ATLANTA (September 15, 2017) – Global Franchise Group® (GFG), the strategic brand management company and franchisor of Great American Cookies®, Hot Dog on a Stick®, Pretzelmaker®, and Marble Slab Creamery®/MaggieMoo’s Ice Cream & Treatery® announced today that it has acquired the Round Table Pizza® brand and all of its affiliated concepts (Round Table Pizza, Round Table Clubhouse and Round Table Pizza Wings Brew). The acquisition of this leading pizza franchise increases GFG’s system-wide sales to close to $1 billion and expands the brand building company’s footprint to more than 1,500 stores – domestic and international. Round Table has 440 U.S. locations in seven states and 10 international locations. GFG acquired the brand today, Friday, Sept. 15, 2017.
“Global Franchise Group has successfully grown both organically and via acquisition. We know how to champion brands and operate and support profitable concepts to take them to the next level. Round Table Pizza is an iconic pizza brand with a loyal consumer base, a strong franchise community, and superior products – consistent with everything Global Franchise Group stands for,” said Chris M. Dull, President, and CEO of Global Franchise Group. “We have high expectations for Round Table’s integration into GFG as it’s a ‘center of the plate’ concept, has over $1 million in AUVs for its traditional dine-in concept*, and has potential to integrate into our manufacturing facility in Atlanta.”
By acquiring Round Table Pizza, GFG increases its West Coast presence and boosts its corporate store vertical adding 70 new stores for a total of 140 locations. GFG plans to invest in menu and technology innovations, building out franchisee support, developing people and remodeling restaurants. With GFG’s proven track record of acquiring and building brands, Round Table Pizza will benefit from the organization’s franchising expertise and GFG will utilize its category-leading brand synergies to drive sales, grow the Round Table business and add to the success of the GFG portfolio. The organization’s mission is to “Champion Brands and the People Who Build Them.”
“Round Table Pizza has become a standard in the industry and Global Franchise Group’s acquisition of our famous and respected brand provides market validation of a tremendous accomplishment by our employees, franchisees and everyone involved in the success of Round Table Pizza,” said Rob McCourt, CEO, and President of Round Table Pizza. Jack Robertson, Chairman of the Board of Round Table Pizza adds, “Round Table employee-owners have seen a dramatic increase in their equity over the last six years and this deal allows them to reap the rewards of their hard work and dedication to making Round Table pizza what it is today and getting the brand to this moment.”
* The following information can be found in Item 19 of the Round Table Franchise Corporation’s 2017 Franchise Disclosure Document. Specifically, the 393 traditional dine-in restaurants (of which 331 were franchised and 62 were affiliated owned) had average sales of $1,025,448 during the 2016 calendar year.
About Global Franchise Group, LLC – Visit Global Franchise
Global Franchise Group, LLC is a strategic brand management company with a mission of championing franchise brands and the people who build them. The company owns a portfolio of franchise brands that includes five primary quick service restaurant (QSR) franchise concepts: Great American Cookies®, Hot Dog on a Stick®, Marble Slab Creamery®, MaggieMoo’s Ice Cream & Treatery®, and Pretzelmaker®. The brands are managed by GFG Management, LLC, a subsidiary of Global Franchise Group, LLC. Global Franchise Group, LLC is a portfolio company of Levine Leichtman Capital Partners, an independent investment firm, with approximately $9 billion of capital under management and substantial franchise management experience.
About Round Table Pizza – Visit Round Table Pizza
Round Table Pizza was founded by Bill Larson in 1959 in the San Francisco Bay Area to create a place where families could relax and share a superb pizza. More than fifty years later, Round Table Pizza remains true to its founder’s vision with 440 restaurants across the western United States and the world. Round Table’s signature tagline, “The Last Honest Pizza”, describes its commitment to quality and authenticity.