On March 13, 1990—35 years ago this week—Domino’s Pizza opened a store on Fort Bliss, the chain’s first on a military installation.
According to an El Paso Times article about the opening, Domino’s had spent the past decade targeting military bases and college campuses, seeking a slice of the youth market.
Domino’s already delivered to Fort Bliss, but having an on-post location was a bonus: The chain believed that Soldiers would have pizza on their mind more often if they happened to pass a Domino’s every day.
“People in the military run on hectic schedules,” a Domino’s spokeswoman told the Times. “They will look to convenient service.”
The Bliss location offered takeout and delivery only. According to the Times, negotiations and bidding for the lucrative contract took a year. The only mention of it in circa-1990 Exchange Posts is a brief February 1989 article about the Exchange awarding the contract to Domino’s.
Pizza was already a big deal at Fort Bliss: the first Anthony’s Pizza opened there on May 1, 1987. The Anthony’s has since closed but Domino’s still has a Bliss location.
The Exchange’s first direct-operated Domino’s opened in summer 2013 as part of a new 95,000-square-foot mall at Kirtland Air Force Base. The Exchange currently has 39 Domino’s locations, but no direct-operated ones (although there is still a location at Kirtland).
Here are a few Domino’s photos from the Exchange Post archives and the Exchange History Flickr album:
Sources: Exchange Post archives; “Pizza-maker goes for military dough” by Stephanie Townsend, El Paso Times, March 13, 1990; Newspapers.com
Leave a Reply