Domino is a game in which players arrange domino tiles on end in long lines. When the first domino in a line is tipped, it causes the next dominos to tip, and so on until all of the tiles fall over. The result is often spectacular and can even lead to an entire domino forest of 3D structures or a grid that forms pictures when it falls. Besides games, dominos can also be used to create intricate domino art that can take hours of planning and construction to complete.
The game originated in the 12th or 13th century in China. Its use spread to Italy and France, where it gained popularity in the 18th century. Early dominoes were simply rectangular slabs of a material such as wood or bone. They were marked with an arrangement of numbered dots, called pips, like those on a die. As the number of pips increased, the shapes of the dominoes changed. The most common set of dominoes contains twenty-eight pieces, which are arranged in four rows of thirteen. Larger sets, known as extended dominoes, include more than thirty-four pieces, which are arranged in five rows of fifteen. The number of possible combinations of ends (and thus the total number of dominoes) is limited because it would be too cumbersome to make every end identical. The largest domino set in the world has fifty-five pieces, and it took seven months to construct.
By the late 1990s, Domino’s had more than 1,200 locations and was one of the most successful pizza delivery businesses in the United States. However, the company had suffered a series of leadership missteps and by 2004 was more than $943 million in debt. The company faced a bleak future, and if it wanted to survive, it needed to change something fast.
To begin with, the company began to embrace its employees. It implemented a more relaxed dress code and introduced new leadership training programs. Most importantly, it started listening to its customers and responding to their feedback. The company also refocused its strategy on delivery and established a Domino’s Innovation Garage to develop cutting-edge technologies for its stores.
These new initiatives helped the company recover and grow again. However, the company is still facing a labor shortage that is impacting its ability to deliver pizzas and other food items. Additionally, third-party delivery services such as Uber Eats and DoorDash continue to challenge Domino’s market share. The company is working hard to address these challenges and should be able to continue growing despite the current labor crisis.