TOLEDO, Ohio, Aug. 19, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Marco's Pizza, the fastest growing pizza company in the United States, can thank its fresh dough made daily on site, a proprietary cheese that is fresh never frozen and a secret pizza sauce recipe created by its native Italian founder for its explosion of growth in 2013. Aside from product quality, the burgeoning pizza franchise's success in the marketplace has also been driven by strong leadership and innovative operational and marketing strategies.
In fact, Marco's Pizza is on track to open 104 new locations in 2013. More than 1,500 new franchises have been signed, which means the company will quadruple its store count in the coming 5-7 years. This year, more than 30 percent of applications for new restaurants came from referrals of existing owners, who, after realizing the growth of their current locations and seeing the continued growth of the company as a whole, sought to share the opportunity with ambitious entrepreneurs. Additionally, 27 percent of new applications came from Marco's Pizza customers, reinforcing the single most prominent reason for the company's growth; its food.
Having experienced a 37 percent revenue growth increase in 2012, Marco's Pizza remains one of the top franchise opportunities on the market in 2013. Company executives see substantial growth in the Southeast and Central regions of the country for franchise expansion this year, including Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, as well as Texas.
Marco's Pizza serves the expanding $40 billion U.S. pizza market that continues to grow at a rate of 1 and 2 percent per year. "We've established ourselves as a leading franchise in the pizza business," said Jack Butorac, CEO of Marco's Pizza. "It has resulted in exponential growth for our brand at a time when many competitors have either struggled or failed."
While many franchises have been challenged with skyrocketing operating costs due to economic factors and market conditions, Butorac has been an innovator in identifying best practices for operation. Whether it's reducing shipping costs by changing pizza box designs, transitioning to online/mobile ordering, or investing in energy saving devices, Marco's Pizza has found ways to combat rising costs in light of a slow-to-recover economy while always protecting its Italian food integrity standards.
Additionally, the company is staying on trend, recently announcing a new initiative with the people behind The New York Times' best-selling business book, "The Oz Principle," to create a program that will maintain their culture as they continue expanding across the U.S. The program will roll out nationally to Marco's Pizza's 7,900 employees in August and September of 2013.
"As we further our development efforts and open in new locations, we'll innovate and evolve through new partnerships, new products and continued investments into the brand," said Butorac. "We are stoked that the growth in the pizza category further enhances the big growth prospects of Marco's Pizza in particular."
Because of the company's strong corporate backing, ability to take market share, its Italian food standards and its people, the Marco's Pizza franchise system took less than five years to more than double in size. As a result, Marco's Pizza has received high praise from Entrepreneur Magazine and AllBusiness.com which ranked Marco's in the top 10 Allstar franchise systems. Most recently, Marco's Pizza ranked as number 2 on the Nation's Restaurant News' second 100 top 10 newcomers.
Averaging one to two restaurant openings per week, the franchise is offering prospects exciting opportunities to be a part of the company's nationwide growth. For more information on Marco's Pizza franchising opportunities, visit www.marcosfranchising.com
ABOUT MARCO'S PIZZA:
Headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, Marco's Pizza (Marco's Franchising, LLC) is the fastest-growing pizza company in the U.S. (based on the number of stores signed into development since 2007). Marco's was founded in 1978 by Italian born, Pasquale ("Pat") Giammarco and thrives by making Italian Pizza with fresh ingredients. The company has grown from its roots as a beloved Ohio brand to operate more than 380 stores in 29 states, the Bahamas and Panama. Marco's Pizza recently ranked 11th place in the "2012 Pizza Industry Top 100 Movers & Shakers" by PizzaMarketPlace.com. To inquire about franchise opportunities with Marco's Pizza visit marcosfranchising.com.