QSR February 2023

S P ON S O R E D B Y P I Z Z A F A C T O R Y

IconicWest Coast brand enhances operations with innovative tech-stack, driving sales and expansion. Pizza Factory Hits aHomerun in Hometowns Nationwide

FORMORE THAN30YEARS, PIZZAFACTORY has stayed true to its roots. Hardworking own ers and staff, family-friendly dining and a high quality product that reminds us all of our favor ite hometown pizzeria. Today, the brand is thriving greater than ever before, serving as a community staple in over 100 hometowns across seven states. In 2022 alone, 25 restaurants hit a milestone of $1 mil lion in sales, demonstrating the proof of con cept and adoring customer base. Rather than targeting over-saturatedmajor metropolitans, the brand found its bread and butter specializing in small town markets— primarily on the West Coast, where the oper ators become a fabric of the community and establish relationships with local schools and sports teams. Since stepping in as Pizza Factory CEO in 2012, Mary Jane Riva has been influential in modernizing this legacy brand with an inno vative tech-stack to lead the next generation of franchisees. While carrying on the brand’s com munity-centric values was of utmost impor tance, the brand invested heavily in technology

and operations. In recent years, the franchisor added a smaller carry out-only Pizza Factory Express model, enhanced online ordering with a state-of-the-art loyalty app, and added innovative vendor partners to remain competitive in the $54 billion pizza marketplace.

to continuously innovating from a tech, operations, and menu stand point. Following a recent partnership with PepsiCo, the brand released a Cheetos Flamin’ Hot Chicken Pizza, which debuted in all restaurants for a limited time. Rounding out a banner 2022, the brand signed 20 franchise agree ments with experienced operators in markets across the country, including Levon, Texas; Southern and Central, California; Redmond and Woodland, Washington; and Mesa, Arizona. These double-digit agree ments surpass the brand’s 12 franchise agreements from2021, marking a newwave of growth for the award-winning pizzeria. Frommultiple fast-casual prototypes to a new Express quick-service model, Pizza Factory maintains its reputation for family-friendly dining and high-quality products. With aggressive development efforts under way, Pizza Factory is actively growing and seeking operators to develop nationwide and is offering new development incentive programs. RF

“We want to remain on the cutting edge in the pizza category and have provided our franchise operators the resources to build relationships with their customers whether it’s dine-in, takeout, or delivery,” Riva says. Since its inception, the Pizza Factory loyalty app has generated nearly $20 million in loy alty sales. Pizza Factory’s incredible expansion is credited to the corporate team’s dedication

AUV OF TOP 50 PERCENT OF RESTAURANTS: $ 825,000– $ 2.13 million

NET WORTH: $ 250,000 OVERALL INVESTMENT: $ 274,000– $ 542,000

For more on franchisingwith Pizza Factory, visit pizzafactoryfranchises.com.

PIZZA FACTORY

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FEBRUARY 2023 | RESTURANT FRANCHISING