Papa Murphy's Announces Closure of 68 Stores Amid Industry Challenges
The pizza industry is facing significant challenges, with declining consumer demand and rising costs impacting profitability across the sector. Papa Murphy’s, a national take-and-bake pizzeria chain, announced plans to close 68 underperforming corporate-owned stores as part of an effort to improve business quality and financial performance. According to CEO Eric Lefebvre, these closures follow a detailed review of store performance over the past year. The affected locations lost more than $10 million in revenue during this period, with most showing deteriorating fundamentals. Some closures are expected as early as next week, while the full process will take six to nine months. The broader pizza industry has seen declining restaurant counts since 2019 and a drop from being Americans’ favorite dining option to sixth place overall. Factors such as inflation, third-party delivery fees cutting into margins, and shifting consumer behavior are contributing to these challenges.
Topics: franchise model pizza industry decline restaurant closures