Domino’s delivers £1bn pizza sales for first time

● One Domino’s pizza was sold every three seconds in 2017

● It sold a record 97 million – enough to stretch from UK to the South Pole and back

● Sales broke through £1bn barrier for the first time

● 3,300 jobs created in 2017 with 95 new shop openings

● Busiest days of the year included The X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing finals

● In Scotland, Domino’s busiest day was Valentine’s Day

● 2,500 new jobs planned this year and up to 75 new sites

DOMINO’S sold a pizza every three seconds last year as it served up sales of more than £1bn for the first time.

The takeaway firm’s shares jumped more than 8pc in early trading after revealing a 4.8pc rise in like-for-like sales.

David Wild, chief executive of Domino’s Pizza Group, said: ‘We’re seeing that when there are big live events on, ordering a pizza is a way of enjoying that with family or friends.’

He said some of its busiest days last year were The X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing TV finales and Valentine’s Day.

Its strong performance comes as many restaurants struggle to attract diners, with the chains Jamie’s Italian, Prezzo and Strada closing a combined 117 sites this year.

Profits fell from £82.5m to £81.2m as Domino’s dealt with one-off costs relating to buying a firm in Norway and a provision for a potential tax liability for a staff share scheme.

Shares ended the day up 2.6pc, or 8.3p, at 326.2p.