Pam Tironi of the Pizza Room in Mile End
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The Pizza Room – bringing the community together with technology and pizza

Do you remember the feature we did on Pizza Room’s crowdfunding campaign to launch their very own pizza delivery app? Well, the app is almost ready to launch and Pam Tironi, the owner and mastermind behind the project, is inviting everyone to celebrate the great success.

Tironi, who also owns The Coffee Room a few doors up from the Pizza Room on Grove Road, came up with the idea for her own delivery app when she realised that mainstream food delivery apps like Ubereats and Deliveroo took up to 30% plus VAT the total order value.

Both the prices and the waiting time were getting too high, resulting into less customers and cold pizza. (If cold pizza isn’t the worst thing that could possibly happen, we don’t know what is.)

The aim with Pizza Room’s new delivery app is to cut out the middleman and provide a cheaper, faster delivery service for local residents.

In July 2018 she decided to launch a Kickstarter campaign to bring the community together and see if there was a demand for such an app. “The responses were amazing and everybody loved the idea because they wanted the independence and better quality,” says Tironi.

To make the crowdfunding more rewarding for customers, The Pizza Room offered different rewards for each donation. Some of the rewards included pledge £15 or more and receive a pizza; £50 or more receive two three-course dinners with wine and your name on the Wall of Fame; or pledge £600 and receive four bottles of Prosecco, have your name engraved on their table, a private party for 25 and a pizza named after you.

“I wanted to give something back in return for their support,” Pam Tironi added.

The idea for this app has been in Tironi’s mind for a long time, but she wasn’t sure on how to make it a reality.

“I met an app developer on a business fair and talked to him about the app. He liked the idea but we never spoke about it again. One day out of nowhere I decided to contact him again and he was happy to sit down with me and work out how we’re going to do it,” she explains.

As Tironi is busy with all her businesses (she has another Pizza Room branch in Surrey Quays) and family life, the development of the app was quite challenging.

“I’m not working on the app on my own but I have to coordinate with other people and that’s always time-consuming,” she explains.

However, Tironi is brimming with ideas on how to make her business more community-friendly and this is evident in her restaurants as well as the app.

For example, Tironi isn’t planning on investing in new scooters and employing their own drivers as she believes it’s better to give the opportunity to drivers who are already delivering food in the local area.

“The same driver might come to you with our order and with a Deliveroo order. The difference is that we will pay them fairly and we will treat them as all our other employees. They will get lots of freebies like food and drinks, and we will remember their names and faces” she says.

In order to provide the best customer experience, the area boundary for delivery will be very local – five to ten minutes on a scooter. “The distance is linked directly with the quality. We want to be as close as possible so the pizza gets delivered fast and hot,” she says.

In terms of delivery fees, the price will stay the same as for Deliveroo, £2.50, but with the difference that the money will go directly to the driver. Also, unlike some delivery services, the cost of the product stays the same. “You will pay the same price for the product in the restaurant as you do when it is delivered,” she says.

“We want for it to be meaningful for local people, rather than making a big profit,” she adds.

Always ahead of the game, Tironi is thinking about expanding the business to make it even more community-based by supplying local pubs and shops with her pizza.

As if this won’t keep her busy enough, she is currently working on opening a new Coffee Room branch in Deptford Bridge and a new Pizza Room in New Cross, as well as a permanent stall in in Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park selling coffee, tea and cakes.

Community party to launch Pizza Room delivery app

On behalf of The Pizza Room, Tironi is thanking everyone who crowdfunded the campaign, and made it possible to develop the app, by hosting a mega pizza party at the Eco Pavilion in Mile End Park on Saturday 20 October from 3pm.

The invitation is open to everyone. There will be free pizza supplied by The Pizza Room and an open bar where people can purchase wine, beer and non-boozy drinks.

During the day, Talia e la valigia della idee, an Italian children charity, will keep children occupied with games and activities.

Multi-talented staff and friends of both The Coffee Room and The Pizza Room will put on the music and other evening entertainment.

Most importantly, people who helped to crowd-fund the project will be able to pick up an envelope with their reward on the day. Local community groups and businesses are also invited to participate by taking over one of the free stalls and talk about their work to the wider audience.

“We’re very proud of what we achieved and we want to thank our amazing local community for helping us,” says Tironi.

Who knows, maybe Pamela is preparing a big surprise for all of us and the app is going to launch on the day of the party. In crust we must trust!

If you’re a local business or community group and would like to book a free stall at the party, you can contact Pam from The Pizza Room on pam@thepizzaroom.co.uk

Find out more about The Pizza Room delivery app party here.

You can find the Pizza Room at 2A Grove Road, London E3 5AX. Keep up with The Pizza Room on Instagram and Facebook.

 

Pizza being prepared in a kitchen in Pizza Room in Mile End
Pizza in the making © Tabitha Stapely

If you liked the article, you may also like our interview with Cafe East owner Mustafa Has.


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Dominika Kubinyova

Sun worshipper, coffee freak and a full-time plant parent

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