Innovative pizza chain shuts down nearly 150 U.S. locations
The chain has a unique business model
Sales fell across the entire pizza category
More locations likely to close
Most people eat out or order takeout because it’s convenient. Not having to cook is one of the main reasons to spend the money on eating at a restaurant or bringing groceries home.
This makes Papa Murphy’s model a difficult one to sell to consumers. The chain offers what it calls “Take ‘N’ Bake” pizza.
He shares how this works on his website.
“We make it fresh. You cook it to perfection. Delicious pizza that you can take home and make your own. Made from scratch with fresh ingredients, so you can pick it up, bake it in the oven, and enjoy it fresh out of the oven.”
So essentially Papa Murphy’s still sells takeout pizza that you have to cook.
The model has been surprisingly successful but has struggled in the last few years. MTY Food Group, which owns the chain, has closed hundreds of locations in the past two years and plans to close more.
MTY Food Groups CEO Eric Lefebvre has made it clear that Papa Murphy’s will close stores strategically, although it has closed more than 100 locations.
“As part of our ongoing efforts to strengthen the brand and position it for long-term success, we made difficult but strategic decisions in partnership with our franchisees last year to close a select number of underperforming locations. This allows us to focus our time, resources and support on the markets and stores where we are seeing the strongest growth and guest engagement.” third quarter earnings call.
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The CEO made it clear that many of these closings depend on the franchisee’s level of commitment and willingness to spend money.
“We’re also seeing right now that we have some franchisees who are pulling back on some of their local marketing efforts,” he said.
This has an immediate negative impact.
Pizza is very marketing driven. So when you turn off the tap, you see sales immediately drop.
In cases where franchisees do not want to invest, Papa Murphy’s works with them to exit the market. Lefebvre believes that the worst is behind the chain.
“Will there be more store closings in the future? Probably a few. But I don’t think you’ll see closures of the magnitude we’ve seen in the last two years,” he added.
Papa Murphy’s offers pizzas you have to cook at home. ” loading=”lazy” height=”540″ width=”960″ class=”yf-1gfnohs loader”/>
Papa Murphy’s offers pizzas you have to cook at home.
2023 Closings: Papa Murphy’s closed a net 43 locations in 2023, and this trend continues into 2024.
2024 Closings: In the third quarter of 2024 alone, the company lost nearly 100 locations, primarily due to franchise store closures.
Franchise Challenges: Some closures occurred because the company did not have the infrastructure to keep locations open while finding buyers for struggling franchisees.
Market Factors: Factors contributing to the closures include price sensitivity, increased competition and difficulties maintaining profitability.
Papa Murphy’s isn’t the only pizza chain having trouble. Essentially all of the major brands have closed their locations since 2023 in most cases.
“In 2024, the pizza segment suffered significantly, with Technomic’s Top 500 Restaurants data showing that 61% of pizza chains experienced a decline in sales.” Country’s Restaurant News reported.
Pizza chains are also vulnerable to all the problems that affect any restaurant.
“Many restaurant chains have closed locations in 2024. The reasons are varied, but inflation has almost certainly led to this as wages, ingredient costs and other expenses rise as cost-conscious consumers dine out or spend less.” FranchiseWire It was shared.
(This is not a complete list, just highlights).
Sworn Pizza: All company-owned locations are closed as of December 2023.
MOD Pizza: 27 locations closed in 2024, including five in California.
Bertucci’s: Closed several locations in 2023 and 2024, including the last New Jersey location in July 2023 and the last Connecticut location in August 2025.
Domino’s: By the beginning of 2025, 205 stores were closed worldwide, mostly in Japan. It has announced plans to close a further 200 stores in 2025, particularly in underperforming international markets.
pizza hut: 15 locations in Northwest Indiana and several in Central Ohio were closed in June 2024 due to a legal dispute with franchise owner EYM Group. It was warned that another 120 locations were in danger of closing due to the same dispute.
Dealership Model: Papa Murphy’s operates as a take-and-bake pizza franchise that eliminates in-store ovens and delivery services to reduce operational costs.
Average Annual Income: The average annual revenue for franchise locations is approximately $616,000.
Related: Grocery chain is closing 500 locations, updating 1,000 more
This story was first reported by: Street It first appeared in Restaurants and Fast Food Industry News on October 15, 2025. Add TheStreet at: Preferred Source by clicking here.
