Franchise Head-to-Head: Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake Pizza vs. Blaze Pizza Franchise

Join Papa Murphy’s Franchise for a lower cost of startup and operations with a bigger brand name than Blaze Pizza

Pizza is heating up! During the pandemic, Americans ordered and ate more pizza than ever before, driving total industry revenues to more than $48 billion. It makes sense that entrepreneurs like you are considering opening your own pizza restaurant.Before you land on a franchise concept like Blaze Pizza franchise, though, consider Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake Pizza. We’re unique in the pizza industry, and that’s one of the reasons why we’re consistently ranked fifth in total sales.1 

Our guests love Papa Murphy’s delicious take and bake pizzas, and once you’ve done the research and run the numbers, we think you’ll love us just as much. After all, there’s a lot different about Papa Murphy’s, and that’s a good thing.

Papa Murphy's heart Pizza not Blaze Pizza

Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake Pizza franchise is unique among national pizza brands

When it comes to pizza chains, there’s a lot of competition, and standing out is important. Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake Pizza stands out because our model is so unique. We like to say we’re “different on purpose.”

A Papa Murphy’s isn’t a pizzeria, and it’s not a pizza delivery restaurant. Instead, each location is a pizza store. Guests arrive or order online, they choose their ingredients, and a pizza expert assembles their pizza fresh to order. 

So far, the Papa Murphy’s experience sounds like a lot of custom pizza concepts similar to Blaze, right? Well, the difference comes with what happens next.

Instead of placing that newly assembled pizza into a commercial sized oven, it’s packaged uncooked with instructions on how to cook the pizza at home, when the guest is ready to eat. They take their pizza home and bake it there — the difference is in the name. Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake Pizza is unique because guests love the home-cooked experience of a premium, fresh pizza.

Blaze Pizza franchise is a dine-in restaurant

Compare Papa Murphy’s model to Blaze Pizza franchise, and you’ll see significant differences right off the bat. That’s because Blaze Pizza specializes in the dine-in pizza experience. 

According to their CEO, customers at Blaze Pizza restaurants typically dine in more than 80% of the time. They order their pizzas, which are assembled in front of them and then cooked. Guests consume the pizza on the premises.

The dine-in model means more retail space for tables and chairs, soda machines and coolers, and trash cans for disposal after the meal. Many Blaze locations also feature outside dining. 

As you’ll see, these differences and several others can drive the cost of owning and operating a Blaze Pizza location through the roof, especially when compared to the relative affordability of a Papa Murphy’s location.

Papa Murphy’s pizza franchise is affordable to open

When it comes to startup costs, Papa Murphy’s is relatively meager compared to the competition. As stated in the Franchise Disclosure Document, the estimated initial investment an entrepreneur will spend to open a Papa Murphy’s location is between $296,075 – $534,731, which includes all leasehold improvements, equipment, materials, advertising, you name it. 

These costs are lower because our take and bake model means fewer employees, fewer square feet, and less infrastructure than Blaze Pizza, where startup costs range from $454,400 to more than $1.1 million. Those costs include furnishings for the dining room, equipment to cook the pizzas, soda fountains, drink coolers, and as much as $25,000 in silverware, serving platters, and other dining implements.

All of those costs are saved when you choose Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake Pizza. There is no dining room, which means you won’t need silverware, serving platters, soda machines, or that fancy ice maker. In fact, the average cost of opening a Blaze Pizza location is $792,700 — more than $250,000 higher than the most expensive Papa Murphy’s franchise model.

Papa Murphy’s pizza franchise costs less to operate

Think about the last time you dined in a pizzeria. Consider every factor from the moment you parked the car to the moment you were driving away. Every single moment of that experience represents a cost to the pizzeria owner, and when it comes to cost controls, no other brand can provide you what operating a Papa Murphy’s franchise can.

Because Papa Murphy’s is a take and bake pizza store, you don’t have to worry about building out a dining room or massive space for pizza ovens. The retail footprint is smaller, which drives down monthly costs. Many Papa Murphy’s locations can operate in fewer than 1,200 sq. feet. 

Without a dining room, you won’t need servers, bussers, or line cooks shoving pizzas into ovens. A typical shift at a busy Papa Murphy’s may include three or four employees, and many times, the business is efficiently handled by just two people. 

Happy employees in a Papa Murphy’s restaurant

Compare the operational efficiencies of Papa Murphy’s to Blaze Pizza. With a dine-in model, you’d have to have multiple cooks on the ovens, cashiers handling sales transactions, employees assembling pizzas, and the staff required to run a dining room. Between the increased square footage requirements that range as high as 3,200 sq. feet and the staffing needs, you’ll be spending a lot of money on just opening the doors — all before you’ve sold the first pizza.

Get started with Papa Murphy’s pizza franchise today

For in-depth details about Papa Murphy’s franchise opportunity, download the free franchise report. You also can learn more by visiting our franchise research pages.

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