Urban Outfitters Tries To Break Into Pizza Market, Investors Say No

In an attempt to connect more with its target demographic (and their hungry tummies), Urban Outfitters announced it would look to tap into the pizza business, expanding its retail stores to serve 'za to its Millennial-majority market.

The company's plan proposes a buyout of the Vetri family's block of restaurants in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where the retail chain is headquartered. Included in the block is Pizzeria Vetri, where the company sees potential for significant return on investment.

Investors in the company, however, are not happy with the idea. In fact, UO's stock fell 7.4 percent today, the biggest one-day decline in almost six months, according to Bloomberg.

Urban Outfitters, owned by the URBN Corporation, has organically grown into home goods, wedding and gardening lines alongside its sister retail stores, Anthropologie and Free People.

Despite its success with previous expansions, New York-based Analyst Simeon Siegel told Bloomberg the attempt to break into the pizza market highlights the company's outlying weaknesses.

Siegal says,

You're looking at a company that has decided to go in a different direction, and you're questioning the value of the core business before you can begin to start analyzing the value of the new business.

What do you, the consumers, think? Would the introduction of pizza into Urban Outfitters retail stores lead you to question the value of their products?

Or, would the slice-and-shop experience drive positive press, a la anti-body shaming, and upgrade consumer perception of the popular Millennial brand?

Citations: Urban Outfitters Tries to Buy Pizza Chain, Investors Are Blind to Their Delicious Vision (Jezebel), Urban Outfitters Drops After Saying It Will Buy Pizza Chain (Bloomberg)