Marco’s Pizza ® Franchise Opens 500th Store

The fastest-growing pizza franchise has another 200 pizza franchises already in development

Marco’s Pizza ® is quickly approaching its goal of becoming the fourth-largest pizza franchise in the country, and we continue to make a bigger name for ourselves because of the many good things we do for our customers, our franchisees and our communities.

Marco’s is the fastest-growing pizza franchise in the county, and when we opened our 500th store, we decided to celebrate our success by doing something special for America’s military veterans. We launched “500 Strong,” a charitable initiative with the goal of raising $50,000 to help secure jobs for 500 veterans.

Our customers gladly helped. We asked them to contribute $1 donations in the weeks leading up to the June 14 grand opening of our 500th Marco’s Pizza ®, located at 2305 S. College Road in Wilmington, North Carolina. The store is owned by Area Representative Joe Walker, who is a veteran.

Donations were earmarked for USA Cares, a national nonprofit that provides financial and advocacy assistance to post-9/11 U.S. military families. The unemployment rate for veterans is about double that of the general population, and the Marco’s donations will directly benefit veterans who are seeking employment.

Marco’s seeks out veterans

We already have hundreds of veterans in the Marco’s system as franchise owners and employees, and we think they are a great fit. We are a member of the International Franchise Association’s (IFA) VetFran program, through which we offer incentives to veterans who buy a Marco’s Pizza ® franchise.

Veterans are particularly well-suited for careers in franchising because much of what they learn during their military service — leadership, attention to detail, working as a team and following a structured plan — translates into successful pizza franchise ownership.

Joe Walker is a great example. He spent four years on active duty as an infantry platoon leader in Iraq. When he left the military in 2008, he saw how well his skill set would dovetail with the skills required for successful franchise ownership. Marco’s 500th store will be the 12th under Joe’s purview as Area Representative, and he plans to open three more stores this year. He, and veterans like him, are a big reason we are the fastest growing pizza franchise.

“Not only are we thrilled to be opening our 500th Marco’s Pizza ® franchise, we’re very happy that we can help contribute to an important cause at the same time,” says Bryon Stephens, Marco’s Pizza ® President and COO. “This is really an exciting time in our brand’s history. We’re expanding across the country and entering new markets. We’re planning to open a total of 200 new stores this year.”

“We share this milestone and our successes with our dedicated franchise partners and their hardworking teams and of course with our loyal customers.”

Who leads America’s fastest growing pizza franchise?

As we grow and our franchisees look for opportunities to reserve prime Marco’s locations, they know our team of proven experts is there to support them. Our CEO, Jack Butorac, has been leading Marco’s since 2004 and has more than 30 years of experience in the restaurant industry. His specialty is turning quality restaurants into national chains.

President and Chief Operating Officer Bryon Stephens, who joined Marco’s in 2005, was Senior Director of Franchise Development for YUM! Brands and Vice President of Franchise Development for Yorkshire Global Restaurants, the parent company of A&W and Long John Silver’s. Cameron Cummins, Vice President of Development, has worked at industry giants YUM! Brands and Dunkin’ Donuts. Cathy Hull, our Chief Marketing Officer, was on ExecRank’s 2012 list of Top Private Company Marketing Executives. Cathy also has extensive experience in the food industry.

Marco’s founder Pasquale “Pat” Giammarco spent his early childhood in Italy, making us the only pizza franchise founded by a native Italian. Pat and his father created the recipe we use for our pizza sauce, part of our Ah!thentic ® Italian pizza.

Want to own a great, fast-growing pizza franchise?

At Marco’s, we’re excited about our rapid growth, and there’s never been a better time for the new or experienced investor to join our proven concept. If you’re an entrepreneur with a passion for working with people, owning a Marco’s pizza franchise may be the perfect fit for you. To learn more about joining our dynamic and growing company, please fill out the form at right or call us at 1-800-262-7267 to start a conversation. We’d love to hear from you!