Marco's Pizza® Reveals Enhanced Franchise Development Program Fueling Expansion to 1,500 Units by End of 2023

Leading Pizza Franchise Adds Expertise at Every Franchisee Decision Point – Financing, Real Estate, Design, Construction

TOLEDO, Ohio, April 28, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Marco's Pizza, one of the nation's fastest-growing pizza brands, reveals major enhancements to its franchise development program set to fuel rapid growth as the 1,000-plus unit brand aims to reach its expansion goal of 1,500 units by the end 2023. Notably, stores continue to open at a rapid rate and the enhancements have provided attractive incentives for multi-unit growth, while making it easier to secure financing from preferred lenders.

With more than 200 stores in development, Marco's is on the fast-track to achieving this growth goal. As franchise development continues to surge, leadership prioritizes investments in new technology, personnel, strategic vendor partnerships, and more to accelerate the brand's growth strategy. With these enhancements, Marco's franchise development support is world-class, creating opportunity for sophisticated entrepreneurs and operators to grow their multi-unit portfolios.

"I've been with Marco's for 11 years and can confidently say that the level of sophistication and detail of the franchise development program has never been stronger," said Area Representative and Franchisee Robert Pina, who just signed a 46-store deal, one of the largest deals in Marco's brand history. "Marco's makes it easy to become an empire builder in the system. If you're looking to grow a robust pizza portfolio, you won't find a more dedicated and supportive team than this. Marco's leadership and devotion to franchise growth and franchisee support is simply unmatched."

Designed to bring ease to the development process, Marco's created enhancements in four critical areas: financing, growth incentives, real estate, design & construction.

• Strategic Support to Secure Financing: Understanding the challenges surrounding lending, Marco's Director of Franchise Financing, Brad Fletcher, and the finance team, have established partnerships with eight preferred banks and lending institutions. Through quarterly meetings, the Marco's finance team provides key updates on the state of the business, growth, and performance. As a result, banks are in a better position to offer favorable lending terms to individual Marco's franchisees. According to FRANdata, a leading research and advisory firm that analyzes the franchise market, Marco's 2021 FUND Score is in the top 1% of all evaluated franchise systems and is among the top three scores for all QSR brands.
• Multi-Unit Growth Incentive:  Marco's offers a long-term incentive for multi-unit owners, including franchisee fee discounts, reduced royalties, and growth acceleration bonuses – download the Franchise Information Report for more information.
• Strengthened Real Estate Support Team: Marco's continues to add real estate expertise and support to help accelerate site selection and guide franchisees at key decision points. 
• Streamlined Design & Construction Process: Marco's recently formalized a partnership with a single architect to streamline the design process. This partnership has helped shorten the build-out process by approximately two weeks. Furthermore, the architect shepherds the process through permitting on behalf of the franchisee so they do not have to take on additional responsibility with local municipalities. Marco's has also brought in several general contracting experts who will provide franchisees with assistance in reviewing the bid, aligning pricing, conducting a pre-construction meeting, and reviewing schedule for project completion.

"As a result of strategic enhancements, our development team is able to act soundly as consultants to franchisees by providing information, insights, and recommendations at every key decision point and milestone," said Keith Sizemore, Vice President of Development for Marco's Pizza. "This, paired with the fact that several members of our team are also franchisees themselves, brings a unique perspective to the support process. Franchisees are given the confidence that they are making the right decisions."

In addition to its robust franchise development support, Marco's continues to invest in building its brand through a multi-channel national advertising program. This has played a significant role in driving sales as the brand projects to reach $1B in annual systemwide sales in 2022.

"There's never been a more opportune time for both existing and prospective franchisees to grow with Marco's," said Steve Seyferth, SVP and Chief Experience Officer at Marco's Pizza. "With plenty of territories available for growth, our development and performance strategy remain centered on finding multi-unit franchisees who align with our business strategy and culture, while continuing to prioritize innovation and maximize unit-level profitability."

With strong growth and performance, Marco's sets its sights on becoming the No. 4 brand in pizza. The brand experienced an 12.8% increase in year-over-year Average Unit Volume (AUV), and the Top 50% of Marco's franchised stores generated $1,198,201 AUV for 2021*.

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
Marco's Pizza is America's Most Loved and Most Trusted Pizza Brand, according to the 2019 Harris Poll EquiTrend® Study. 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 1,000 stores in 34 states with locations in Puerto Rico and the Bahamas. Most recently, Marco's Pizza was ranked No. 2 in the Pizza category on Entrepreneur Magazine's 2022 "Franchise 500" ranking, and No. 4 in the Fastest Growing category on Restaurant Business' 2021 "Top 10 Fastest Growing Chains" ranking. Other recent accolades include a first-time presence on Newsweek's 2022 "America's Best Customer Service" in pizza chains list, ranked No. 42 on QSR's Top 50 and has been featured five consecutive years on Nation's Restaurant News' prestigious "Top 500" ranking.

*Based on the Average Unit Volume of the top 50% of our Franchised Stores for fiscal year 2021. Based on fiscal year 2021, 146 of 389 Franchised Stores in the category (38%) met or exceeded this average. This information appears in Item 19 of our 2022 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