What was the original name of the pizza chain now known as Domino’s?

The pizza chain now known as Domino’s originally operated under the name DomiNick’s. Tom Monaghan and his brother James purchased a small Michigan pizzeria called DomiNick’s in 1960.

James Monaghan later traded his half of the business to Tom in exchange for a Volkswagen Beetle. In 1965, Tom changed the company’s name to Domino’s Pizza after the original owner would not allow continued use of the DomiNick’s name.

The three dots in the early domino-inspired logo represented the company’s three stores at the time. The design also reflected an ambitious plan to add a dot for each new store, although rapid expansion made that idea impractical.

DomiNick’s is sometimes confused with “Dominic’s,” a similar-looking name. The exact spelling matters because it was the name used by the business before the trademark transition to Domino’s.