CEO Behind KFC, Pizza Hut Orders Fast-Food Growth To Go
Yum Brands’ David Gibbs discusses a post-pandemic future with multiple drive-through lanes and less dine-in business
David Gibbs had just signed Yum! Brands Inc.’s first restaurant acquisition in years and was planning a convention for nearly 1,000 of its fastfood franchisees world-wide when the pandemic crippled the global economy in March.
Suddenly the crisis threatened to wipe out much of the $17 billion the company and its franchisees generate in annual dine-in sales across KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut restaurants in more than 150 countries.
Mr. Gibbs, a 31-year Yum veteran who became chief executive officer a year ago, went from advancing the company’s expansion strategy to contending with thousands of closed restaurants.
Many large fast-food companies have since largely rebounded from the early pandemic shutdowns, and Yum’s U.S. comparable sales rose in the third quarter from a year ago. But Mr. Gibbs says he is rethinking how Yum — which has upward of 50,000 restaurants, more than any other fast-food chain — can serve and deliver more to-go food longer term.
He is plotting a future where ordering fried chicken ahead online is routine, and Pizza Hut customers can get their orders placed in their trunks without having to enter a restaurant.
Meanwhile, hundreds of its U.S. Pizza Hut locations that mostly did dine-in business have closed permanently.
The 57-year-old Mr. Gibb spoke to The Wall Street Journal by video from Yum’s largely empty offices in Plano, Texas. Here are edited excerpts.
What was a mistake Yum made early in the pandemic and how did you learn from it?
If I look back prior to the pandemic, I wish we had moved even quicker for Pizza Hut to be more of a delivery, carryout business and less reliant on dine-in. We’ve talked about that for years. Sometimes big organizations can be bureaucratic. But I think we probably impressed even ourselves in how quickly we have pivoted.
Drive-throughs have helped many fast-food chains stay busy during the pandemic. How is that influencing your development plans?
We’re working on designs that have multiple drive-throughs. The Australia business started building a few test units with five drive-throughs on one building.
But the other part of the story is curbside carryout. You’re seeing that not just in the restaurant industry, but in retail. It’s great because of the drive-through constraints at our peak. No matter how great you are at drivethrough, you can still fit only X amount of cars in a single line.
Should front-line workers in food and restaurants get earlier access to vaccines?
We’re very excited about the vaccine. When it’s my turn, I will be in line to get it. We hope that all of our employees get it. But we know that there are others, like front-line health-care workers, who come ahead of us in the queue.
Once vaccines are more universally available, will you require employees to get them or have your franchisees consider that?
We’re studying the issue now and haven’t made any determination. It is important to remember that 98% of our stores are run by those franchisees. So it’s more complex than us just mandating that every store would need to get a vaccine.
Even as vaccines begin to roll out, it is unclear when life will begin to return to normal. When do you anticipate that happening in fast food?
I don’t know that normal looks exactly like it did prior to the pandemic. Consumers will probably be more aware of hygiene in restaurants, and we’re looking at new ways of providing a safe environment.
What management measures have you adopted that will last beyond the pandemic?
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is the power of authentic communication versus the formal written memo that somebody might send out. We gather up different groups of franchisees, corporate teams from all around the world on video calls. We get literally hundreds of questions going through the chat function — real time, unfiltered. We learn from that.
Do you support a $15 minimum wage on a federal level and for your company and franchisees?
We support a national minimum wage, and we’ll work under any minimum wage that is created by the government.
How do you expect the dynamic between CEOs and the White House to shift in the new administration?
I don’t know that normal looks exactly like it did prior to the pandemic. Consumers will probably be more aware of hygiene in restaurants, and we’re looking at new ways of providing a safe environment. DAVI D GI BBS CEO of Yum! Brands Inc
We’re excited about working with the Biden administration and share their goal to build back better particularly as it comes to the economy and fighting inequality. We’ve been in over a hundred countries around the world for decades — we’ve operated in any political environment.
A theme of the pandemic has been simplification of menus, but some customers have said Taco Bell has gone too far in removing options. Were you surprised by the uproar when Taco Bell removed Mexican Pizza?
I’m never surprised by the passion that our customers — particularly of Taco Bell — have for our iconic products. We can always bring Mexican Pizza back at some point if the demand is there.
What has been your pandemic comfort food?
I’m going through the Taco Bell drivethrough frequently. We introduced the grilled cheese burrito during the pandemic, and that is the definition of a craveable product for me and my college-age son.
Internationally-acclaimed Thai contemporary artist Pinaree Sanpitak, who is known for her “breast stupa” artwork, found inspiration when she first started breastfeeding 27 years ago. “I was looking for a symbol which differentiated between men and women,” she said.
“However, I want to emphasise that breast stupa is more about womanhood than motherhood. In fact, breast stupa has developed alongside me, like a self-portrait. The inspiration behind using this symbol has been my personal life which I share with through artwork. Since 2001, I have designed installations that are interactive and explore sensorial perception, which allows visitors to interpret my work based on their background.”
On view now at 100 Tonson Gallery, her latest exhibition titled “House Calls” displays works created in the form of breast stupa using hand-torn stacks of natural paper from Japan, Korea, Laos, Vietnam and Thailand. These stacks are placed on top of various vessels, containers and utensils, which create new narratives of the sacred and the sensual. Some of the containers are decades old such as a double boiler made in the US in the 1950s, a vase from her parents, and a bamboo basket which some young people might not recognise.
“The vessels, containers and utensils come from my parents, grandparents and my own personal collection and they are topped with natural paper. Each sculpture is displayed on a shelf to allow visitors to get a 360-degree view. Moreover, the shelves were designed to react to motion and since the stacks of paper on top of the containers were stuck to a core made of a long pin, the sculptures vibrate when viewers move.
The exhibition aims to encourage people to reflect on their own home, which can be either tangible or intangible in meaning. Meanwhile, the vibrations of shelves and containers symbolise an insecure life since not every house is safe. Furthermore, based on our personal experiences, there are stories and emotions connected to the containers that may be unique to each visitor,” explained the artist.
Pinaree’s breast stupas often involve a motif of female breasts and resemble architecture dedicated to Buddhism. For almost 30 years, she has presented breast stupas in various art forms including painting, printmaking, sculpture and art installation through several materials such as paper, textiles, glass, ceramics and metal.
According to Pinaree, the idea for “House Calls” came from her work at the 2019 Setouchi Triennale, in Honjima, Japan, where she created eight sculptures resembling shrubs.
“The eight sculptures were placed in a tokonoma, a place to display artistic ideas such as floral arrangements or paintings of traditional Japanese homes. The sculptures were created to pay homage to Shiwaku carpenters who did not have descendants to carry on their traditional craft. After returning to Bangkok, I developed the idea from those sculptures and since I like vessels, containers and utensils, I used them to create breast stupa sculptures. To make sure there was variety, I searched for containers of various shapes, forms and colours. At first, I wanted to showcase sculptures on the floor but visitors probably would not be able to view differences clearly, so I decided to put them on shelves. One of my eight sculptures from Japan is also on display here.”
Besides art exhibitions, Pinaree has also incorporated her interest in cooking in an event known as “Breast Stupa Cookery”, which has been running since 2005. In the beginning, the artist created
ceramic cake moulds in the shape of breasts and later worked with several chefs who created menus and food containers inspired by the shape of a breast. Two recent events, “Breast Stupa Cookery: The World Turns Upside Down” and “Breast Stupa Cookery Café” were organised last November at Nova Contemporary Gallery by the artist. The highlights of the fine-dining experience included southern curry with smoked brisket served with turmeric rice salad; steamed curry crab eggs; and crab nam prik paw. Meanwhile, at the café, patisseries, cookies, ice cream and cakes were also served.
“Chefs are also artists and I learn from them. While some chefs have interpreted the motif of a breast stupa as figurative art, others design their menu in abstract form. ‘Breast Stupa Cookery’ at Nova Contemporary was the first time this cookery concept came to a food truck and it was fun. Seven courses were created by several chefs for a fine-dining experience. Food is an excellent medium and it led me to make new connections and visitors can also easily interact with these creations,” she said.
Some of Pinaree’s other interactive exhibitions include “Noon-Nom” (2001-2002) and “Anything Can Break” (2018). “Noon-Nom” was a collection of soft breast stupa sculptures made of synthetic fibres covered in organza that visitors could touch, sit or sleep on. Meanwhile, “Anything Can Break” (2018) was an art installation featuring optic fibre, motion sensors and handmade glass. Visitors did not know the placement of 10 sensors and sound effects would trigger when a people walked past them. Even though Pinaree is dedicated to her work, she does not have any expectations from her audience.
“I do not have any expectations from visitors because after I create, the reactions of others are beyond my control. When ‘Anything Can Break’ was exhibited at the Toledo Museum of Art in the US, a ballet company in the area really liked the idea of having the installation on a ceiling and wanted to choreograph a dance performance under it. It was unexpected and although I am excited when visitors interact with my work, I cannot predict how they will react to each individual piece,” said Pinaree.
I DO NOT HAVE ANY EXPECTATIONS FROM VISITORS BECAUSE AFTER I CREATE, THE REACTIONS OF OTHERS ARE BEYOND MY CONTROL
“House Calls” runs at 100 Tonson Foundation, Soi Tonson, Phloenchit Road until April 4. Admission is free. Visit facebook.com/100Tonson Foundation or call 098-789-6100.