By Targeting Markets with Existing Locations, Papa Murphy's Aims to Open 115-120 Locations by End of Year

For Papa Murphy’s, the Vancouver-based take-and-bake pizza chain, being purposefully simple has always been a way of life.

Their locations are small and efficient, with most of the square footage being dedicated to pizza creation. With no baking required in-store, the lack of ovens and freezers cuts clutter and lowers complexity in the kitchen. Because of the brand’s streamlined operations (no cooking, no delivery and shorter hours) it keeps labor costs down. And the low overhead allows Papa Murphy’s to offer its signature products at prices often significantly lower than competitors’ hot, straight-out-of-the-oven pizza.

This organizational simplicity has allowed the brand to perfect the one thing that matters most—their pizza. With lower labor costs, Papa Murphy’s is able to invest in quality ingredients, allowing them to make a fresher and better pizza in comparison to some of the biggest names in the business. And its take-and-bake concept, in which customers personalize their toppings in the store and bake the pizza at home, lends itself well to a customer-first mentality in all Papa Murphy’s does: Families get the exact pizza they want exactly when they want it.

“Our competitive edge in the growing pizza industry is twofold. First, we have a loyal fan base that respects the quality of our pizza. It’s a unique and convenient alternative for consumers craving something better than the greasy, homogenous pizza delivered in a cardboard box,” said Jayson Tipp, chief development officer and senior vice president of technology at Papa Murphy’s. “Papa Murphy’s is also easier for franchise owners. Because we operate more like a small-scale specialty grocery store, we don’t require superior restaurant operating skills. There are no fryers or ovens and there’s very limited clean up. This means a lower investment, a lower break-even point and lower complexity.”

All told, Papa Murphy’s practical concept is one that works. Today, the brand has more than 1,500 locations in 38 states, making it the fifth-largest pizza chain in the United States. It’s also the largest take-and-bake pizza chain in the country by far—the nearest competitor, Figaro’s Pizza, has fewer than 50 locations. The brand’s success goes beyond the numbers, too—for five straight years, Papa Murphy’s has been ranked the No. 1 Pizza Chain by Nation’s Restaurant News’ Consumer Picks. And, according to Market Force Information’s annual quick-service-restaurant study, the brand was recently ranked as America’s favorite pizza chain —outperforming major chains like Papa John’s, Domino’s and Pizza Hut.

Backed by nearly 35 years of success, Papa Murphy’s is now embarking on its mission to cut out an even bigger slice of the competitive $40 billion pizza industry. With a presence predominately throughout the West Coast, the brand is undergoing a major expansion push to become a nationally-recognized brand. And much like the Papa Murphy’s business model itself, their growth tactic is just as simple: Expand deeply within one market at a time to build critical mass awareness and amplify the power of the brand.

So far, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Arizona are at the top of Papa Murphy’s list for future development—locations that the brand already has a growing footprint in.

“We realized that there was a strong correlation between average weekly sales and annual volumes when compared to the number of existing stores that we have in the market—the more we penetrate a territory, the more our sales accelerate,” Tipp said. “We want to get to a certain level of consumer awareness of the brand until we can reach the tipping point for success.”

Now, as Papa Murphy’s continues to push forward, the brand has set its sights on selling additional units to gain that level of awareness.

“We believe we can eventually triple the size of Papa Murphy’s. We’re built on a distinctive product that consumers come back to time and time again. But beyond that, we’re also a simple business model with a strong value proposition—and that’s what really matters in the franchise industry right now,” Tipp said. “We have all of the right elements in place. Now it’s time to be aggressive and make things happen.”

To learn more about Papa Murphy’s, click here.