LOUISVILLE Ky. Papa John’s Pizza founder and chief executive John Schnatter hit the road Wednesday on a cross-country road trip, part of a previously announced promotion celebrating his chain’s 25th anniversary that is centered around the prized possession he sold in 1984 to open his first restaurant: a 1972 Z28 Camaro.
Schnatter departed from Papa John’s Louisville headquarters in a replica Camaro. Stops will include Atlanta, Houston, New York, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Chicago, St. Louis, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Denver, where Schnatter will make pizza deliveries personally and share his story with customers and team members. In addition, he is offering a $25,000 finder’s fee to anybody who can locate the original car.
As part of the promotion, Papa John’s, which was one of the pizza segment’s earliest adopters of online ordering and text message ordering, will offer customers a new “augmented-reality” experience at the microsite www.papasroadtrip.com.
Two interns are tagging along on Schnatter’s cross-country journey to report on his travels by uploading photos, videos, blog posts and Twitter tweets to the website. Schnatter and his sidekicks also will provide clues about the chief executive’s original car to help customers find the Camaro that let him put his entrepreneurial career into high gear.
“My Z28 is a real-life, daily reminder that anyone can accomplish anything with a little hard work and sacrifice,” Schnatter said. “What better time to take that car on the road than in our 25th anniversary year, when the economic climate greatly resembles that of 1984, as people across the nation are looking for a little inspiration?”
The augmented-reality application on www.papasroadtrip.com, a first for the chain, allows visitors to download and print an icon of Schnatter’s ’72 Camaro. When customers hold the image up to a computer webcam, the website will activate the application that lets the user interact with computer-generated imagery in real time and simulates a virtual drive in the Camaro down a virtual highway. There will be virtual billboards that customers can access for special deals and discounts from Papa John’s.
Beginning in June, the same Camaro icon will be available at the bottom of pizza boxes and will activate the same augmented-reality experience once a webcam recognizes the image. For Papa John’s customers who don’t own a webcam, the augmented-reality application will be available at the website as an interactive Flash animation.
“Augmented reality is consistent with our continued emphasis on exploring technology in ways that provide better value and connection to our customers, as well as enhance our ability to engage them in ways above and beyond the transaction,” said Jim Ensign, vice president of marketing communications for Papa John’s. “We were at the forefront of online ordering and text ordering, and augmented reality takes our digital-marketing approach to a new dimension.”
Papa John’s operates or franchises more than 3,400 restaurants worldwide.
Contact Mark Brandau at [email protected]