Marketing Gimmicks

Controversia: Spanish-Language Pizza Deal Pisses People Off

People realize
People realize “pizza” is the same word in Spanish, right?

A Dallas-based pizza chain called Pizza Patrón plans to offer free pizza to anyone who orders in Spanish on the evening of June 5. The deal is called Pizza Por Favor, and according to USA Today, the order “can be broken Spanish. It can be first-time Spanish. But it has to be Spanish.” Well obviously this is bothering people who think the deal is somehow discriminatory.

Marcela Gomez, the head of Hispanic Marketing Group, tells the paper, “Maybe they thought it was a cute thing to do, but I think it’s discrimination.”

Peter Thomas, the chairman of a pro-English conservative group, says the promotion “seems to punish people who can’t speak Spanish.” Then adds, “In public areas, people should be speaking English, and that includes pizza parlors.” It’s possible that Mr. Thomas is not aware of the Italian language.

Anyway, a rep from the chain — which, by the way, also accepts Mexican pesos — says the chain targets the Hispanic community, and that 70 percent of its customers speak Spanish anyway. Plus, the pizzas that will be given away for free only cost $4.99 to begin with.

Pizza Patron’s free deal for Spanish orders raises eyebrows [USAT]

Controversia: Spanish-Language Pizza Deal Pisses People Off