Marco’s Pizza franchisee Robert Pina wins the IFA Franchisee of the Year Award for excellence in business growth, leadership, and community impact.
PRNewswire – Marco’s Pizza, one of the nation’s fastest-growing pizza brands, announces multi-unit franchisee partner, Robert Pina, as the recipient of the International Franchise Association’s (IFA) prestigious Franchisee of the Year Award. Pina was honored at the 65th IFA Annual Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada, for being an outstanding franchise establishment owner-operator.
The Franchisee of the Year awards recognize leading franchise owners from IFA member brands whose outstanding performance and contributions help protect, enhance, and promote the franchise business model. Nominated by their parent company, individuals are selected for their service to their communities, fostering a strong and vibrant workforce, opening the doors for career growth and entrepreneurship, and supporting their fellow franchisees.
“This award is a direct result of the incredible team I have had by my side and the opportunities franchising has provided me,” said Pina. “Marco’s has given me the ability to create something bigger than myself and the opportunity to mentor future business owners, give back to the communities that support us, and continue growing a brand I believe in. I am honored to receive this recognition and excited for what’s ahead.”
Pina has leveraged franchising as a pathway to opportunity, building a portfolio of 35 Marco’s Pizza locations across Houston, Phoenix, Denver, and Colorado Springs. His journey began as an engineer, but after recognizing the limitations of a traditional career path and wanting to pursue his entrepreneurial dreams, he made a pivot to franchising. In 2013, after being introduced to Marco’s Pizza and recognizing the immersive support and scalable business model, he took the leap and opened his first location. Since then, Pina has expanded aggressively, including signing one of the largest development deals in the brand’s history to bring 46 new stores to Phoenix by 2028. His focus on team development, operational excellence, and community engagement has not only made him a standout within the Marco’s system, but the entire franchising industry as well.
“Robert exemplifies what it means to be a world-class franchisee,” said Tony Libardi, Co-CEO & President of Marco’s Pizza. “His unwavering dedication to the brand, strong leadership, and impact on both his team and community set him apart as a deserving recipient of this honor. We are proud to have Robert as part of the Marco’s family and look forward to seeing his continued growth and impact.”
As Pina continues his expansion, his commitment to fostering leadership, maintaining operational excellence, and giving back to the community remains at the forefront, making him a true force in the franchise industry.
“Franchisees of the Year represent the very best of franchising,” said Matt Haller, President and CEO of the International Franchise Association. “They embody the American Dream, create economic opportunity, serve their communities, and show what it means to go into business for yourself, but not by yourself. We are proud to recognize Robert with the highest honor IFA awards to individual franchisees, and we salute his tireless efforts to lift up all those he serves.”
In addition to franchisee acknowledgement, the brand’s impressive performance has earned Marco’s a Top 50 spot in Entrepreneur’s Franchise 500, being named the only top 5 pizza chain in Newsweek’s America’s Best Customer Service for pizza chains, and a highlight in Nation’s Restaurant News’ Top 500 and QSR’s Top 50.
Prospects are taking note of the business opportunity, as the Marco’s Franchising Franchise Disclosure Document reports the Top 50% of Marco’s franchised stores generated average net royalty sales of AUV $1,208,653 during the 2023 fiscal year*.
FRANdata, a leading research and advisory firm that analyzes the franchise market, reports Marco’s 2024 FUND Score ranks among the Top 10 of all evaluated franchise systems. More impressively, Marco’s ranks in the Top 3 scores for all QSR brands and No. 2 in the pizza category, maintaining its strong position from 2023. These impressive rankings are a testament to the brand’s commitment to financing guidance as a core focus of its franchise development strategy which has led the near 1,300-unit brand on the path to continued growth.
For more information Marco’s Pizza franchise opportunities, visit https://www.marcos.com/franchising/ or contact Jamie Cecil at jcecil@marcos.com or 866-731-8209.
ABOUT MARCO’S PIZZA
Headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, Marco’s Pizza is one of the fastest-growing pizza brands in the United States. Marco’s was founded in 1978 by Italian-born Pasquale (“Pat”) Giammarco and thrives to deliver a high-quality pizza experience, known for its dough made from scratch and its three fresh signature cheeses. The company has grown from its roots as a beloved Ohio brand to operate over 1,200 stores in 35 states with locations in Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, and Mexico. Most recently, Marco’s was recognized as America’s Favorite Restaurant in the Limited-Service Pizza category by Nation’s Restaurant News using Technomic Ignite Consumer 2024 data. Other recent accolades include ranking No. 48 on Entrepreneur Magazine’s 2024 “Franchise 500” ranking, earning a coveted spot as the only top 5 pizza chain to rank on Newsweek’s 2025 “America’s Best Customer Service” in pizza chains list, earning a spot on QSR’s Top 50, and being featured on Nation’s Restaurant News’ prestigious “Top 500” ranking.
*Based on the Average Sales Volume of the top 50% of U.S. Franchised Stores for our fiscal year 2023. Based on our fiscal year 2023, 185 of 447 Franchised Stores in the category (or 41%) met or exceeded this average. This information appears in Item 19 of Marco’s Franchising’s 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document (“FDD”) – please refer to our FDD for complete information on financial performance. Individual results may differ. There is no assurance that any franchisee will perform as well.
About the International Franchise Association
Celebrating over 60 years of excellence, education, and advocacy, the International Franchise Association (IFA) is the world’s oldest and largest organization representing franchising worldwide. IFA works through its government relations and public policy, media relations, and educational programs to protect, enhance and promote franchising and the approximately 830,000 franchise establishments that support nearly 8.8 million direct jobs, $896.9 billion of economic output for the U.S. economy, and almost 3 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). IFA members include franchise companies in over 300 different business format categories, individual franchisees, and companies that support the industry in marketing, law, technology, and business development.