$2 for a pizza!? How local chain justifies its one-day promotion

In a competitive pizza market like the Sault, one business is hoping a dicey strategy today pays off tomorrow.

Red Swan Pizza, a one-year-old pizza chain on Great Northern Road, is offering eight-inch, six-slice pepperoni or cheese pizzas for just $2 each before taxes. Pizzas are limited to three per customer.

Running today only between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., the walk-in promotion has sparked long lineups outside the storefront since this morning.

Red Swan co-owner Meet Patel told SooToday they’re anticipating making upwards of 1,500 pizzas today.

He admitted the restaurant isn’t going to profit from Sunday’s one-day special, and in fact will likely record a loss, which begs the question: What made them decide to do this?

“There are still lots of people who haven’t tried our pizza yet, so we thought maybe they can try it at this price,” Patel said. “More people will have it now, and hopefully more people will come back.”

“It’s also been a year since we opened and we’re still doing good, so we wanted to thank the community for their support,” he added.

Behind the scenes, 12 employees have formed an assembly line in the kitchen and are pushing out freshly cooked pizzas at a reasonable pace.

Most notably different about Red Swan’s pizzas compared to others is they top their crusts with sesame seeds.

With taxes, their eight-inch pizzas cost $2.26 today, compared to their usual price of $5.03.

Among the first to cash in on Sunday was Nathaniel Mousseau, a Sault resident who was recently laid off from his job.

He said a bargain like today couldn’t have come at a better time for him.

“It’s amazing,” he said. “Seeing how many people turned up for this, you can really tell this is a big thing for the community. Grocery costs are really high, especially right now, so this is great to see.”

Patel mentioned they’re thrilled to know that customers like Mousseau have the chance to eat at a more affordable price, even if it is just for one day.

“There are lots of people who can’t afford food right now because of inflation,” he said. “We’re hoping this is one way to help them today.”

Three other Red Swan locations in Ontario have run the same promotion in the past, and each of them found it produced positive results, said Patel.

The one-day special runs until 3 p.m. this afternoon.