Marco’s Pizza Opens Tennessee’s 20th Store in Clarksville

Area residents wanting to satisfy their craving for great pizza have a second Marco’s location to get their artisan pizza fix

Marco’s Pizza franchise owner Ben DiQuattro knows that locals like what he has to offer — fresh, artisan pizza at a fair price. With the success of his first store, he decided to open his second location in town in late September, making it the 20th Marco’s Pizza store in Tennessee.

The 1,800-square-foot space seats 30 customers at 2485 Fort Campbell Blvd.; the location also has carryout and delivery. The store’s Oct. 3 grand opening featured games for kids, drawings for free pizzas for a year and samples of menu items.

“We are thrilled the community is taking such a liking to us,” says Ben, 24, about opening his second franchise. He opened his first franchise in February on Tiny Town Road.

“It is one of the few states where all markets — from Chattanooga to Memphis to the Nashville areas — are growing just as fast,” says Cameron Cummins, Vice President of Franchise Development for Marco’s Franchising. “We have got a lot of momentum.”

There are plans to open five to 10 more stores in Middle Tennessee in 2016, Cameron says.

Marco’s Pizza, the Ah!thentic Italian-style pizza franchise, prides itself in making the best delivery pizza money can buy. Marco’s pizzas are handmade in the Italian tradition, using fresh, never-frozen cheeses, making the dough in stores daily and using only premium meats and vegetables. Founded in Toledo in 1978, Marco’s is the only Top 20 pizza chain founded by a native Italian. Marco’s has enjoyed stunning growth in recent years and is on pace to have 1,000 restaurants open by early 2017.

Why is Marco’s Pizza grabbing a piece of the pizza market?

Stuart Field, Marco’s Pizza Area Representative, believes the pizza franchise is doing so well in Tennessee because the demographics match up, the price is right, and the quality of the product is good.

“The product is truly superior,” Ben says. “The product will blow you away. We have made-from-scratch dough and cheese that is never frozen. It sells itself. The best marketing is our product.”

Marco’s was voted number three among pizza chains by Consumer Reports.

And unlike other big-name pizza chains that have saturated the market with locations, our fast-growing pizza franchise has plenty of room to expand. Marco’s Pizza franchise has about 625 stores in 38 states, with locations also in the Bahamas, Puerto Rico and India.

Supportive company representatives, a good income, and a stable market draw franchisees to invest in Marco’s

“It is a great business to be in,” says Ben, who has his two brothers, Tad and Mark, and his sister, Laura Hammonds, working for him. He has worked for Marco’s Pizza since high school, and he managed Marco’s Pizza stores in South Carolina before starting his own franchise.

Ben wants others interested in owning a Marco’s Pizza franchise to know that franchisees can make a good income. Worried you may not have enough money to start a Marco’s? Those interested in buying a Marco’s can get corporate help with financing to start their franchise.

The company also has great Area Representatives like Stuart who help with getting a franchise up and rolling — just part of the support and training that Marco’s Pizza provides our franchisees to give them every opportunity to enjoy success.

“It has been the most helpful thing,” says Ben of having Stuart, who has helped make sure they have all the legal documents in order for operating in Clarksville, Tennessee.

Creating jobs for the community is another incentive for franchisees

“We have created a workplace for several individuals,” says Ben of his two Marco’s Pizza franchises. “We have 60 to 70 employees between both stores. It is a great feeling to provide income for individuals whether they are part-time or full time. We help them reach their goals. It is very rewarding.”

And those jobs are not likely to go away. Marco’s Pizza franchisees can have the reassurance that the pizza industry is a stable one. Pizza is a $40 billion a year industry, and PMQ Pizza Magazine estimates it will continue to grow. Citing Technomic’s Pizza Consumer Trend Report, About.com reported 68 percent of consumers order carryout pizza at least once a month, and 45 percent order pizza for dine-in service monthly or more often.

Learn more about Marco’s Pizza

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