Papa John's closes 44 stores in multiple locations across the US - USA Today

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See who won.USA TODAY's James Powel was at the International Pizza Expo to see who reigned supreme in skill and competition.Pizza chain Papa John’s is carrying out its plan to close 300 stores by the end of 2027, and the company has closed more than 40 locations already. Papa John’s said in a May 2026 financial report that the closures happened during the company’s first quarter, which lasted from Dec. 28, 2025, to March 29, 2026. The brand closed 44 restaurants in North America, including five company-owned locations and 39 franchised locations. The 44 closures were in 17 states, Daily Mail reported, including Texas, California, Florida, Arizona, Michigan, North Carolina and Virginia. The closures come after the company announced on Feb. 26, 2026, that it would be closing 300 underperforming restaurants across the U.S. by the end of 2027. Papa John’s said during a call with investors that about 200 of the closures will happen in 2026. USA TODAY contacted Papa John’s to get a full list of the quarter-one closures, but did not immediately receive a response. More news: Pizza Hut to be sold for $2.7 billion with eye on 'future growth' Ravi Thanawala, chief financial officer and president of Papa John’s North America, said during the Feb. 26 call that the closures are part of the company’s effort to “improve restaurant profitability” and make the most of its restaurant portfolio. “The vast majority of our global restaurants have performed well over the years and delivered strong returns for both corporate and franchise owners,” he said during the call. However, the 300 restaurants the company plans to close across North America have underperformed financially, he said. Thanawala also said during the call that the closing locations are mainly franchise-owned, over 10 years old, and bring in average sales of less than $600,000 per location. He said the closures will improve franchisee health by allowing them to put more resources toward operations in their remaining restaurants and priority markets. “This is the same strategy we successfully deployed during my tenure managing our international business,” he said, adding that in the United Kingdom, Papa John’s improved average sales by 17%. He said during the call that the company’s domestic earnings have suffered over the past few years due to food costs and labor inflation. The company plans to improve its earnings through supply chain savings, and making operations more efficient. In February, when the company announced the closures, company President and Chief Executive Todd Penegor said 2025 was “a year of transformation for Papa John's.”  He said the company made improvements to the brand’s health technology platform, customer experience, restaurant fleet and cost structure.  Customers are buying more pizza overall, with the total number of pizzas sold increasing 1% during the company’s fourth quarter, he said. The company also saw an increase in orders that included multiple pizzas. In North America, the company’s carryout business showed low, single-digit increases in order growth, which he attributes to the company’s 50% off carryout offer in November 2025.  Regarding the closures and franchised locations, Penegor said the company is doing its best to support franchisees, “whether that's a relocation, whether that's a closure, whether that's a reimage, whether that's a new build.” “(We’re) working hard to really make sure that we partner with our franchise community to set them up for long-term success,” he said. Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY’s trending team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Email her at sdmartin@usatoday.com.