There were versions that were spicy, others that begged for flavoured oil to be added to the base and a slew designed to figure out which combination of cheeses would nail the “ooey gooey factor.”
“With single-digit market share for a player of our size, that’s really not tapping into the potential in the afternoon.”Tim Hortons is hoping to turn that around when it follows up a two-year flatbread pizza pilot with the national launch of cheese, pepperoni, “bacon everything” and chicken Parmesan varieties Wednesday, a month before its sixtieth anniversary.
Fresh eggs were launched, Boston creme doughnuts got more Venetian cream and apple fritters more fruit. Coffee cup lids were even redesigned to reduce spillage and boost sustainability.The second step emerged when Tims started looking for “white space opportunities” that exist in its expansive menu of baked goods, beverages and sandwiches, Bagozzi said.
When the bowls and wraps attracted customers during weekday lunches, Tims decided it was ready to court more afternoon and dinner diners with flatbread pizza, which it also sees as weekend- and family-friendly.It tested potential flatbread pizzas for two years — one of its longest pilot periods in recent history — in markets like Winnipeg, Calgary and Mississauga, Ont., and learned a lot.“We took that back and said … ‘Maybe having spice right off the bat isn’t the right way to launch.