Marco's Pizza® Announces Impressive Mid-Year Growth, 50 Signed Franchise Agreements

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Aug 23, 2023, 09:37 ET

Multi-Unit Domestic and International Expansion as well as Nontraditional Locations Set to Fuel Future Growth Goals

TOLEDO, Ohio, Aug. 23, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Marco's Pizza, one of the nation's fastest-growing pizza brands, reports impressive mid-year growth and strong performance. With more than 50 openings and 50-plus signed franchise agreements year-to-date, Marco's development trajectory soars as it inches closer to its 1200^th store milestone.

In the last six years, the fast-growing brand has doubled its store footprint with no intention of slowing down. The company leadership identified 4,200 potential U.S. locations. Key to Marco's ongoing expansion will be a strategic focus on multi-unit growth, capitalizing on the development potential in the nontraditional sector, as well as international expansion.

Single and multi-unit growth, with new and existing franchisees, fuels Marco's development strategy as leadership prioritizes franchisee relations and operational support. With nearly half of its current franchise network comprised of multi-unit operators, Marco's budgeted more than $7M to invest in qualified existing franchisees' development to further grow Marco's multi-unit ownership by 10% year-over-year. The brand continues to see interest from existing owners in addition to new franchisees looking to diversify their portfolios. Notably, Marco's earned the No. 10 spot, out of 150, on Entrepreneur's 2023 Top Brands for Multi-Unit Owners Ranking.

Marco's development team is also capitalizing on franchise growth in the nontraditional sector. The brand looks to expand in the sector by meeting consumer demand with a high-quality on-the-go product. Recently, Marco's entered into an agreement for two additional locations with AVI Foodsystems to build out nontraditional units along the Ohio Turnpike, as well as take two existing units under its corporate store portfolio.

"Expanding into nontraditional spaces fits nicely into our future development plans," said Gerardo Flores, Chief Development Officer of Marco's Pizza. "Nontraditional locations allow Marco's to expand its geographic footprint quickly because of the smaller square footage and lower startup costs than a traditional Marco's location. Pair this with a concentrated population and high-volume foot traffic, and we see why franchisees are interested in these opportunities."

International growth is another key area of focus for the brand, with several large master franchise agreements in the works. Near-term opportunities exist most abundantly in the LATAM region with future sights set on Europe and Canada.

"Marco's is currently undergoing some of our greatest expansion to date," said Flores. "We now have more than 200 stores in various stages of development, and hundreds of agreements signed. As we continue to grow our global footprint, we are looking to expand most aggressively in the mid-Atlantic, southeast, and southwest of the United States, in addition to internationally."

Marco's provides a development support system, including technology and tools to help identify the right territories for expansion plus expertise in financing, real estate, construction management, and field operations, to assist franchisees and multi-unit operators.

Alongside impressive expansion, Marco's is prioritizing investments in enhancing the franchise development program, new technology, personnel, strategic vendor partnerships, multi-channel national advertising, and more – all with an eye on maximizing franchisee profits while meeting the needs of today's modern customer.

According to the brand's Franchise Disclosure Document, the Top 50% of Marco's franchised stores generated average net royalty sales of $1,222,684 during the 2022 fiscal year*.

The brand's impressive performance has earned multiple awards and recognition: Ranking in Newsweek's 2023 America's Best Customer Service in the pizza chains category, earning a spot on QSR's Top 50, appearing on Nation's Restaurant News' prestigious Top 500 ranking, and claiming the No. 51 spot on Entrepreneur's 2023 Franchise 500^® ranking.

For more information on Marco's Pizza franchise opportunities, visit https://www.marcos.com/franchising/ or call 866-731-8209 to speak with Shannon Iverson, Vice President of Franchise Sales.

ABOUT MARCO'S PIZZA
Headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, Marco's Pizza is one of the fastest-growing pizza brands in the United States. Marco's was founded in 1978 by Italian-born Pasquale ("Pat") Giammarco and thrives to deliver a high-quality pizza experience, known for its dough made from scratch and its three fresh signature cheeses. The company has grown from its roots as a beloved Ohio brand to operate over 1,100 stores in 34 states with locations in Puerto Rico and the Bahamas. Most recently, Marco's Pizza was ranked No. 51 on Entrepreneur Magazine's 2023 "Franchise 500" ranking. Other recent accolades include a high ranking on Newsweek's 2023 "America's Best Customer Service" in pizza chains list, earning a spot on QSR's Top 50, and being featured on Nation's Restaurant News' prestigious "Top 500" ranking.

*Based on the Average Sales Volume of the top 50% of our Franchised Stores for our fiscal year 2022. Based on our fiscal year 2022, 160 of 414 Franchised Stores in the category (or 39%) met or exceeded this average. This information appears in Item 19 of our 2023 FDD – please refer to our FDD for complete information on financial performance. Results may differ. There is no assurance that any franchisee will perform as well.

SOURCE Marco's Pizza