A POPULAR pizza-loving boy band has been tapped to endorse the venerable brand Pizza Hut as a way of appealing to a younger market.
Industrialist Jorge Araneta, Chair of the Araneta Group, personally picked the new Pizza Hut endorsers, P-Pop boy band SB19.
“It’s really looking for a right channel, a right way to communicate our strategy, and Pizza Hut’s strategy really, is to make the brand younger. How [else] can we make the brand younger than by tying up, collaborating, with the P-pop number one band?” said Pizza Hut Philippines’ Head of Marketing Raymund Nobleza, during a press conference on July 26.
“They had a concert in the middle of the pandemic, in Araneta Coliseum. It was a virtual concert — not a lot of people inside the Coliseum then,” said PPI Holdings, Inc. COO Chacha Juinio during the press conference. Still, the virtual tickets sold out. “We were so impressed,” she said. “Mr. Araneta, who’s not present today, was the one who was most impressed, and said: ‘Get them’,” she said.
Jorge Araneta is the chair of the Araneta group, which owns PPI Holdings, Inc., which holds the Philippine franchises for Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and Dairy Queen. “Our chairman is on-trend, all the time,” said Ms. Juinio.
The band, with members John Paulo Nase, Josh Santos, Stell Ajero, Felip Suson, and Justin de Dios (all otherwise known by their stage names Pablo, Josh, Stell, Ken, and Justin), was launched in 2018.
SB19 member Pablo said, “When we were still trainees, after an event, talagang pagod na pagod kami (we would be really tired). Iyong parang comfort food namin (was) always pizza. Pizza Hut, naeenjoy ng lahat. (Our comfort food was always pizza. Pizza Hut, enjoyed by all).”
The endorsement deal comes with a television commercial and a song, “Make It Great.” Their commercial (with the signature announcement of the Pizza Hut delivery number) premiered on July 31, during a commercial break on the Bb. Pilipinas Grand Coronation Night.
As part of the deal, the band members will be showcased on social media, said Mr. Nobleza. They will also be releasing SB19-branded meals in Pizza Hut restaurants, as requested by fans. Ms. Juinio said, “If we want to stay long in this industry, you’ve got to go for the youth.”
Discussing the continued trust in the brand, Ms. Juinio noted that “Pizza Hut has been in the Philippines for the last 38 years. Longevity-wise, we started the pizza industry in the Philippines. We will make sure that we outclass anyone.
“We’ve made it great for a long, long time, and we are known for being consistent and delivering quickly, and fast, and great,” she said. “It has consistently been the same quality for the last 38 years, and we’re very proud of that.” — Joseph L. Garcia
