News Saizeriya avoids price hikes but cuts free cheese

Fair enough: Japan's popular Italian restaurant chain Saizeriya will stop offering free grated cheese to customers as it tries to offset rising ingredient costs without changing its famously low prices.

Saizeriya provides olive oil, grated cheese, salt and pepper, red pepper flakes and other condiments for free in its restaurants. In addition to affordability, letting customers adjust flavors to their liking has been one reason for the chain's enduring popularity. But amid rising prices for cheese, the company likely saw no choice but to eliminate free offerings of grated cheese to avoid menu price increases. Takeout options also will be narrowed to the most popular items in an effort to focus on eat-in customers. High ingredient prices are weighing on Saizeriya's earnings. In April, the company said consolidated net profit for the fiscal year ending in August likely will drop 26% to 4.2 billion JPY (USD 29.7 million).

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Paywall alert:

That's nice of them, but they have staff to pay too. I think they should pass on a modest price rise to their customers.

Lothor said:

That's nice of them, but they have staff to pay too. I think they should pass on a modest price rise to their customers.

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Motives are always hard to read, especially through articles. I was thinking this was a business decision to pull in more customers, cause people are sick of the price increases and many suspect its just a great big scam....and fair enough....cause what billionaire is hurting?

Also I would say what all businesses need to do is pass on wage increases first, then raise prices only if the owners are going to face actual personal loses....or even take a few. Three villas? Maybe get by with two eh?

Master of Time said:

Motives are always hard to read, especially through articles. I was thinking this was a business decision to pull in more customers, cause people are sick of the price increases and many suspect its just a great big scam....and fair enough....cause what billionaire is hurting?

Also I would say what all businesses need to do is pass on wage increases first, then raise prices only if the owners are going to face actual personal loses....or even take a few. Three villas? Maybe get by with two eh?

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For big conglomerates maybe, but that isn't necessarily the case all the time. My parents had their own business and while they did OK no one would have ever called them rich. Small businesses take a lot of work.

Even when you see franchise places like McDonalds you have to remember that the owner is not McDonalds Corp, it is someone else who licenses the franchise. They may be one of the workers that you see behind the counter, filling in for a short shift or fixing the ice machine.

My point is that just because you may own a business doesn't necessarily mean you are bringing in the big bucks and sitting up on a golden throne. In my parent's business they were usually the only employees, on occasion they had some part time help but most of the time it was just them. Working whenever there was work, when it was busy they worked 7 days a week, early until late. When it was not busy they worried about being able to pay the bills the following month.

Yes owning a business is pretty tough.
I own two businesses in California.
When was the real estate brokerage firm and the other was a painting and decorating contracting firm.
The reward of both allowed you to have the freedom of what is natural for us to feel in our lives without some person having a hammer over a head pounding us daily daily daily telling us what to do.
I've always encouraged my employees to start their own business learn what you can get out there and it's difficult but it's not impossible.

Petaris said:

it is someone else who licenses the franchise.

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It is that someone else setting prices and wage policy so I don't see your point.

Yes, I know franchise owners are not always living it up. And I am fine with people being rich. But billionaires and those in the hundreds of millions? I literally have zero mercy for them. Anything bad can happen to them with my approval. Anything.

While Saizeriya manages to keep prices stable, they've cut free cheese, a move that's sparked a spirited debate among its customers. Could there have been a middle ground? It's a challenging balance, finding that sweet spot between customer satisfaction and business profitability .

Will Keen said:

While Saizeriya manages to keep prices stable, they've cut free cheese, a move that's sparked a spirited debate among its customers. Could there have been a middle ground? It's a challenging balance, finding that sweet spot between customer satisfaction and business profitability .

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The cheese was never free. Whenever you see free anything its always good to remember that it was not free and somewhere someone paid for it. I would have probably just raised the prices slightly to cover the increases but this is another way, and technically a more "fair" way as only the people who want the cheese will be paying for it. Raising prices for the dishes would have been the less in your face method of handing the cost increase, and I doubt it would have resulted in as much attention to the issue.

Petaris said:

The cheese was never free. Whenever you see free anything its always good to remember that it was not free and somewhere someone paid for it. I would have probably just raised the prices slightly to cover the increases but this is another way, and technically a more "fair" way as only the people who want the cheese will be paying for it. Raising prices for the dishes would have been the less in your face method of handing the cost increase, and I doubt it would have resulted in as much attention to the issue.

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You're splitting hairs. "Free" means "included" or "not extra" in this context.

Many of us can relate to the desire for "free" cheese. So much so that the crowd got this guy through to the next round despite four Xs.

Perhaps they were forced to cut out the free cheese because when you place it on the table, us Parmesan lovers heap it on. Personally I think they should have just found cheaper cheese or raised the prices a little to cover it.