: Internet

For more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account cafe_style) For professional coffee knowledge exchange, please add WeChat ID kaixinguoguo0925

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.