Due to declining performance and fierce competition, Pizza Hut announces the closure of 250 stores in the U.S.

According to CNN, on February 4th local time, Yum! Brands revealed during its earnings call that the company plans to close approximately 250 underperforming Pizza Hut locations across the United States in the first half of this year, accounting for about 3% of its total U.S. stores.

Although the specific list of closures has not yet been announced, this is only part of the major adjustments Pizza Hut is currently undergoing. As early as November last year, Yum! Brands announced the launch of a “Strategic Options Review” for Pizza Hut, not ruling out the possibility of selling the brand. Yum! stated that this review is expected to be completed within this year.

It is reported that in the highly competitive pizza market, Pizza Hut has long been under strong pressure from its main rival, Domino’s. The latest quarterly financial report shows that same-store sales at Pizza Hut locations in the U.S. declined by 3%.

To reverse the downward trend, Pizza Hut has attempted to attract customers through price wars, such as launching a new “$5 Pizza” value promotion. However, this strategy did not resonate with the market, and consumers did not seem to be convinced.