Pizza giant Domino’s has said it will hire an extra 5,000 people across Ireland and Britain in the coming months.

The company said it is looking for delivery drivers, in-store staff and pizza makers to join its 35,000-strong workforce ahead of its peak trading period.

Domino’s recorded a drop in orders over the first half of 2024, with bosses blaming a “slow start” to the year. But in August it said it was witnessing a recovery in customer confidence and that it hoped to drive stronger sales with improved pricing.

The pizza business, which has 1,344 sites across Ireland and Britain, said it has witnessed lower food and energy costs, although these have been offset partly by a rise in the national living wage.

Now Domino’s expects to need more workers as it gears up for the latter part of the calendar year, which is usually its busiest trading period.

Nicola Frampton, chief operating officer, said: “It’s been a positive first half of the year for Domino’s, with exciting growth through our store expansion strategy and our new loyalty trial.”

Chief executive Andrew Rennie said last month that following a “slow start” to the year, orders had picked up over the summer.

Sales were boosted during the Euro 2024 football tournament, while the company also pressed on with a plan of opening more stores. The company opened around 60 sites last year and said it is expecting to surpass this with 70 new stores for the current financial year. - PA