Marco's Pizza Rolls Out Franchise Development Incentive Program with 0% Royalties to Start*
Growing Pizza Brand Eases Path to Ownership in Ever-Changing Economy with Phased Royalty Reductions
TOLEDO, Ohio, March 19, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Marco's Pizza, one of the nation's fastest-growing pizza brands, announces the launch of its new Franchise Development Royalty Incentive Program designed to empower aspiring, qualified multi-unit franchise owners with early-stage royalty incentives starting at 0%*. In the face of an ever-changing economy, including inflation pressures and increased minimum wage rates, the program aims to help entrepreneurs step into ownership.
"As a brand committed to responsible franchising, we're mindful of the cost pressures today's franchise candidates face," said Gerardo Flores, Chief Development Officer of Marco's Pizza. "Our goal is to make franchise ownership more accessible and ease multi-unit franchisees' initial costs. By managing controllable costs, we're proud to offer a program that reflects our commitment to supporting future owners as they navigating this ever-changing economic landscape."
Incentives of the Development Program Include*:
- 3-5 Franchise Agreementsꝉ: Franchisees who sign three to five franchise agreements will benefit from a phased royalty fee structure designed to support their growth.
- For the first six months after each store opens, they will pay 0% royalty fees.
- From months seven to 18, the fee will increase to 2.5%, and after 18 months, it will reach the then-current royalty fee offered. This gradual increase allows franchisees to reinvest in their locations during the critical early years of business.
Marco's has designed this incentive to provide a pathway to ownership that prioritizes sustainability and growth for prospective multi-unit owners. This initiative also aligns with Marco's commitment to fostering entrepreneurship – a value the brand actively promotes via the Marco's Pizza Foundation's charitable collaboration with Junior Achievement, encouraging young people to pursue their entrepreneurial goals.
By championing the entrepreneurial spirit, the company is not only expanding its reach but also strengthening communities across the country with opportunities for local ownership. Prospects are taking note of the business opportunity, as the Marco's Franchising Franchise Disclosure Document reports the Top 50% of Marco's franchised stores generated average net royalty sales of AUV $1,208,653 during the 2023 fiscal year**.
In addition to the incentive support, Marco's leadership prioritizes a development support system, including technology and tools to help identify territories for expansion, plus support in real estate, construction management, field operations, and information related to financing.
FRANdata, a leading research and advisory firm that analyzes the franchise market, reports Marco's 2024 FUND Score ranks among the Top 10 of all evaluated franchise systems. More impressively, Marco's ranks in the Top 3 scores for all QSR brands and No. 2 in the pizza category, maintaining its strong position from 2023. These impressive rankings are a testament to the brand's commitment to financing guidance as a core focus of its franchise development strategy which has led the 1,200-unit brand on the path to continued growth.
"Supporting entrepreneurs isn't just a goal; it's a core part of our mission," added Flores. "With this program, we aim to ease the initial investment costs that come with franchise ownership, so franchisees interested in multiple units can focus on what matters most: providing exceptional service and growing their business."
For more information Marco's Pizza franchise opportunities, visit https://www.marcos.com/franchising/ or contact Jamie Cecil at jcecil@marcos.com or 866-731-8209.
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 1,200 stores in 35 states with locations in Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, and Mexico. Most recently, Marco's was recognized as America's Favorite Restaurant in the Limited-Service Pizza category by Nation's Restaurant News using Technomic Ignite Consumer 2024 dataꝉꝉ. Other recent accolades include ranking No. 48 on Entrepreneur Magazine's 2024 "Franchise 500" ranking, earning a coveted spot as the only top 5 pizza chain to rank on Newsweek's 2025 "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.
*The information provided in this article should not be construed as an offer to sell any Marco's Pizza® franchises in, nor is any such communication directed to, the residents of any jurisdiction requiring registration of the franchise before it is offered and sold in that jurisdiction. Currently, the following states regulate the offer and sale of franchises: California, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. Marco's Pizza® franchises will not be sold to any resident of such jurisdiction until the offering has been exempted from the requirements of, or duly registered in and declared effective by, such jurisdiction and the required franchise disclosure document (if applicable) has been delivered to the prospective franchisee before the sale in compliance with applicable law. Additionally, the participant must meet our financial, creditworthiness, and operational criteria to qualify for the incentive program and be approved by us to open each Store. If the franchisee is a corporation, partnership, limited liability company, or other legal entity, the qualifying participant must maintain at least 50% ownership in the entity, as well as the qualifying existing Stores, to qualify for this program, and the franchisee must comply with program requirements. In the event the participant fails at any time to meet the timelines to qualify for the applicable incentive program while developing a Store, the Store being developed and any remaining unopened Stores to be developed will pay the then-current standard Royalty Fee rate. See Marco's Franchising's Franchise Disclosure Document for more information.
ꝉTo qualify for the incentive program, the participant must sign a development agreement and open the stores within the following timeframes: 1st Store within 365 days of signing; 2nd Store within 6 months of 1st store opening; 3rd Store within 6 months of 2nd store opening; 4th Store within 6 months of 3rd store opening; 5th Store within 6 months of 4th store opening.
**Based on the Average Sales Volume of the top 50% of U.S. Franchised Stores for our fiscal year 2023. Based on our fiscal year 2023, 185 of 447 Franchised Stores in the category (or 41%) met or exceeded this average. This information appears in Item 19 of Marco's Franchising's 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document ("FDD") - please refer to our FDD for complete information on financial performance. Individual results may differ. There is no assurance that any franchisee will perform as well.
ꝉꝉAccording to Technomic's 2024 America's Favorite Restaurants data, Marco's Pizza secured the top spot in the Limited-Service Pizza category with a 53.4% composite top-box rating, indicating the share of recent guests who gave the brand the highest possible rating for each of the guest experience attributes. Data for America's Favorite Chains comes from Technomic Ignite Consumer, which collects information about how brands impact consumers and how consumers interact with those brands, via online surveys. See here for more information: www.technomic.com/ignite-consumer.
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SOURCE Marco's Pizza