Franchise Focus
Kyle McPhee rose from a teenage prep employee to the proprietor of 16 Papa Murphy’s franchises by revitalizing struggling shops whereas specializing in customer support and operational effectivity. His success is a household endeavor, along with his spouse and youngsters concerned, and he continues to increase whereas prioritizing hands-on administration and workforce growth.
Photograph: Papa Murphy’s
Might 22, 2025 by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Managing Editor, Networld Media Group
Kyle McPhee is aware of the ins and outs of working a Papa Murphy’s franchise. In spite of everything, he has 16 positioned in Utah and Wyoming. Papa Murphy’s has been part of McPhee’s life since he was 18 doing prep work on the retailer throughout the road from his dad and mom’ dwelling.
It was the busiest retailer within the state, and inside six months, McPhee was a supervisor. For seven years, he bounced round from retailer to retailer, working in coaching, stock and troubleshooting.
The franchisee of the models he’d been working in, Jared McDougle, ultimately realized it was time for McPhee to take the following step. He requested McPhee to associate with him on a retailer in Holladay, Utah. McPhee mentioned it was a retailer that wasn’t excelling, with poor service and lengthy wait occasions at fault. That modified when McPhee took over, and he ultimately made it one of many busiest shops in Utah.
“I simply targeted on customer support and velocity of service and turned it round,” McPhee mentioned in a telephone interview. “It is within the prime and the busiest retailer in Utah these days.”
McPhee added that turning round that first retailer is among the highlights of his profession.
Six months later, McDougle provided McPhee half of a second retailer he’d purchased on the similar time. McPhee began managing each shops and ultimately purchased three extra shops with McDougle.
“After seven years, we break up up the shops. I took two, he took three,” McPhee mentioned, “and I began over constructing as much as what we have now now.”
With 16 shops, McPhee mentioned it does not really feel actual to have so many franchises on his personal. He credit his success to robust managers and good groups. He is often serving to out at a number of shops at a time and acknowledges that he cannot be in all places without delay.
“It was at all times the large plan (to have so many franchises), and I like doing it,” McPhee mentioned. “I at all times wished to be self-employed and have a bunch of shops. We pulled it off.”
That “we” consists of his household. McPhee met his spouse at Papa Murphy’s after they labored collectively as youngsters. Each his spouse and 5 youngsters are part of the enterprise. The children be taught to make use of the register by the point they’re seven or eight years previous. “It is simply lots of enjoyable to have a household. I get to hang around with my household on a regular basis.” McPhee mentioned. “My spouse helps me day-after-day. My oldest son is one in all my managers — he is 19 now.”
It is that son, Aydon, who’s now partnering along with his dad on a retailer in Eagle Mountain, Utah, a city south of Salt Lake Metropolis. “He is been my right-hand man for 10 years — since he may stroll he is come to Papa Murphy’s, so he is exited to do that for a profession,” McPhee added.
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Staff work a Papa Murphy’s makeline owned by Kyle McPhee in Utah. Photograph: Kyle McPhee/ Papa Murphy’s |
Operations
Papa Murphy’s has developed through the years, McPhee mentioned. When he began, the model had just one crust and 15 to twenty toppings out there. In the present day, it has six crusts and as much as 45 toppings. That makes it extra advanced to function, McPhee added, as a result of there are extra shifting components.
“We used to have one shelf within the cooler with dough on it,” McPhee mentioned. “Now we have six. It is much more planning to be sure you make the best stuff so that you’re prepared for every day.”
Hiring has at all times been the largest problem for the franchisee, discovering crew members that need to work and are prepared to place the hassle into their positions.
“I feel this youthful technology may be very hooked up to their social media, and it is simply getting tougher and tougher to search out those that have robust work ethics,” McPhee mentioned. Because of this, the franchises do lots of hiring and coaching. “You simply should dig by the weeds and discover the nice ones.”
McPhee mentioned Papa Murphy’s is well-known in Utah, because the state is saturated with the take-and-bake shops. There’s not a studying curve for many new prospects, as they’re already properly conscious of the model.
To keep up consistency throughout the model, McPhee is current in his shops, and he trains workers steadily. He stays concerned in his firm, whether or not it is answering telephones, washing dishes, coaching or hiring. He has space supervisors in his shops day-after-day.
“I feel that is the largest factor to protecting it constant,” he mentioned. “This is not a passive funding for me. It’s what I do.”
Since McPhee began as an entry stage employee, he is already finished every thing he asks his crew to do. Many workers have labored for him for years, and a few have even left and are available again.
“They’re shocked at how all the way down to Earth I’m as a supervisor and proprietor,” McPhee mentioned, “but it surely’s as a result of I’ve finished what they’ve finished. I am not an previous man making an attempt to inform them what to do. I can do it aspect by aspect with them.”
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The foyer of a Papa Murphy’s retailer. Photograph: Kyle McPhee/Papa Murphy’s |
Development and competitors
Apart from his Utah shops, McPhee has two in Wyoming in Rock Springs and Evanston.
Two models are in growth — Eagle Mountain and one other in St. George, Utah. They’re positioned in rising housing markets.
“The cities are large enough to tackle one other retailer or their first retailer,” McPhee mentioned. Many of the shops he is obtained through the years have been by acquisition taking up struggling shops. Implementing customer support and velocity of service helps enhance enterprise at these failing shops, and he shortly realized find out how to flip them round. To this point, he is 100% on efficiently rising enterprise within the shops he is acquired.
The largest criticism about take-and-bake pizza is that it should be taken dwelling and baked, however McPhee mentioned that is additionally one in all its largest attracts. That comfort is what prospects most get pleasure from about take-and-bake pizza.
“One particular person thinks we’re inconvenient as a result of we do not bake it. They have to take it dwelling and prepare dinner it,” McPhee mentioned, “but it surely’s additionally the factor that makes us extraordinarily handy as a result of you may come at 10 o’clock within the morning and purchase your pizza, put it within the fridge and at no matter level your complete household arrives at dwelling, throw it within the oven and you’ll eat collectively. It is scorching and prepared when your complete household is there on the similar time.”
McPhee mentioned he does not imagine it has turn into tougher to run take-and-bake shops previously few years. With the best groups, it is a simple idea to function as a result of the model does not have ovens. Most shops shut at 8 or 9 p.m., and there are fewer shifting components than a conventional pizzeria.
The Papa Murphy’s enterprise mannequin is interesting to franchisees due to these minimal shifting components to a take-and-bake idea. There’s loads of prep and the dough is made in-house, cheese is grated, and greens are reduce on web site, however the lack of kit and the shorter hours are interesting to franchisees.
To budding Papa Murphy’s franchisees, McPhee mentioned the extra work they put into their companies, the extra they will get out of it.
“They’ve their future of their palms,” he added. “They’ll management how massive or how profitable they need to be. … It is a massive duty but it surely’s one thing that if somebody desires to take that on, they’ll. They’ll deal with folks of their group.”
About Mandy Wolf Detwiler
Mandy Wolf Detwiler is the managing editor at Networld Media Group and the positioning editor for PizzaMarketplace.com and QSRweb.com. She has greater than 20 years’ expertise overlaying meals, folks and locations.
An award-winning print journalist, Mandy brings greater than 20 years’ expertise to Networld Media Group. She has spent almost twenty years overlaying the pizza business, from impartial pizzerias to multi-unit chains and each dimension enterprise in between. Mandy has been featured on the Meals Community and has received quite a few awards for her protection of the restaurant business. She has an insatiable urge for food for studying, and may inform you the place to search out the most effective slices within the nation after spending 15 years touring and consuming pizza for a residing.
