Papa John's vs Buck's Pizza Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Papa John's vs Buck's Pizza including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees
 
Papa John's Franchise
Buck's Pizza Franchise
Investment $26,500 - $844,420$165,450 - $345,400
Franchise Fee $25,000$20,000
Royalty Fee 5%5%
Advertising Fee 8%2%
Year Founded 19851994
Year Franchised 19861994
Term Of Agreement 10 years10 years
Term Of Agreement 10 years10 years
Renewal Fee --


Business Experience Requirements
 
Papa John's Franchise
Buck's Pizza Franchise
Experience The prospective franchisee should have at least one partner with a successful business management background and one partner who qualifies as the Principal Operator. For single-unit development, an individual can apply to be both owner and Principal Operator. The Principal Operator must have prior general management experience relative to the number of units to be developed and must own or have the right to acquire at least 5% equity in the business within 12 months of hire date. A fully completed Request for Consideration Form and current resume must be submitted for each member of the proposed franchise group or the owner operator, including the proposed Principal Operator. Also, Papa John's will request supporting documentation from each proposed owner
  • Industry experience
  • General business experience
  • Marketing skills
    		•

    Financing Options
     
    Papa John's Franchise
    Buck's Pizza Franchise
      In-House/3rd PartyIn-House/3rd Party
    Franchise Fees No/NoNo/Yes
    Start-up Costs No/NoNo/Yes
    Equipment No/NoNo/Yes
    Inventory No/NoNo/Yes
    Receivables No/NoNo/No
    Payroll No/NoNo/No

    Training & Support
     
    Papa John's Franchise
    Buck's Pizza Franchise
    Training We provide initial training for the operator of 6-8 weeks. In addition, we continue to provide ongoing training for your operator and team.-
    Support -Purchasing Co-ops Toll-Free Line Online Support
    Marketing -Ad Templates
    Operations - 14% of all franchisees own more than one unit

    Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 12

    Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (90% of current franchisees are owner/operators)

    Expansion Plans
     
    Papa John's Franchise
    Buck's Pizza Franchise
    US Expansion YesYes
    Canada Expansion NoNo
    International Expansion YesNo

    Company Overviews

    About Papa John's

    We didn’t start our business in a boardroom. We started it in a broom closet. Back in 1984, our Founder, John Schnatter (that’s Papa John to you) sold his beloved muscle car to buy pizza‐making equipment. Armed with only an oven and a love for making quality pizza, John opened the very first Papa John’s in the crowded broom closet of his father’s tavern. Over the years, this passion for making better pizza informed every decision and pizza we made...because the last thing we wanted to be was a pizza company. So instead of chopping vegetables with machines, we chop them by hand every day. Instead of investing in gimmicks, we invest in fresh ingredients. And we pile them high on our fresh, never-frozen original dough. Today, we’ve surrounded ourselves with like-minded people with a passion for making better pizza, including franchisees, suppliers, athletes, pizza makers, and farmers we’ve known for over 30 years. Like our friend Dino in California - "he grows the best tomatoes. In the end, John’s desire to create a better pizza built more than a pizza company...he built a pizza family.

    At Papa John's we have a simple formula for success: Focus on one thing and try to do it better than anyone else. By keeping the Papa John's menu simple, we are able to focus on the quality of our product by using only superior-quality ingredients. Our commitment to quality can be seen in all of our ingredients, from our fresh (never frozen) water-purified traditional dough, to our vine-ripened fresh-packed tomato sauce (which goes from the vine to the can in an average of six hours), to our cheese made with 100% mozzarella and many other premium ingredients.

    The total investment necessary to begin operation of a standard Papa John’s franchise is $130,120 to $844,420. This includes up to $73,920 that must be paid to the franchisor or its affiliate.
    The total investment necessary to begin operation of a non-traditional Papa John’s franchise is $26,500 to $388,920. This includes up to $56,420 that must be paid to the franchisor or its affiliate.

    Seeking new franchise units Worldwide.

    Better Ingredients, Better Pizza.

    "Top  ""    "Entrepreneur
    #64 in Canada's Top franchises.

    "franchiserankingscom"
    #55 on Franchise Rankings.com
    #146 in Franchise 500 for 2020.
    #127 in Franchise 500 for 2021.






    About Buck's Pizza

    Buck's Pizza was incorporated on September 16, 1994, in the state of Pennsylvania. The management of Buck's Pizza, Lance Benton and the management team has an extensive background in franchise operations. Buck's Pizza was formed by Mr. Benton to expand a new pizza franchise on a national basis. In a very short period of time Buck’s is already accomplishing expansion goals. Buck's Pizza now has over 80 shops in over 20 states. Buck's is demonstrating its ability to support its franchisees. Buck's Pizza has plans for nationwide expansion citing its franchise format of low start up costs, low royalties and strong local level marketing as being a strong departure from the way franchise companies have operated for years. Buck's Pizza has been selected by Entrepreneur Magazine as one of the TOP 500 FRANCHISES for each of the last 4 years.

    Veteran Incentives  50% off franchise fee