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Once, the popular pizza chain was the favorite for parents and children to enjoy its unlimited dining experience, endless salad selection, and ice cream with toppings.

But fewer customers are choosing the restaurant currently, and it is shutting down half of its UK restaurants after being bought out of administration for the second time this calendar year.

I remember going Pizza Hut when I was a child,” explains a young adult. “It was a regular outing, you'd go on a Sunday – make a day of it.” Today, aged 24, she states “it's not a thing anymore.”

According to 23-year-old Martina, some of the very things Pizza Hut has been famous for since it launched in the UK in the seventies are now outdated.

“How they do their all-you-can-eat and their salad station, it appears that they are lowering standards and have inferior offerings... They're giving away so much food and you're like ‘How?’”

Because grocery costs have risen sharply, Pizza Hut's buffet-style service has become increasingly pricey to maintain. The same goes for its outlets, which are being cut from over 130 to 64.

The business, like many others, has also faced its expenses go up. In April this year, employee wages rose due to rises in minimum wages and an rise in employer taxes.

Chris, 36, and Joanne, 29 say they used to go at Pizza Hut for a date “from time to time”, but now they get delivery from Domino's and think Pizza Hut is “very overpriced”.

According to your order, Pizza Hut and Domino's rates are similar, says a culinary author.

While Pizza Hut does offer off-premise options through delivery platforms, it is missing out to big rivals which solely cater to off-premise dining.

“Domino's has managed to dominate the off-premise pizza industry thanks to intensive advertising and ongoing discounts that make customers feel like they're saving money, when in reality the standard rates are quite high,” notes the analyst.

But for these customers it is justified to get their special meal sent directly.

“We definitely eat at home now instead of we eat out,” says the female customer, matching recent statistics that show a decrease in people frequenting casual and fast-food restaurants.

In the warmer season, casual and fast-food restaurants saw a six percent decline in diners compared to the year before.

Moreover, a further alternative to pizza from eateries: the supermarket pizza.

A hospitality expert, senior partner at a leading firm, explains that not only have grocery stores been offering good-standard ready-to-bake pizzas for a long time – some are even offering pizza-making appliances.

“Lifestyle changes are also playing a factor in the popularity of casual eateries,” says Mr. Hawkley.

The increased interest of protein-rich eating plans has increased sales at poultry outlets, while reducing sales of carb-heavy pizza, he notes.

Because people visit restaurants more rarely, they may seek out a more high-quality meal, and Pizza Hut's American-diner style with comfortable booths and red and white checked plastic table cloths can feel more retro than premium.

The rise of artisanal pizza places” over the last decade and a half, such as new entrants, has “fundamentally changed the public's perception of what excellent pie is,” says the food expert.

“A light, fresh, easy-to-digest product with a carefully curated additions, not the massively greasy, heavy and overloaded pizzas of the past. That, I think, is what's caused Pizza Hut's decline,” she states.

“Who would choose to spend nearly eighteen pounds on a small, substandard, disappointing pizza from a large brand when you can get a beautiful, masterfully-made traditional pie for less than ten pounds at one of the many authentic Italian pizzerias around the country?

“It's an easy choice.”

A mobile pizza vendor, who runs a small business based in a regional area says: “The issue isn’t that stopped liking pizza – they just want improved value.”

He says his mobile setup can offer premium pizza at accessible prices, and that Pizza Hut faced challenges because it could not keep up with new customer habits.

At Pizzarova in a city in southwest England, the founder says the industry is diversifying but Pizza Hut has failed to offer anything new.

“Currently available are individual slices, artisanal styles, new haven, artisan base, wood-fired, rectangular – it's a heavenly minefield for a pizza enthusiast to explore.”

He says Pizza Hut “must rebrand” as the youth don't have any emotional connection or loyalty to the brand.

In recent years, Pizza Hut's customer base has been divided and allocated to its trendier, more nimble competitors. To keep up its costly operations, it would have to increase costs – which commentators say is difficult at a time when personal spending are shrinking.

The managing director of Pizza Hut's global operations said the buyout aimed “to safeguard our dining experience and protect jobs where possible”.

He said its first focus was to continue operating at the remaining 64 restaurants and off-premise points and to help employees through the restructure.

However with so much money going into running its restaurants, it probably cannot to spend heavily in its delivery service because the market is “complicated and using existing delivery apps comes at a cost”, analysts say.

However, it's noted, cutting its costs by withdrawing from crowded locations could be a smart move to adjust.