Donatos Pizza president and CEO Kevin King talks about his career in the pizza industry and what makes his brand a leader in the category amidst rising pizza wars.
April 9, 2025
In this episode of the Pizza Marketplace Podcast, host Mandy Detwiler, editor of Pizza Marketplace, talks to Kevin King, who recently took over Donatos Pizza last October as president and CEO. Under King's leadership, the brand is embracing strategies to keep it relevant for both new and existing customers amidst rising pricing wars in the pizza industry.
Donatos started in 1963 when its founder, Jim Grote, started a small pizza shop in the sound end of Columbus, Ohio based on principles and values that even today make Donatos a standout in the pizza industry.
The brand is founded on three tenets: lead with love, follow the Golden Rule and do the right thing.
"If we do those, we know we'll have a successful business in the end," King said.
Donatos has 180 traditional restaurants across the U.S. and 270 units inside Red Robin restaurants.
"Donatos has always been about abundance, great toppings, great quality and super consistent," King said.
To learn more about the Donatos Pizza story, click the link at the top of the page.
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