Operations

Restaurateur, rapper who bought Russia's Starbucks take over country's Domino's Pizza units

Domino's Pizza logo on Domino's Pizza restaurant facade in Moscow. Photo by Adobe Stock.

August 31, 2023

Russians will still be able to get pizza in its home country. The Russian restaurateur and rapper who took over Russia's Starbucks outlets in 2022 have purchased Domino's Pizza's Russian units, according to a Reuters report.

Restaurateur Anton Pikskiy and Russian rapper Timani will change the name to "Domino Pizza" — removing the "s" and changing the "i" to the equivalent Russian letter и. There are 120 franchised units in Russia with an estimated 2,000 employees.

Previously, the Russian Domino's units were owned by franchise group DP Eurasia, which announced earlier this month it would file for bankruptcy after attempting to sell its business in Russia, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Georgia, according to Reuters.

When the announcement was made Wednesday, a DP Eurasia spokesperson said the franchise group had no comment, but did state the bankruptcy petition had been filed.

Pinskiy and Timanti had previously taken over Russia's Starbucks business, renaming it Stars Coffee, for around 500 million rubles ($6 million).