Although pizza originated in Italy, the U.S. has come into its own, popularizing iconic regional styles like Chicago’s deep-dish pizza, New York’s thin crust, and Detroit’s pizza. Over time, pizza has become such a defining American staple that the world’s largest pizza chains are now predominantly based in the US.
As of 2025, the top domestic pizza chains by total number of locations include Hunt Brothers Pizza, Domino’s Pizza (DPZ), Yum! Brands’ Pizza Hut (YUM), Papa Johns and Marco’s Pizza, according to ScrapeHero.
Papa Johns has been a major player in the industry for more than four decades, but amid intensifying competition, even legacy brands are facing struggles. In the third quarter of 2025, North American comparable sales fell 3% year-over-year, continuing an almost uninterrupted downward trend in its US market.
This decline has prompted the company to make a significant change in its restaurant portfolio that could reshape its entire business for years to come.
Papa Johns ( PZZA ) has sold 85 restaurants in Washington, DC and Baltimore, Maryland to Pie Investments Management, led by Chris Patel, making the group one of the largest pizza chain franchisees in the US.
With this acquisition, Pie Investments now operates more than 150 Papa Johns restaurants nationwide. The group plans to open 52 additional locations in the Philadelphia market over the next five years, with a goal of reaching 250 locations by 2030.
The restaurants were previously owned by Colonel’s Limited, LLC, a joint venture between Papa Johns and Steeplechase Express, Inc. The group, led by the company’s longest-serving franchisee William Freitas, who is now retiring, opened its first Papa Johns restaurant in 1993 and became an early adopter of digital channels, helping to position the brand as one of the first major online pizza chains.
“Chris has built a team of leaders who are passionate about pizza, and his impressive track record of acquiring restaurants and improving their profitability is well known throughout the Papa Johns system,” Papa Johns CFO and President of North America Ravi Thanawala said in a press release.
Papa Johns is refranchising 85 restaurants to fuel profitable growth.Shutterstock
This latest sale is part of a larger refranchising initiative. During its fiscal 2025 third-quarter earnings call, Papa Johns said it plans to reduce company-owned restaurants in North America to a single-digit percentage of its nearly 6,000 global locations.
Over the next two years, Papa Johns plans to accelerate its internal refranchising efforts to drive profitable growth and expand into high-demand markets to improve the long-term economic model of its restaurants.