If a take out only pizza parlour (no dining-in) offers free delivery, but also offers a 10% discount for pick-up…is the delivery really free or are you paying 10% of the total bill to have it delivered (not including tip)?
Well, if you take six of one and add half a dozen of the other…
Yer pal,
Satan - Commissioner, The Teeming Minions
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Obviously you are paying extra for the delivery. The real question is, is it still legal to advertise “free delivery” in such a case?
This sounds like an old accountants rule of 2/10 net 30.
2% discount if paid in 10 days…full amount due in 30.
Assume the true price to be the 2/10. Assume the price in 30 days to be the price plus 2% for the privilege of waiting.
What if it were a U-Bake pizza and they offered you an additional 10% off to bake at home?
You’re absolutely right, and I think it’s illegal to say that. I’ve seen it on Domino’s.
As a former pizza manager, I have to speak on this…
Most of the time, your delivery is regular price. The carryout is a pick up special. It’s what’s called a SALE PRICE. It’s purely designed to build sales from people who don’t do delivery. If it’s an ALL-THE-TIME deal, then no, it’s not a sale, and you’re being gypped. But if it’s a limited time offer, then it’s just a sale. Deal with it.
It amazed me when I worked pizza how friggin’ CHEAP people could get when it came to pizza:
“It’s a minute late. It’s free then, right?”
“No… it’s only three dollars off”
“When did that change? It used to be free?”
“Oh, about ten years ago”
“Bullshit… I’m going to call your manager, as you’re obviously just ripping me off, and keeping the money for yourself”
“Go right ahead, sir… but it’s still only three dollars off”
Working pizza taught me two things. That the old saying ‘The Customer is Always Right’ is total bullshit, and that people who quote that are usually cheap bastards.
If it’s not a sale and you’re being gypped, it’s to the tune of 11.11111% of the bill! Even worse than you thought 
It’s not illegal and it’s not false advertising. It’s called marketing. A while back some local gas stations began to offer a “cash discount” to encourage people to use cash instead of credit to buy their gas. This makes sense, as the station owner has to pay the credit card companies 2-4% of credit sales. In reality there was no cash discount. The “regular” price was the cash price and you were paying 2-4% more if you used credit. This was made obvious by comparing the cash price at these stations to the regular price at stations who followed the traditional model. “Cash or credit - same price” became the marketing call of the traditional dealers and it earned them more customers. The “cash discount” sales model did not last because of consumer backlash, not because it was illegal.
There is no way that an enforcement agency, even if they were so inclined, could prove which price is the “regular” price. The merchant is free to set his prices as he sees fit.
If the merchant advertised free delivery then charged more than the menu price for delivered pizza, or advertised a 10% discount for pickup but charged more than 90% of the menu price, then it would be false advertising.
Believe it or not, you just can’t trust advertising to be truthful.
I too used to work pizza delivery (actually I’m going back to it soon). I once had someone not answer the door, while their neighbor’s yappy dog yapped. I went to a payphone (pre-cell phone society), and no answer. I returned to the store, and about 5 minutes later they called the store telling the manager I never arrived. So I went back with their pizza, and they tried to tell me I must’ve gone to the wrong door. I said, “No way. That’s the same yappy dog that was here 20 minutes ago.” They still wanted their $3. I gave them exact change for their $20.
Geez, if they’re that cheap, go get a frozen pizza at Safeway for $5 instead of paying $13 for Domino’s. :rolleyes:
I always considered it a discount for picking up your pizza. No one has to take it anywhere. Not a waitress or a delivery guy. No dishes to wash (for them), and no gas in the car to pay for.
Usually on my fliers the price is the regular price of the pizza for dine-in and free (as in no extra charge) delivery. But… you get a 10% discount if you pick it up. Doesn’t seem like a rip-off or a mark up to me.
This thread has more to do with marketing than pizza.
Economics 101, and common sense to boot, tells us all that there is no such thing as free. Take the guy who bags your groceries at the grocery store. You don’t pay him, so the bagging is free to the customer? Of course it isn’t. The added money the merchant has to put into employing the bagger is reflected in the price of the food you buy.
In the pizza context, I’m surprised no one mentioned that even if there’s no charge for the delivery, you still need to tip the poor slob who brought it. Is this board full of cheapskates or what?
If you wanna see cheap bastards, check out the following message boards:
http://www.ugetheard.com
and
http://www.thecomplaintstation.com
I am probably Public Enemy Numero Uno over there…HA!
When I delivered for Domino’s back in the magical summer of 1989 (something I was tempted to, but dared not admit, on the “Bad Andy” thread over in MPSIMS), at the end of a shift we used to receive a commision of somewhere between 6 and 9% of the total value delivered as compensation for the use of our car (depending on whether it was the owner, manager, or asst. manager counting and depending on whether or not you wore a Domino’s sign on your car). Well, obviously if they didn’t use YOUR car, then that commision was just passed along to the consumer in the guise of a discount.
Following up Pantellerite’s post, I used to be a driver for Pizza Hut. When cashing out for the day, they would give you a flat 50¢ (or was it 75¢ ?)for every house you went to during your shift.
So they are saving money by you coming to pick it up, and passing it along to you. Also, as a side note, you are probably saving more than 10% if you come to pick it up, because you don’t tip on carryout food.