Papa John’s International is going big in one of the world’s fastest-growing pizza delivery markets.
The company announced a partnership with FountainVest Partners, one of Asia’s leading independent private equity firms, to open more than 1,350 new stores across South China by 2040. The franchisee development agreement, the biggest in Papa Johns’ history and the largest master franchise deal announced in the pizza industry in recent years, is expected to greatly expand the company’s footprint in China.
FountainVest has also purchased a majority stake in the current Papa John’s franchisee CFB Group, which owns and operates approximately 160 restaurants in Shanghai and across southern China. The addition of a new franchisee partner to the brand begins another strong year of development activity for Papa John’s, following last year’s major international and domestic development deals, with accelerating store openings across all markets.
“This partnership with FountainVest marks another major milestone in achieving Papa John’s global growth potential, reflecting both the scale of our brand’s global opportunity and the quality of franchisees that are investing in our future,” said Rob Lynch, president and CEO of Papa John’s. “Our new development agreement with FountainVest alone stands to grow Papa John’s current global unit count by 25 per cent.”
