Mountain Mike’s Pizza has ranked No. 6 in the highly competitive pizza category by Entrepreneur magazine in their 2021 Franchise 500 List. Additionally, Entrepreneur named “pizza” as a “Hot Franchise Category” and Mountain Mike’s as one of the “Hottest Franchise Opportunities” of 2021. This year, a record 1,116 companies applied, and Mountain Mike’s ranked #192 on the overall list. Entrepreneur magazine’s Franchise 500 is the world’s most comprehensive franchise ranking, honoring companies for their exceptional performance in areas such as unit growth, financial strength and stability, and brand power. This news comes hot on the heels of Mountain Mike’s announcing that 2020 was the brand’s best year ever in terms of sales and growth, beating out 2019 which held the previous record.
“After a challenging year, we are proud to rank higher than ever within the competitive pizza category, proving that the hard work and dedication of our incredible franchise partners and leadership team has really paid off,” says Chris Britt, co-CEO/owner of Mountain Mike’s Pizza. Ed St. Geme, co-CEO/owner of Mountain Mike’s Pizza added, “the pandemic has certainly been an accelerant for change in our industry, and though the pizza segment in general has done well with the many changes, Mountain Mike’s finds its success in helping our franchisees and their families thrive under any circumstance.”
A variety of factors have contributed to the brand’s success this past year, including growing digital orders by more than 120 percent, reaching nearly 40 percent of total orders by year end, continued advancement of a more flexible, data driven and digital focused marketing strategy, and rapid implementation of contactless delivery, tamper free packaging and other safety protocols at the outset of the pandemic. The brand saw strong sales growth throughout the year, which was achieved despite dining rooms being closed for most of the year, a testament to the resilience of its franchisees, loyalty of its fans and the underlying strength of its carry-out and delivery business.
“Franchises were able to be nimble and innovative, serving the needs of franchisees and customers in ways that will resonate for many years to come,” says Jason Feifer, editor in chief of Entrepreneur. “We believe that, when we eventually look back on this time, we’ll see it as a moment when many brands defined themselves for the future.”
The key factors that go into the evaluation of the Franchise 500 include costs and fees, size and growth, support, brand strength, and financial strength and stability. Each franchise is given a cumulative score based on an analysis of more than 150 data points, and the 500 franchises with the highest cumulative scores become the Franchise 500 in ranking order.
Jim Metevier, Mountain Mike’s Pizza President and COO says, “This year we’re continuing to focus on smart, strategic growth with big plans to expand throughout the Western U.S., including a 60+ unit development deal in Arizona and Utah signed in Q4 2020. Over the past few years, we have achieved incredibly strong momentum with no signs of slowing down, and with so many exciting developments in motion, there has never been a better time to join the growing Mountain Mike’s franchise family!”
