Pizza Hut Canada expands in Eastern Canada through FMI partnership

Toronto – Pizza Hut Canada, a division of YUM! Brands, Inc., has entered into a development arrangement with Franchise Management Inc. to expand into Quebec and Eastern Canada.

Under this agreement, Franchise Management Inc. (FMI) has agreed to purchase 38 existing Pizza Hut restaurants in Quebec and the Ottawa/Kingston region, as well as to add new delivery-carryout (DelCo) model stores in Eastern Canada over the next five years, Pizza Hut said in a news release.

“We are thrilled to deepen our relationship with FMI and to finally return to growth in Quebec,” said Marco Moretto, Director of Development for Pizza Hut Canada. “We have been proudly serving loyal customers for nearly 30 years in Quebec and this announcement is the latest development in Pizza Hut’s history and our strategic transformation plan to drive growth by increasing our franchise ownership.”

The agreement represents a first major step in Pizza Hut Canada’s plans to relaunch expansion into Quebec. Pizza Hut Canada has a proven delivery-carryout model with a smaller footprint at lower build costs, the company said.

FMI is the largest Pizza Hut franchise operator in Canada and currently owns and operates more than 175 Pizza Hut locations in Canada and the United States, the release said. All of its operations are administered from its support centre in Woodstock, N.B.

“FMI has been a longstanding franchisee with Yum! Pizza Hut’s DelCos are a great investment opportunity and we are really excited to be a continued strong partner for Pizza Hut Canada’s growth journey,” said Greg Walton, Operating Partner of FMI.

Pizza Hut has more than 16,000 restaurants in over 100 different countries, including 400 units across eight provinces in Canada. Pizza Hut Canada has more than 200 trade zones available to investors and is looking to expand through organic franchise growth, development agreements with the right partners, Master Franchise agreements and mergers and acquisitions of existing chains. Pizza Hut Canada works with franchisees and investors, including new and existing small (single unit) and multiunit operators.