One Planet Pizza (OPP) is a UK plant-based pizza brand that has gone from strength to strength since launching in 2016. The company’s growth has been particularly rapid over the past eighteen months, including a successful crowdfunding campaign in February 2022 that raised 76% of the target on the first day.
Two months later, OPP secured its first major supermarket listing in Asda as part of the chain’s incubator programme. The trial was so successful that the brand’s pizzas are now available in 400 Asda stores across the UK.
The OPP also began expanding internationally; The brand launched in Sweden in June 2022 and has also entered other European markets such as France, Greece and Denmark. We caught up with founders Mike and Joe Hill to find out more.
Please give us an update — what have you been up to since we spoke last year?
We’ve had a busy year here so far! We relocated production, launched our new and improved range of frozen pizzas, and introduced a brand spanking new flavor – Spicy Tex Mex.
Our team is now fully working remotely (progressive, right?) and we’re spending a lot of time helping to grow the business in the Netherlands and across Europe.
We also partnered with Dutch plant-based cheese brand Willicroft. Their incredible ‘Young Dutch’ Gouda is now used in every one of our pizzas and is more melty, delicious and realistic than ever. It’s also healthy because they include white beans in their recipe which is another win. They even source their beans from local Dutch farms that they work closely with.
Expect more collaborations between our two mission-aligned brands in the future!
You recently moved your production site to the Netherlands. Tell us about this move and what it means for the brand – how will this decision affect OPP distribution across Europe?
That’s right! It was a huge decision for us and it was definitely a difficult choice to leave our home town of Norwich and close our original pizza factory here.
However, with rising costs and Brexit constraints, it was the best move for the company. We now have a much smaller senior team and have been able to improve our capabilities tenfold, while most importantly, offering a better range of frozen pizzas.
Countries like France, Germany and the Netherlands have huge opportunities across Europe, where vegan pizzas are under-represented. We are now better placed to distribute across the EU while supplying our UK customers such as Asda and Suma.
These Dutch sure know a thing or two about production lines and efficiency. They’re not bad at making vegan pizza either, it turns out! Their sourdough, wood-fired base is out of this world and allows us to offer a much more premium range of pizzas at affordable prices.
OPP recently launched the UK’s first sourdough wood-fired vegan frozen pizza. Can you tell us more about the launch and sales performance of the pizza?
Moving our production to a much larger pizza manufacturer allowed us to reshape our range and make some improvements to stay well ahead of the competition. I really can’t speak highly enough about our new sour base – it’s a complete game-changer for the vegan pizza category and we’ve never tasted anything like it before.
“We aim to create a strong case study that UK retailers will not be able to ignore.”
But we are clearly biased. We let the sales speak for themselves; Our new range is performing 2x better than the previous range and this number is even higher at Asda. Without saying too much, we’re pretty confident that our Peppernomi Pizza is currently performing better than average for frozen vegan pizzas in UK supermarkets… the proof is in the pizza.
This month, OPP will launch in the Netherlands and Iceland. What is your strategy to succeed in these two countries?
We are focusing on working with the right distributors and best retailers for both countries. That doesn’t always mean the biggest. By that, I mean choosing partners who truly believe in our mission to remove animals from the food chain with great tasting plant-based alternatives.
It’s tempting to think that the better, the more SKUs you can launch or the higher store numbers you’re going to distribute as much as possible. We are very excited about building a long-term mutually beneficial partnership in both countries. Focusing on the right retailers and ensuring we have the ability to support them through effective activations such as in-store sampling and long-term influencer partnerships.
“Sustainability is and always will be at the core of everything we do”
We’re working on a dedicated launch party in Amsterdam to support the Dutch list in connecting with mission-aligned businesses and consumers alike. You can’t beat a good old fashioned private event. Working closely with relevant influencers and media partners will be the focus in both countries. But sampling both in store and on the street will be the most effective way for us to support these lists and trial our new range.
You are focused on obtaining B Corp certification, which will prove that your production meets social sustainability and environmental performance standards. How is this process going and what does sustainability mean for OPP?
Sustainability is and always has been at the core of what we do here. I mean, it’s baked in our name! We’ve always been hyper-aware of greenwashing, having seen many seemingly sustainable brands fall short of this and as a result greatly damage their integrity and truly ‘good’ business.
Our planet-saving mission is tied to our commitment to always be a 100% vegan brand. But we don’t want to stop there. By the end of this year, we plan to begin this certification process to further commit ourselves to being the most sustainable pizza brand on the planet. We hope this next step will keep us accountable and continue to raise the bar for other brands in our category.
Are there any new products in the pipeline?
After only launching our brand new sour range and the new Spicy Tex Mex flavour, we are not looking at any new products this year. However, in 2024 we plan to start exploring vegetarian sauces, soups and ready meals to discover any hidden opportunities within these categories. I’m personally most excited about moving to Premium Chilled Pizza next year, as we’re aware that this space is in desperate need of a plant-powered shake-up.
What are OPP’s goals in the next five years?
As we enter a new chapter with our improved range and manufacturing partner, our aim now is to secure and continue our performance with Asda. By continuing to build this nationwide list, we aim to create a strong case study that other UK retailers cannot afford to ignore.
We aim to secure at least one major retail listing in at least three European countries in addition to our recent listing within the Netherlands.
As part of our overall mission to remove animals from the food chain, we aim to innovate and expand into the chilled aisle, possibly with a premium chilled pizza range. But who knows what else we’ll come up with in the meantime…
Overall, you can count on us to push plant-based pizzas to mainstream consumers, educate and empower as many people as possible, and help them eat and live more sustainably.
🚀 to infinity and beyond