Pizza Hut Facts

Pizza Hut Facts Infographics

The Carney brothers started to franchise their business after a year.

After opening the first Pizza Hut branch in Wichita, Kansas, the Carney brothers started to franchise their business. By 1959, the brothers established a new branch in Topeka, Kansas. From there, the business grew fast and expanded to 6 outlets in the same year.

The Carney brothers sold Pizza Hut to PepsiCo in 1997.

In 1977, the Carney brothers successfully expanded Pizza Hut into a massive food chain with 4,000 branches. In the same year, they saw a golden opportunity to sell their business and sold it PepsiCo for $300 million. Despite this turnover, Frank Carney remained the president of Pizza Hut until 1980.

Pizza Hut co-founder Dan Carney also served as a chairman for a non-profit organization.

When co-founder Dan Carney left Pizza Hut, he kept healthy community ties to his hometown. He also served as the Chairman of the Board of Cerebral Palsy Research Foundation of Kansas.

Dan enjoyed his adult life by playing recreational polo with his son Mike Carney, the president of Fairfield Polo Club in Wichita, Kansas. Carney was only around 46 years old when he and his brother Frank decided to sell Pizza Hut to PepsiCo.

PepsiCo also sold Pizza Hut after 20 years to Tricon Global Restaurants.

After PepsiCo acquired Pizza Hut in 1977, PepsiCo continued to buy several well-known restaurants such as KFC and Taco Bell. PepsiCo also sold these giant chains off when they decided to exit the restaurant business in the year 1997. They sold Pizza Hut to Tricon Global Restaurants, which is currently known as Yum! Brands, Inc.

Pizza Hut is not directly listed in the stock market.

Today, Pizza Hut, KFC, Taco Bell, WingStreet, Banh Shop, and The Habit Burger Grill are grouped under Yum! Brands, Inc. led by CEO Greg Creed. The New York Stock Exchange lists the company under the stock code: YUM.

The longest-operating Pizza Hut restaurant was in Aggieville, Manhattan, Kansas.

Before it closed in 2015, Pizza Hut’s Aggieville branch operated for almost 55 years. Thus, this branch in Manhattan, Kansas takes the cake as the longest-operating Pizza Hut branch in the world.

Closing Aggieville Pizza Hut was one of the toughest decisions for the company.

Over the decades, the booming pizza business led to Aggieville Pizza Hut’s bittersweet ending. After much deliberation, the CEO’s decided that the branch wasn’t equipped to stand against the location’s rising competition.

According to the company, closing it was one of the toughest decisions they’ve had to make, but the financial side of the business far outweighed the history of the place.

The first Pizza Hut pizza was delivered in a three-wheeled scooter.

Pizza Hut delivered its first pizzas in Aggieville, Kansas through a three-wheeled scooter. The owner had the pizzas delivered to Aggieville bars to sell it. During this time, pizza deliveries were unheard of. However, the trend clearly took off and became a universal thing we enjoy today.

The first Pizza Hut restaurant became a museum.

The first Pizza Hut restaurant was transferred to Wichita State University and turned it into a museum. In a surprising feat, the building was uprooted from the ground of its original location to the university grounds. Since then, the museum has housed memorabilia from the very first Pizza Hut restaurant.

Pizza Hut Perfume exists.

As a commemoration of 100,000 Facebook fans of Pizza Hut Canada, the company released a limited edition Pizza Hut Perfume. Smelling like cheese and grease may seem unappealing, but the perfume actually features the aroma of freshly baked, hand-tossed dough. Grab a similar scent for yourself and smell like the snack that you are here.

The Pizza Hut Perfume started from a joke.

Pizza Hut Canada’s marketing firm posted a joke on the Pizza Hut Canada fan page Facebook asking, “Do you love the smell of a box of Pizza Hut pizza being opened? We thought so. If that smell was a perfume, what would it be called?”

The post in question received thousands of responses. Eventually, the company decided to release the product for a limited amount of time.

There is a Twitter account that posts pictures of the former Pizza Hut restaurants.

‘Used to Be a Pizza Hut’ is a Twitter account dedicated to finding former Pizza Hut restaurants. Used to Be a Pizza Hut joined Twitter in 2013, currently having 8,667 Followers. You can follow them through the handle: @UTBAPH.

Pizza Hut started its Book it! campaign in the mid-'80s.

Pizza Hut introduced the “Book it!” campaign in the mid-’80s. The campaign aimed to encourage children to read in schools by offering an incentive program with free pizzas.

The company granted a Pizza Hut certificate (redeemable for a Personal Pan Pizza) to students who accomplish reading goals, as well as throwing a pizza party for the classroom that reads the most books.

Pizza Hut's co-founder Frank Carney joined to another pizza company.

When Frank Carney left Pizza Hut in the 80s, he looked for another business and landed on Papa John’s in 1994. By the age of 63, Carney had established 133 Papa John’s branches. Currently, Papa John’s ranks as the fourth largest pizza company in the United States.

Papa John's "took advantage" of Pizza Hut's legal claims in the '90s.

When Pizza Hut had its legal struggles in the late 90s, Papa John’s aired a commercial emphasizing Pizza Hut’s struggle. The advertisement featured a scene with Frank Carney wearing a Papa John’s apron, claiming that he found a better pizza.

Pizza Hut wanted their logo to appear on the moon.

In 1999, Pizza Hut wanted to advertise by using a laser to have its logo appear on the moon. However, they have to drop the idea after learning that the logo had to be as big as Texas to be visible from Earth. Had they gone through with it, the giant laser would’ve cost them millions of dollars.

Pizza Hut was the first pizza company to deliver in outer space.

In 2001, Pizza Hut made its longest journey yet when it delivered a pizza to the  International Space Station (ISS). Prior to delivery, the pizza underwent a rigorous process to retain its freshness by the time it reached Russian cosmonaut, Yuri Usachov.

The best selling Pizza Hut pizza is the Mozzarella Stuffed Crust Pizza.

Introduced in 1995, the mozzarella stuffed crust pizza remains Pizza Hut’s bestseller to this day. Eventually, the company developed different varieties such as other toppings and stuffings added to the crust.

Pizza Hut's second best-selling pizza is the Supreme Pizza.

It may not be the crowd’s first pick, but Pizza Hut’s Supreme Pizza has also remains a classic staple. Supreme Pizza features six delightful  toppings such as seasoned pork, pepperoni, beef, bell pepper, mushrooms, and onions.

Bacon Spinach Alfredo Pizza uses a different kind of crust.

This flavorful, rich pizza has creamy garlic sauce topped with spinach, bacon, and mushrooms. Aside from these toppings, its salted pretzel crust makes it stand out from your usual pizza.

Pizza Hut released the Chicken-Bacon Parmesan Supreme Pizza in 2014.

Instead of a traditional marinara-based sauce, Pizza Hut’s Chicken-Bacon Parmesan pizza features a creamy garlic romano sauce. The caramelized parmesan cheese crust is topped with succulent chicken meat, freshly diced tomatoes, and bacon.

Pizza Hut collaborated with IKEA to create the Swedish Meatball Pizza.

In 2020, Pizza Hut partnered with retail giant IKEA to bring two crowd favorites into one, releasing the Swedish Meatball Pizza.

Pizza Hut popularized the pan pizza.

Pizza Hut pioneered the thin to thick style pan pizza in the 60s using deep pans. From there, many customers liked the pan pizza, with its popularity remaining till the present. Recently, Pizza Hut modified the “Original Pan Pizza”  recipe to make the crust crispier.

Pizza Hut offers gluten-free pizza.

For people with gluten sensitivities, Pizza Hut offers a gluten-free pizza in over 2,800 stores in the U.S. Pizza Hut uses Udi’s Gluten-Free crusts available in cheese or pepperoni flavor. The company plans to launch it in other branches based on customer demand.

Pizza Hut store types vary with location.

Pizza Hut has many different restaurant set-ups depending on the area. The first Pizza Hut was a family-style dine-in restaurant. Nowadays, the company offers storefront delivery, take-out locations, and combinations of dine-in options.

Yum Brands China was established in 2015.

In October 2015, Yum! Brands Inc decided to form a separate, publicly-traded company which is now known as Yum Brands China – with its stock ticker symbol, YUMC.

Generally, huge companies do this because they want better management and maximize their resources. Now known as Yum China, this entity manages Pizza Hut, KFC, Taco Bell, East Dawning, Little Sheep, Huang Ji Huang, and COFFii & JOY in over 1,000 cities and towns across mainland China.

Pizza Hut is one of the largest food chains in India.

In India, Yum! Brands Inc operates through three franchise partners and those are Burman Hospitality, RJ Corp, and Sapphire Foods. These franchise partners are behind the growth of Pizza Hut, KFC, and Taco Bell in the country. Although recently, Domino’s took the throne from Pizza Hut in pizza sales through its super fast and innovative delivery and hyper-aggressive expansions, Pizza Hut is still one of the country’s most favorite brands.

Pizza Hut used to have a mascot.

The old Pizza Hut mascot, “Pizza Pete,” served as the company’s logo before adopting its iconic red roof logo in 1969. Pizza Pete was a mustached cartoon man wearing a chef’s hat, apron, and neckerchief.

Until the 70s, Pizza Hut featured Pizza Pete on all advertisements and merchandise.

Pizza Hut joined the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' concert tour and album release.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are known for their love for pizzas. Looking at the opportunity to promote the business, Pizza Hut spent approximately $20 million on advertising and marketing campaigns for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles during the concert tour and album release of “Coming Out of Their Shells.”

The company created 'Pizza Hut Electric Kids Oven' for kids.

During the mid-70s, the company released the ‘Pizza Hut Electric Kids Oven’ as promotional items. The Pizza Hut electric kids oven allowed kids to bake small Pizza Hut pizzas from a 60-watt light bulb.

Although the Pizza Hut original has long been phased out, you can still try your hand at making your own pizzas here.

Pizza Hut paid more than $1 million for a 30-foot-wide ad.

Pizza Hut may not have been able to advertise on the moon, but it still came close. In 1999, Pizza Hut paid more than $1 million for a placement on a 200-foot Russian Proton rocket.

The out-of-this-world advertisement featured a 30-foot-wide ad of their logo. Mike Rawlings, the Former Chief Executive of the company, spearheaded the idea when he proposed putting the Pizza Hut logo on a space rocket.

Pizza Hut Vegan pizza launched in 2017.

When Pizza Hut offered vegan choices off the menu that allows the customers to create their own pizza, it generated positive feedback from the customers. By customizing the pizza, customers can then create lower-calorie alternatives to their usual orders.

Pizza Hut UK created Vegan Jack and Cheese Pizza.

In 2019, Pizza Hut UK created Vegan Jack and Cheese Pizza with Violife Vegan Cheese, a vegan cheese alternative. Pizza Hut’s vegan options also expanded to appetizers like Quorn-based fried nuggets (a plant-based protein) and desserts like cheesecake.

Pizza Hut once offered an engagement package on Valentine’s Day.

Back in the year 2012, Pizza Hut marketed an engagement package that included a limousine service, fireworks show, a red ruby ring, flowers, videographer, and photographer for $10,010. According to Pizza Hut’s spokesperson, they received more than 500 serious inquires within just a few hours after its launch.

The engagement package also included a dinner box.

Wondering why there was an extra $10 on the Pizza Hut’s $10,010 engagement package? The extra $10 was for Pizza Hut’s dinner box that included a medium one-topping rectangular pan pizza, five breadsticks with marinara sauce and 10 cinnamon sticks with a sweet icing cup all in one box.

Pizza Hut is one of the world's biggest cheese consumers.

Since one of the major ingredients of pizza is dairy, the company consumes around 3% of the U.S. cheese production. Every year, Pizza Hut uses more than 300 million pounds of cheese, making it one of the world’s biggest cheese consumers.

There are many theories for Pizza Hut's name.

Even though the company’s website states that the founding brothers named it Pizza Hut because their signage space had only enough room for eight letters, other theories surround Pizza Hut’s namesake. A popular theory is that one of the founders’ wives saw their first restaurant as a little hut, thus calling it Pizza Hut.

Pizza Hut became Pasta Hut on April Fools’ Day.

Pizza Hut in the United States sent emails on April 1, 2008, to advertise their pasta menu. The message stated, “Pasta so good, we changed our name to Pasta Hut!” Pizza Hut employed this marketing strategy as an April Fools’ Day prank that lasted throughout April.

On top of that, the Pizza Hut office in Dallas changed its logo to Pasta Hut. This name change became an opportunity to give promotion to the new Tuscani Pasta Line and other new items in the Pizza Hut menu.

Pizza Hut New Zealand offers "vitamin pizza."

Pizza Hut New Zealand serves a Marmite-stuffed pizza which they call CheeZeeMite. This pizza incorporates German scientist Justus von Liebig’s spread, notable for its polarizing flavor and its B vitamin content including the supplemental vitamin B12. Unilever currently mass produces Marmite which is closely comparable to Australia’s Vegemite Spread.

Pizza Hut started its rebranding in 2014.

In 2012, Pizza Hut sales faced a declining trend, which is why the company decided to rebrand in November 2014. Aside from a revamped logo and store layout, Pizza Hut expanded the menu by introducing 11 new specialty pizzas and crust flavors.

Pizza Hut changed its slogan several times.

Throughout the years, Pizza Hut has switched up its slogan many times. Pizza Hut’s slogans varied from: “Gather ’round the good stuff,” “Now You’re Eating!” “Your Favorites. Your Pizza Hut,” “Make it great,” “Makin’ it great!” and “You’ll love the stuff we’re made of.”

Pizza Hut's current slogan says it all.

Although Pizza Hut has gone through many slogan changes before, their current slogan simply states:  “No One Outpizzas the Hut.”

Several organizations recognize Pizza Hut as one of the most influential brands.

In many industries, Pizza Hut is considered an influential brand. In 2017, the UK-based company, Richtopia, placed Pizza Hut in 24th place among the 200 Most Influential Brands in the World.

Pizza Hut helps farms.

Since its opening, Pizza Hut prioritized the quality of ingredients, and with its exponential growth came profit for their partner farmers too. Pizza Hut takes pride in their all-natural ingredients sourced from U.S. farmers.

Pizza Hut launched its iconic logo in 1967.

Pizza Hut first launched its iconic logo of a straight red roof over the company’s name in 1967. After almost 50 years, Pizza Hut changed its logo in 1999. Most recently, Pizza Hut revamped its logo into a curvier font and a slanted roof in 2014.

Pizza Hut decided to bring back its old logo in 2019.

Over the decades, Pizza Hut has changed and modified its logo more than five times. However, in June 2019, the company decided to bring back its iconic “Red Roof” that was used from 1967 to 1999.

Pizza Hut plans to close 500 stores by 2021.

In August 2019, the company announced its plan to close around 500 of its 7,400 plus dine-in restaurants in the United States by mid-2021.

Some Pizza Hut restaurants offer buffets.

Some of the full-sized restaurants of Pizza Hut feature buffets with eat-all-you-can pizza, pasta, salad, and desserts.

Pizza Hut has tried a unique restaurant concept before.

In 1975, Pizza Hut began testing different concepts in its restaurant such as Colonial Style houses that featured a truck with a salad bar inside. However, this concept only lasted for about five years.

Pizza Hut created an Italian Bistro concept.

In 2004, Pizza Hut introduced its Italian Bistro concept. Around fifty Pizza Hut restaurants in the United States served Italian-themed dishes like chicken Pomodoro, penne pasta, and toasted sandwiches.

Richard D. Burke designed Pizza Hut's vintage “Red Roof”.

In 1964, architect Richard D. Burke designed Pizza Hut’s iconic “Red Roof” to distinguish the restaurant’s brand from its competition.

A Chicagoan architect created the famous Pizza Hut building style.

An architect from Chicago, George Lindstrom created the famous Pizza Hut building style in 1963 and the company used it in 1969.

Pizza Hut sponsored the movie Back to the Future Part II.

In 1989, Pizza Hut sponsored the movie, Back to the Future Part II. The film paid homage to its sponsor with a scene that featured an extra putting a small Pizza Hut pizza in the oven. After a short while, the woman took the pizza out of the oven, which transformed from a tiny pizza to a family-sized pizza.

Pizza Hut offered “Solar Shades” as a promotional item for Back To The Future II.

To further promote Back to the Future Part II, Pizza Hut also gave away a pair of futuristic sunglasses called “Solar Shades” upon buying a pizza for a limited time.

Pizza Hut slices pack a lot of calories.

If you are trying to cut calories, then eating several slices of Pizza Hut might not be for you. A single slice of Large Pepperoni Pizza, for instance, has about 270 calories. That may not sound a lot, but if you’re going to eat more than two slices, the calories will add up.

A single slice of Pizza Hut pizza has a 28g of carbs, 12g of fat, 35 mg of cholesterol. Although it’s rich in protein at 11g, each slice also has a hefty 910 mg of sodium.

Pizza Hut's Veggie Lover’s Small Thin ‘n Crispy offers a healthier alternative.

If you just can’t hold off on pizza, the Veggie Lover’s Small Thin ‘n Crispy may be a better choice. Each slice only has 100 calories, 3g fat, 1.5g saturated fat, 14g carbs, 2g sugar, and 4g protein. Finally, it only has 250 mg of sodium compared to the average Pepperoni pizza’s 910 mg .

Pizza Huts launched its Wingstreet menu in 2003.

In 2003, Yum! Brands launched the first Wingstreet branch alongside an existing Pizza Hut restaurant. As of 2015, Wingstreet has already opened its 5,000th joint in the U.S. and Canada.

The Naked Bone-In Wings has around 80 calories per serving.

The Naked Bone-In Wings from Wingstreet has around 80 calories, 9g of protein, 4.5g fat, 1g saturated fat, 160 mg sodium, and 0g carbs per wing.

Most Pizza Hut branches keep their pasta menu simple.

Except for Pizza Hut restaurants with the Italian Bistro concept, most of its branches keep the pasta menu deliciously simple. In general, Pizza Huts customers can choose from creamy alfredo or marinara, with or without meat.

They can order it through a solo pasta meal, a meal for two, or a full pan, and these come with a side of garlic bread or breadsticks.

Pizza Hut serves different desserts depending on its location.

Pizza Hut’s dessert menu varies with each location, with seasonal ingredients influencing the menu items. However, some of its signature desserts are hot chocolate brownies, cinnamon bites, chocolate cake, Hershey’s cookies, and cheesecake.

Pizza Hut has several low sodium dishes.

Consuming too much sodium can cause many health complications, such as kidney stones and liver problems. For people on a low-sodium diet, the best dishes to order from Pizza Hut are Garlic Knots and Smoky Garlic Bone-in or Bone-Out Chicken Wings.

For pizzas, the low-sodium options are Small Hand-Tossed Ultimate Cheese Lover’s Pizza, Veggie Lover’s Personal Pan Pizza, and Small Thin ‘n Crispy Supreme Pizza.

The Original Pan Backyard BBQ Chicken Pizza is good for a low-fat diet.

Too much fat in your diet won’t just make you gain weight, but it could actually clog your arteries, among other health problems. As such, Pizza Hut’s low-fat dishes include: Original Breadsticks with no cheese, Small Original Pan Backyard BBQ Chicken Pizza, Buffalo Chicken Personal Pan Pizza, Honey BBQ Bone-in or Bone-Out Chicken Wings, and Cinnabon Mini Cinnamon Rolls.

Pizza Hut's Small Hand-Tossed Hawaiian Chicken Pizza is a low-carb option.

Eating too much carbs can make you pack on the pounds faster than the time it takes for your pizza delivery to arrive. Thankfully, Pizza Hut’s low-carb choices include: Garden Salad with no dressing, Meat-Lover’s Personal Pan Pizza, Small Thin ‘n Crispy Veggie Lover’s Pizza, Small Hand-Tossed Hawaiian Chicken Pizza, and Lemon Pepper Bone-In Wings.

Pizza Hut's Cheese Personal Pan Pizza only has 3g of sugar.

The most diabetes-friendly dishes of Pizza Hut are: Side Caesar Salad with no dressing, Small Hand-Tossed Supreme Pizza, Cheese Personal Pan Pizza, Naked Traditional Bone-In/Bone-Out Chicken Wings, and Small Thin ‘n Crispy Chicken-Bacon-Parmesan Pizza.

The Meaty P’Zone of Pizza Hut is one of the least nutritious alternatives you can eat.

The 18” Meat Lover’s Pizza and Meaty P’Zone of Pizza Hut are amongst the highest calorie meals of Pizza Hut and probably the least nutritious items on the menu.

At 500 calories, 24g fat, 51g carbohydrates, and 1,100g of sodium per slice, the 18” Meat Lover’s Pizza may sound like a dream for your belly, but a nightmare for your arteries. Meanwhile, the Meaty P’Zone has 690 calories with 1,730 mg of sodium, and 29 grams of fat per slice.

Pizza Hut UK offers free vouchers for late deliveries.

Pizza Hut UK aims to deliver online orders within 30 minutes. If the order is 10 minutes late, they give out vouchers that entitle customers to a £10 discount for the next delivery. The timer starts once the order is received by the Pizza Hut delivery store, and ends once the order arrives at your doorstep.

One of the world's greatest football coaches worked at Pizza Hut once.

Former football head coach of the New York Giants and Hall of Famer Bill Parcells once worked as a manager in Pizza Hut. In fact, Parcells did so well managing his boss’ Pizza Hut franchise that the owner begged for him to stay in the business. However, Parcells went for a different playing field as the head coach of the New York Giants, leading them to two Super Bowl titles.

Bill Parcells worked for Pizza Hut in his college years.

Before going into coaching, Parcells considered going to law school, or continuing his part-time college job to work full-time for Pizza Hut.

The former First Lady, Barbara Bush ordered the first Pizza Hut delivery to the White House.

The first Pizza Hut ever ordered to the White House was delivered in 1989. The wife of former President George H. W. Bush, Barbara Bush ordered Pizza Hut for a charity event that hosted 200 children.

Pizza Hut restaurants can have a "second life".

Like most successful food chains such as Mcdonald’s, some branches of these fast food giants need to close and relocate from time to time due to business demands.

However, there are cases of old Pizza Hut restaurants maintaining its design and location even with new business owners. By preserving the structure of Pizza Hut under a different name, many would call them “the second life of Pizza hut.” Moreover, there are around 500 former Pizza Hut restaurants that operate today under a different restaurant name.

"Used To Be Pizza Hut" also has a website.

Aside from Twitter, Used to Be A Pizza Hut also has a blog website. If you see an old Pizza Hut store operating in its “second life” under a different store name, you can submit the photos of the establishment that used to be Pizza Hut at usedtobeapizzahut.blogspot.com

A woman once escaped a hostage situation by using the Pizza Hut mobile app.

By ordering a Pizza Hut through her mobile phone and adding a note that she’s asking for help, the Pizza Hut crew acted immediately upon receiving the order. The suspect took the phone away from the woman after ordering the food. Allegedly, the suspect was the woman’s boyfriend who had a knife and threatened to kill her. The woman escaped safely when the authorities delivered the pizza to their house.

Mikhail Gorbachev appeared in a Pizza Hut commercial.

In 1997, the Former President of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev and his granddaughter Anastasia Virganskaya appeared in a Pizza Hut commercial. Mikhail Gorbachev is a highly controversial leader, with some people praising him for several reforms that benefited Russia, while some people viewing the opposite. How’s that for unlikely Pizza Hut facts?

Pizza Hut Moscow was an instant success.

Moscow, Russia opened its first Pizza Hut in the year 1990. During those years, the best pizzas in Moscow were topped with tuna, sardines, salmon, mackerel, and onion. The branch immediately became the most popular in the country, thus making it a globally-renowned Pizza Hut branch.

Donald Trump also starred in a Pizza Hut commercial.

Donald Trump and his ex-wife, Ivana Trump also appeared in a commercial of Pizza Hut in the year 1995.

Pizza Hut casts many famous personalities for its commercials.

Aside from Donald Trump and Mikhail Gorbachev, Pizza Hut also featured other famous icons such as Ringo Starr, Elijah Wood, and James Franco.

Pizza Hut earned a Guinness World Record as the “Highest Altitude Pizza Delivery”.

A group of Pizza Hut crew hiked with experienced guides to reach the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro in four days. This record was spearheaded by Pizza Hut Africa’s General Manager, Randall Blackford. Upon achieving this world record, the pepperoni pizza traveled approximately 745 kilometers from May 5 to May 8, 2016, making it  Guinness’ “Highest Altitude Pizza Delivery.”.

Pizza Hut offered golden pizzas for Super Bowl's 50th anniversary.

The company celebrated Super Bowl’s 50th anniversary by giving away pizzas covered with real gold. This golden pizza was a special version of Stuffed Garlic Knots Pizza containing edible 24-carat gold.

Pizza Hut holds a National Pizza Championship each year.

Every year, the company hosts a National Pizza Championship where Pizza Hut chefs in the United States battle it out for five rounds to see who can make the best pizza.

You can watch Pizza Hut's old training video on YouTube.

The vintage Pizza Hut Training Video that was produced in the year 1988 was uploaded on YouTube. Although the video’s introduction states that it’s confidential, the video has yet to be taken down.

Pizza Hut reached its 100th country in 2016.

Tanzania, East Africa is the 100th country that the company established branches in. Thrilled to be of service to 100 countries, Pizza Hut celebrated the milestone by claiming the Guinness World Record for the highest pizza delivery on land.

Pizza Hut has raised money for Tanzanian schools.

Aside from the record-breaking delivery, Pizza Hut’s first franchise in Tanzania became an opportunity for the company to help locals. They raised a sum of money to help Msasani Primary School in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania for the local communities. The company used the proceeds for school upgrades and teachers’ training that benefited over 1,000 students.

Pizza Hut uses 7 million pounds of pepperoni per year.

Every year around 3 billion pizzas are sold in the United States, with children aged 3 to 11 preferring pizza for lunch or dinner. Since Pepperoni is one of the most popular pizza toppings in Pizza Hut, the company uses 7 million pounds of pepperoni each year.

Pizza Hut continues to introduce new toppings.

Aside from the world-famous pepperoni toppings, the other best selling toppings of Pizza Hut are sausage, ham, mushrooms, bacon, chicken, beef, olives, jalapenos, red & green peppers, and onions.

Pizza Hut creates a menu out of the home town's favorites.

In every Pizza Hut restaurant in the world, some of its menus would tend to blend and adapt to its locals’ taste. For example, Pizza Hut Japan offers bulgogi pizza, and the Philippines with hot dog crust pizza. On the other side of the globe, Canada has poutine pizza, Germany has macaroni & cheese pizza, with regional favorites offered everywhere.

Pizza Hut Hong Kong released the Blockbuster Box in 2015.

Pizza Hut Hong Kong has created a one of a kind marketing paraphernalia to promote movie night. In 2015, the company released ‘The Blockbuster Box’ which featured a Pizza Hut box that can turn into a projector through a mobile phone.

Pizza Hut grew popular in a time where franchising was still unheard of.

In the 1950’s, franchising did not have a wide reach in businesses as it does today. A professor at Wichita State University even rejected Dan Carney’s thesis proposal for franchising as the topic of his master’s thesis. However, the Carney brothers still expanded Pizza Hut through heavy franchising.

Pizza Hut's initial fee for franchising was $100 and a monthly royalty of $100.

Although the first Pizza Hut was a huge hit, the brothers knew that it would be almost impossible for them to expand rapidly without franchisees. Soon, the brothers began franchising the name of Pizza Hut with a franchise fee of $100 and a monthly royalty of $100.

Some of the first Pizza Hut franchisees were college friends of the Carney brothers.

Several college friends of the Carney brothers who had helped them out in their first Pizza Hut restaurant soon decided to become legitimate franchisees themselves.

Pizza Hut created a huge pizza thrower in 2014.

As part of Pizza Hut’s promotions for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in 2014, the company built a 12 feet tall and 9 feet wide pizza thrower using the chassis of an old pick-up truck that has been modified to look like a high-quality movie prop. According to Jared Drinkwater, the senior marketing director of Pizza Hut, the pizza thrower was one of the coolest things Pizza Hut has done.

Pizza Hut launched its Stuffed Cheez-It in 2019.

Pizza Hut partnered with Cheez-It (a Kellogg Company) for its Stuffed Cheez-It Pizza, which officially launched in 2019. Made up of four square cheesy pastries, the Stuffed Cheez-It is an appetizer that comes with a side of marinara dipping sauce.

Pizza Hut's partnership with Kellogs enabled them to create a plant-based topping.

The Kelloggs-Pizza Hut team up enabled Pizza Hut restaurants to serve plant-based toppings as well. Its new menu featured an Incogmeato plant-based sausage, hand-tossed crust topped with onions, banana peppers, and mushrooms.

Pizza Hut recently launched its Garden Specialty Pizza.

According to Pizza Hut, its  partnership with the Kellog Company gave Pizza Hut a chance to bring more choices to people. Pizza Hut released the first “100% meat-free pizza” on its menu as the Garden Specialty Pizza.

Pizza Hut sneakers can be used to order pizza.

In March 2018, Pizza Hut released 64 pairs of Bluetooth-enabled high-top sneakers that can order a large two-topping pizza. Called ‘Pie Tops,’ the sneakers feature a button connected to Pizza Hut Delivery online, which allows the wearer to place an order at the press of a button.

Pizza Hut partnered with major sports teams in 2015 and 2018.

In 2015, the company signed a deal with the NBA team, Dallas Mavericks. Later in 2018, it signed a sponsorship deal to be the official pizza sponsor for the National Football League.

Pizza Hut has faced backlash for its unhealthy menu items.

For instance, in 2007, Pizza Hut was criticized in the UK for serving meals that exceed the daily recommended amount of sodium for an adult.

Since the controversy, Pizza Hut has reduced sodium content by 15% for all menu items.

High salt or sodium content has been a problem not just by Pizza Hut but almost all of the well-known and big restaurants and fast foods around the world. In response to the criticism, Pizza Hut reduced its menu’s sodium content by 15% to meet the Food Standards Agency’s recommended salt intake.