Start a Marco's Pizza Franchise in 2025

2025 Franchise 500 Rank: #49 Ranked #48 last year

Initial investment: $286K - $805K

Units as of 2024: 1,204 16.0% over 3 years

Marco's Pizza strives to make pizza the best way while only using high-quality ingredients. The pizza industry is highly competitive. Marco’s Pizza has been in operation since 1978 and has been franchising since 1979. It boasts more than 1,000 locations, over 900 of which are in the United States.

Do you have what it takes to create a slice of pizza heaven in your community?

Why You May Want to Start a Marco's Pizza Franchise

Marco's Pizza knows how to make your mouth water from tasty pizza, salads, subs, and cheese breads. Marco's Pizza makes quality food and offers customers who opt for delivery or takeout real value for their money. They may stand out from the rest because they wish to consistently provide quality meals to customers.

If you're an outgoing person who's passionate about food and business, you might enjoy becoming a Marco's Pizza franchisee. And if you have no previous experience running a restaurant, don't worry because it isn't required, but it may help you in your day-to-day operations.

Marco's Pizza has a good business model, and the franchise team may provide you with ongoing support and training. During training, you are generally given all the tools you need to operate a successful restaurant. You might learn how to make high-quality pizzas and manage a team. A winning attitude might help win over customers with delicious pizzas.

What Might Make a Marco's Pizza Franchise a Good Choice?

Before making any financial commitment or signing an agreement, you must perform your due diligence and establish if this is the right opportunity for you. This may include speaking to a financial planner and a franchise attorney. Additionally, research the brand and your local area to see if Marco's Pizza franchise would do well in your community. While competition is healthy, too much of it may not allow for the most possible growth.

To be part of Marco's Pizza team, you should make sure you’re financially ready for an initial investment made up of a franchise fee and other startup costs. You should also prepare yourself for ongoing fees that will include advertising, royalty, and potential renewal fees. Marco’s Pizza may offer a discount off the franchise fee for qualified veterans. Franchisees will also need to meet the company's set net worth and liquid capital requirements.

How To Open a Marco's Pizza Franchise

To get started with owning a Marco's Pizza franchise, you may need to fill out an ownership application form. After this, you should review Marco's Pizza executive summary, as it may help you if you're invited for an initial phone call with Marco's Pizza franchise representative.

After various interviews and store visits, you may be invited to a discovery day at headquarters in Toledo, Ohio. Here you can speak to existing franchises and meet brand executives. Afterwards, you may be awarded a Marco's Pizza franchise location. Before long, you might be dishing up hot slices of authentic Italian pizza.

Company Overview

About Marco's Pizza

Industry	Food
Related Categories	Pizza
Founded	1978
Parent Company	Marco’s Franchising LLC
Leadership	Tony Libardi, Co-CEO & President
Corporate Address	5252 Monroe St. Toledo, OH 43623
Social	Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok

Business Overview

Franchising Since	1979 (46 years)
# of employees at HQ	178
Where seeking	This company is offering new franchises in the following US states: Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Wyoming This company is offering new franchises in the following international regions: Asia, Middle East, Europe (Western), Central America, Canada, South America, Mexico
# of Units	1,204 (as of 2024)

Information for Franchisees

Here's what you need to know if you're interested in opening a Marco's Pizza franchise.

Financial Requirements & Ongoing Fees

Here's what you can expect to spend to start the business and what ongoing fees the franchisor charges throughout the life of the business.

Initial Franchise Fee Definition: The initial fee paid to a franchisor to join their system What you need to know: Found in Item 5 of the FDD, this may be a flat fee, or may vary based on territory size, experience, or other factors.The franchise fee is an up-front (one-time) cost that a new franchisee pays to the franchisor. This fee is usually due at the signing of the franchise agreement and covers the right to use the franchisor's trademarks, name, and related business systems.	$25,000
Initial Investment Definition: The total amount necessary to begin operation of the franchise What you need to know: The initial investment includes the franchise fee, along with other startup expenses such as real estate, equipment, supplies, business licenses, and working capital. This is outlined in a chart in Item 7 of the FDD, showing a range of possible costs from low to high.	$285,631 - $804,856
Net Worth Requirement Definition: The minimum net worth you must have in order to qualify to become a franchisee of this company What you need to know: Net worth is the value of a person's assets minus liabilities. Assets include cash, stocks, retirement accounts, and real estate. Liabilities include items like mortgages, car payments, and credit card debt.	$600,000 - $1,200,000
Cash Requirement Definition: The minimum liquid capital you must have available in order to qualify to become a franchisee of this company.	$200,000 - $600,000
Veteran Incentives Definition: A discount or other incentive offered to military veterans who buy a franchise with this company.	$10,000 off franchise fee; franchise fee waived for veterans with 50%+ military service-connected disability rating
Royalty Fee Definition: A ongoing fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis. What you need to know: Most franchisors require franchisees to pay an ongoing royalty fee, which is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD. This fee is typically a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales, but may also be a flat weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	5.5%
Ad Royalty Fee Definition: An going fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis to support advertising or marketing efforts. What you need to know: This may also be called advertising fee, marketing fee, brand fund fee, and more, but the basic purpose is the same-- to support promotion of the brand systemwide. As with the royalty fee, it is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD, and can be a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales or a weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	7%
Term of Agreement Definition: The length of time your franchise agreement will last. What you need to know: Franchise terms are typically anywhere from 5 to 20 years in length, but are sometimes instead dependent on factors such as the term of your lease. Once your term is up, you may have the option to renew your agreement, typically for a smaller fee than the original franchise fee.	10 years
Is franchise term renewable?	Yes

Financing Options

Some franchisors offer in-house financing, while others have relationships with third-party financing sources to which they refer qualified franchisees.

Third Party Financing	Marco's Pizza has relationships with third-party sources which offer financing to cover the following: franchise fee, startup costs, equipment, inventory

Training & Support Offered

Franchisors offer initial training programs and a variety of ongoing support options to help franchisees run their businesses.

On-The-Job Training	240 hours
Classroom Training	74 hours
Ongoing Support	Newsletter Meetings & Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Security & Safety Procedures Field Operations Site Selection Proprietary Software Franchisee Intranet Platform
Marketing Support	Ad Templates National Media Regional Advertising Social Media SEO Website Development Email Marketing Loyalty Program/App

Operations

Additional details about running this franchise.

Is absentee ownership allowed?	No
Can this franchise be run from home/mobile unit? Definition: The business can be run from your home and/or a vehicle, and it is not necessary to have a retail facility, office space, or warehouse.	No
Can this franchise be run part time? Definition: This business can be run by the owner on a part-time basis (less than 40 hours per week) and/or as a side business; it is not necessary for the business to be open/run full-time.	No
# of employees required to run	20-25
Are exclusive territories available? Definition: An exclusive territory is a fixed area in which you are given the right to operate and in which no other units of the same franchise may be opened. What you need to know: Territory size may be based on factors such as radius, population size, zip codes, and more. Details can be found in Item 12 of the FDD.	Yes