Pinsa in the supermarket: a great opportunity for large-scale retail trade

In recent years, the pinsa market has changed a lot. Whereas pinsa was once only available at a few very innovative pizzerias, today there are a lot more options to have it. Pizzerias and restaurants have it on their menus, there are specialised pinserias, bars offer it for lunch or for aperitivo, and there are pre-cooked bases to make a quality dish even at home without the need to start from scratch and follow the whole cooking process. In this article, we focus on the packaged product, trying to understand the reasons for its success so far and why it still represents an opportunity for large retailers. 

Pinsa has become increasingly popular because people are looking for a lighter but equally tasty alternative to pizza, and this has prompted big brands to add it to their offer. In the Di Marco offer, the product is handmade by experienced pinsaioli who faithfully follow Corrado Di Marco's original recipe. The convenience of the packaged product, which is still as tasty as freshly made pinsa, helped the market grow and led to more choices available.   

Today, talking about pinsa in the supermarket no longer means identifying a single product in the refrigerated section. On the contrary, the offer has diversified to suit all consumer preferences in terms of taste and choices, as well as different ways of eating. In the first category we find the gluten-free and multigrain variants, in the second the pinsa that can be stored at room temperature and the frozen one. The latter option is for people who hate waste and want a quality product that keeps for months and can be prepared in less than ten minutes.

Pinsa has been successful because it has been able to meet the need for good, light and digestible food that is increasingly shared by Italian and European consumers. This is why its success has been phenomenal, despite the presence of an icon like pizza. 

But what about the present and the future? The product remains an opportunity for large-scale retail because it is far from having exhausted its innovative potential. We have found five good reasons – amongst many – to support our assertion. 

The trend of healthy eating is not going away soon. Today, consumers are increasingly health-conscious and aware, and pinsa, while not strictly speaking a diet food, offers a light dough, a long leavening time and the use of selected flours. Together, all these elements meet the consumer's needs with a perfect balance of taste, lightness and digestibility. 

Its lower calorie and fat content have made it preferable in many cases to traditional pizza. If you ask anyone who has tried it to explain the difference with pizza, they will most likely talk about lightness, and this is not a passing trend. The large-scale retail trade can exploit this trend to promote pinsa as a healthy and tasty option, gaining the loyalty of health-conscious consumers and, of course, boosting sales.

Pinsa offers retailers the opportunity to diversify their baked goods offer with an incredibly versatile food. 

Pinsa can be savoury, sweet, simple or seasoned with gourmet ingredients, prepared for an evening with friends or a classy aperitivo. It is an excellent finger food, a snack to be eaten during a break, but also an alternative to bread or the star of a dinner with the whole family. Versatility has contributed to its success and will continue to do so, because the benefit of having a product in the home that can be used in so many ways is real. It is not a fad. 

Pinsa is innovation in the world of pizza, and innovation attracts. This is yet another reason why pinsa is very interesting for the large-scale retail trade, as it naturally stimulates the curiosity and interest of customers, pushing them to try and buy a different product. 

Moreover, let us not forget that pinsa keeps on changing: the recipe gets continuously perfected, as it aims to suit the food trends of the moment, with new variants for specific targets and new culinary experiences. Today the Pinsa Di Marco range has of 6 products, but what about tomorrow?

Pinsa can be sold together with many other products at the point of sale, such as cold meats, cheeses, vegetables and even drinks of all kinds. This is still because of its versatility and can generate cross-sell sales and increase the average basket value.