Papa John's

Operations

Papa Johns deploys field teams, incentives to improve operations

CEO Todd Penegor said a major opportunity exists for the chain to fix its "Achilles heel" of inconsistency.

Marketing

Papa Johns overhauls its marketing strategy amid sales decline

CEO Todd Penegor said the company "didn’t answer the bell" on value in the second quarter.

CEO Todd Penegor said the company is urgently ramping up its innovation pipeline to attract new customers following a tough Q1.

The Bottom Line: The pizza chain is reportedly weighing an offer from Irth Capital Management that would take the company private, the latest in a long line of buyout rumors and reports.

The pizza chain’s North America same-store sales have fallen for seven of the past eight quarters. It is cutting 7% of its workforce while closing underperforming restaurants and eliminating menu items.

The culinary team at the Atlanta-based pizza chain tested countless iterations to elevate the pie’s flavor and texture and have it stand out in a crowded category.

The pizza chain completed a “strategic refranchising” of a joint-venture operation in Washington, D.C., and Baltimore to Pie Investments, which will open another 52 locations in the market by 2030.

The fast-food pizza chain’s same-store sales declined 3% last quarter. The company is planning to cut “non-customer-facing” costs and will speed up refranchising.

Behind the Menu: The chain just launched the Papa Dippa, a pizza cut into strips for easy dunking into four dipping sauces, all packed together in a specially designed box.

A Deeper Dive: Penegor joins the weekly restaurant finance podcast to talk about Papa Johns’ focus on its core pizza, its use of third-party aggregators, technology, artificial intelligence and marketing.

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