Pizza Hut
The world’s second-largest pizza chain after Domino’s, and the one that carried American pizza into more than 100 countries.
48 figures on Pizza Hut, drawn from 6 Modern MBA case studies.
The figures
US dollars16
| Against its own chart | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual global system sales by brand · 2019 | $13B | 1st of 8 · top $13B | Why KFC got so bad in America |
| Annual global system sales by brand · 2021 | $13B | 1st of 8 · top $13B | Why KFC got so bad in America |
| Annual global system sales by brand · 2014 | $12B | 3rd of 8 · top $13B | Why KFC got so bad in America |
| Annual global system sales by brand · 2015 | $12B | 3rd of 8 · top $13B | Why KFC got so bad in America |
| Annual global system sales by brand · 2016 | $12B | 3rd of 8 · top $13B | Why KFC got so bad in America |
| Annual global system sales by brand · 2017 | $12B | 3rd of 8 · top $13B | Why KFC got so bad in America |
| Annual global system sales by brand · 2018 | $12B | 3rd of 8 · top $13B | Why KFC got so bad in America |
| Annual global system sales by brand · 2020 | $12B | 3rd of 8 · top $13B | Why KFC got so bad in America |
| Worldwide food and drink sales in the first years after the spin-off · 1999 | $7.6B | 2nd of 3 · top $9.6B | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Worldwide food and drink sales in the first years after the spin-off · 1997 | $7.2B | 2nd of 3 · top $8.4B | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Average cost to open a store, excluding real estate | $1.42M | 1st of 7 · top $1.42M | Why pizza is the best restaurant business |
| Average gross earnings per store in 2023 dollars · 2000 | $1.05M | 3rd of 3 · top $1.47M | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Average annual sales | $1M | 8th of 9 · top $6.3M | Why pizza is the best restaurant business |
| Average gross revenue per store by brand, 2000 | $712,000 | 6th of 8 · top $1,600,000 | Why Crumbl won't last |
| Average gross earnings per store in 2023 dollars · 2022 | $0.7M | 3rd of 3 · top $1.86M | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Non-refundable upfront payment required to operate | $25,000 | 7th of 8 · top $50,000 | Why Crumbl won't last |
Percentages15
| Against its own chart | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Share of 1999 transactions by time of day · Dinner | 74% | 1st of 3 · top 74% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Share of 1999 transactions by time of day · Lunch | 24% | 3rd of 3 · top 50% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Share of YUM Brands profit by chain · 2013 | 23% | 1st of 10 · top 23% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Share of YUM Brands profit by chain · 2014 | 20% | 2nd of 10 · top 23% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Share of YUM Brands profit by chain · 2015 | 20% | 2nd of 10 · top 23% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Share of YUM Brands profit by chain · 2016 | 20% | 2nd of 10 · top 23% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Share of YUM Brands profit by chain · 2017 | 18% | 5th of 10 · top 23% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Share of YUM Brands profit by chain · 2018 | 18% | 5th of 10 · top 23% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Share of YUM Brands profit by chain · 2019 | 18% | 5th of 10 · top 23% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Share of YUM Brands profit by chain · 2020 | 17% | 8th of 10 · top 23% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Share of YUM Brands profit by chain · 2021 | 16% | 9th of 10 · top 23% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Share of YUM Brands profit by chain · 2022 | 16% | 9th of 10 · top 23% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Store-level operating margins around the time of founding | 15% | 5th of 6 · top 21% | Why Crumbl won't last |
| Percentage of sales paid to the franchisor as royalties and marketing fees | 10.8% | 4th of 8 · top 12.5% | Why Crumbl won't last |
| Store-level operating margin by restaurant chain in 2022 | −2% | 12th of 13 · top 24% | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
Counts15
| Against its own chart | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Store counts at home against everywhere else, 2022 · International | 12,562 | 5th of 6 · top 26,831 | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Worldwide store count across John Schnatter’s first run · 2004 | 12,274 | 1st of 3 · top 12,274 | How Papa John’s buried Papa John |
| Worldwide store count across John Schnatter’s first run · 2000 | 12,084 | 1st of 3 · top 12,084 | How Papa John’s buried Papa John |
| Store counts in the United States · 2014 | 8,000 | 1st of 9 · top 8,000 | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Store counts in the United States · 2015 | 7,891 | 2nd of 9 · top 8,000 | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Store counts in the United States · 2016 | 7,712 | 3rd of 9 · top 8,000 | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Store counts in the United States · 2018 | 7,557 | 4th of 9 · top 8,000 | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Store counts in the United States · 2017 | 7,537 | 5th of 9 · top 8,000 | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| US locations at each end of the window · 2017 | 7,536 | 3rd of 5 · top 25,908 | Why the Popeyes chicken sandwich was so good |
| Store counts in the United States · 2019 | 7,294 | 6th of 9 · top 8,000 | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Store counts in the United States · 2021 | 6,617 | 7th of 9 · top 8,000 | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Store counts in the United States · 2020 | 6,526 | 8th of 9 · top 8,000 | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Store counts at home against everywhere else, 2022 · United States | 6,472 | 5th of 6 · top 13,444 | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| Store counts in the United States · 2022 | 6,472 | 9th of 9 · top 8,000 | Why Taco Bell got so expensive |
| US locations at each end of the window · 2022 | 6,471 | 4th of 5 · top 20,567 | Why the Popeyes chicken sandwich was so good |
Durations1
| Against its own chart | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Months a restaurant must be open before it counts as comparable | 12 mo | 8th of 11 · top 24 mo | Why the Popeyes chicken sandwich was so good |
Measures1
| Against its own chart | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Average size of a domestic store, in square feet | 2,025 | 5th of 7 · top 4,000 | How Papa John’s buried Papa John |
Case studies covering Pizza Hut
Case study — Food & beverageHow Papa John’s buried Papa JohnSix regimes in thirty years, four of them engineered by the founder. The filings contradict his version.13 min read
Case study — Food & beverageWhy pizza is the best restaurant businessThe one restaurant category where independents beat the chains on margin and almost nobody goes bankrupt.10 min read
Case study — Food & beverageWhy Taco Bell got so expensiveThe most profitable chain in fast food is being squeezed hardest, and the reason is KFC and Pizza Hut.11 min read
Case study — Food & beverageWhy the Popeyes chicken sandwich was so goodThe sandwich came from a decade of R&D discipline its new owners inherited and did not build. That is the problem.14 min read
Case study — Food & beverageWhy Crumbl won't lastMrs. Fields had its decade too. Crumbl store margins fell from 30% to 10% while corporate went from $4M to $152M.15 min read
Case study — Food & beverageWhy KFC got so bad in AmericaThe same company, the same recipe, two outcomes. What changed was who owns the buildings and cooks the chicken.11 min readNew episodes
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