Duration

2 months (2018)

Role

Lead Researcher

Tools

Paper, Google Workspace apps

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Under A Non-disclosure Agreement

Some of the details in this case study may be vague to protect the client's intellectual property.

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When a global pizza chain enters a new market, someone has to go and find out whether anyone actually wants them there and if so, why. That was us. Singapore in 2018, competing pizza brands already well-established, and Little Caesars trying to understand what would make someone choose a new name over a familiar one.

Challenge

Singapore's food landscape is saturated in the best possible way. Pizza Hut, Domino's, Pezzo - people already had habits and loyalties. The real question wasn't "do Singaporeans eat pizza?" It was "what would make them bother trying this one?"

We were trying to understand what motivates eating out beyond the obvious. The social context. The value framing. The specific moments when a fast, affordable, ready-now pizza becomes the right answer.

Getting past the obvious answers

We ran focus group discussions with a range of Singaporeans - young professionals, families, solo diners to get at authentic dining motivations rather than what people think they're supposed to say.

We also ran concept testing on creative executions to see which messaging and visual elements actually landed, and which felt off. The most useful moments were when people stopped talking about pizza and started talking about why they go out to eat at all.

What we found, and what happened next

Little Caesars opened its first Singapore store in January 2019, at Income at Raffles Place, with a clear value proposition - hot pizza, ready in 30 seconds, at $7.99. The launch went well. At its peak, the chain had seven locations across Singapore.

[Updated] What our research could map was the conditions for a successful entry. What it couldn't guarantee was the long-term fit between a carry-out-only model and how Singapore's dining habits evolved - delivery culture, rental costs, competition from a thousand directions, especially after Covid-19. It resulted led to Little Caesars exiting Singapore after gradually closing all its branches.

It's a reminder that consumer insight captures a moment in time. Markets keep moving.