Pizza Hut, LLC[4] is an American multinational pizza restaurant chain and international franchise founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kansas, by brothers Dan and Frank Carney. The chain, headquartered in Plano, Texas, operates 19,974 restaurants worldwide as of 2025.[5]
While studying at Wichita State University, the Carneys opened their first location, which quickly expanded to six outlets within a year. The brand began franchising in 1959, and its distinctive building style was designed by Chicagoan architect George Lindstrom in 1963. Pizza Hut experienced significant growth, including the acquisition by PepsiCo in 1977, followed by a spin-off into Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc., later renamed Yum! Brands[6] in 2002, who are the current owners.
History
Pizza Hut was launched on May 31, 1958,[7] by two brothers, Dan and Frank Carney, both Wichita State students, as a single location in Wichita, Kansas.[8] Six months later they opened a second outlet, and within a year they were operating six locations. The brothers began franchising in 1959.
One early employee was future Pro Football Hall of Fame head coach Bill Parcells, who had worked for the company while a college student and football player at Wichita State University. Parcells was considering a franchise for a career (as well as law school), but instead chose to enter coaching, eventually becoming a head coach in the National Football League.[9]
The iconic Pizza Hut building style with the distinctive red roof was introduced in 1969, and was later incorporated into the corporate logo.[10][11][12]
The first Pizza Hut restaurant east of the Mississippi River was opened in Athens, Ohio, in 1966 by Lawrence Berberick and Gary Meyers.[13]
In the early 1970s, Pizza Hut opened several other chains to diversify its menu. These included the fast-food Mexican eatery Taco Kid; hamburger restaurant Next Door; steakhouse Flaming Steer; and barbecue restaurant Sutphen's. All four ventures were unsuccessful and closed by the end of the decade.[14] PepsiCo acquired Pizza Hut in November 1977.[15][16]
In August 1994, Pizza Hut and the Santa Cruz Operation (SCO) announced, a pilot program in the Santa Cruz area that allowed consumers to use their own computer to order pizza delivery from a local Pizza Hut restaurant, with connection being made over the Internet to a central Pizza Hut server in Wichita, Kansas.[17][18] The PizzaNet application software was developed by SCO's Professional Services group.[19] PizzaNet was based on the first commercially licensed and bundled Internet operating system, SCO Global Access.[19]
On May 30, 1997, PepsiCo spun off Pizza Hut, along with Taco Bell and Kentucky Fried Chicken,[16] into a new company named Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc. The company assumed the name of Yum! Brands on May 22, 2002.[20][21]
On March 31, 2011, Priszm, who was the largest franchisee for Pizza Hut restaurants in Canada at the time, went into bankruptcy protection in Ontario and British Columbia.[22]
In 2015, the oldest continuously operating Pizza Hut, which was the restaurant located in the Aggieville District of Manhattan, Kansas, closed after having opened as the 8th location in 1960.[13]
The company announced a rebrand that began on November 19, 2014, in an effort to increase sales, which had dropped in the previous two years. The menu was expanded to introduce various items such as crust flavors and 11 new specialty pizzas, and the company's employee uniforms were redesigned.[23] In 2017, Pizza Hut was listed by UK-based company Richtopia at number 24 in the list of 200 Most Influential Brands in the World.[24][25]
By 2018, the chain was no longer the biggest in the United States, having been surpassed by Domino's.[26] On June 25, 2019, Pizza Hut announced it was bringing back the logo and the red roof design that was used from 1976 until 1999.[27][28]
On August 7, 2019, Pizza Hut announced its intention to close about 500 of its 7,496 dine-in restaurants in the US, by the middle of 2021.[29]
On August 18, 2020, Pizza Hut announced it would be closing up to 300 restaurants after the bankruptcy of NPC International, one of its largest franchisees.[30] In March 2021, Flynn Restaurant Group acquired NPC's 937 Pizza Hut locations.[31]
In 2025, Yum Brands closed 130 Pizza Hut locations. Citing the chain's continuing low sales, Yum Brands announced a strategic review of the chain's operations.[26] In February 2026, it was announced that another 250 stores would close in the first half of 2026.[32] In April 2026, it was reported that Yum was looking to sell the chain to private equity.[33]
Branding
A significant part of the Pizza Hut brand is the red roof emblem. It was introduced as a distinctive part of the store building design in 1969, and was later incorporated into the logo. Accounts differ as to its origin; some sources state that the buildings were designed in 1963 by the Chicago architect George Lindstrom,[11][34] while others state that the buildings were designed by the Wichita architect and college friend of the Carney brothers, Richard D. Burke, for the fee of $100 per store built to this design.[12][10]
The Pizza Hut logo on roadside signage at this time featured "Pizza Pete", a stereotypical Italian chef mascot, but this character was later replaced by a graphical red roof emblem.[35] Some people consider that the red roof emblem resembles a wide-brimmed red hat, especially in German-speaking countries, where the word Hut means hat.
Concept
In 1975, Pizza Hut began testing concepts with Applegate's Landing.[38][39] with restaurants that featured Colonial-style exteriors and eclectic interiors that included a truck with a salad bar in the bed. The chain offered much of the same pizza and pasta dishes, with some additions like hamburgers and bread pudding. Applegate's Landing went defunct in the mid-1980s except for one location in McPherson, Kansas, that closed in late 1995.[40]
An upscale concept was unveiled in 2004, called Pizza Hut Italian Bistro. At 50 US locations, the Bistro is similar to a traditional Pizza Hut but with a menu that included previously unseen items, such as penne pasta, chicken pomodoro, and toasted sandwiches.[41] Instead of black, white, and red, Bistro locations feature a burgundy and tan motif.[42] In some cases, Pizza Hut has replaced a red roof location with the new concept.
Products
In North America, Pizza Hut has notably sold:
The "stuffed crust" pizza was introduced on March 26, 1995. By the end of the year, it had become one of their most popular lines.[50] Regional differences are seen in the products and bases.[51] The company has localized to Southeast Asia with a baked rice dish called Curry Zazzle.[52][53]
On May 9, 2008, Pizza Hut created "The Natural" pizza, which featured natural ingredients and was sold in Seattle, Denver and Dallas. This was discontinued on October 27, 2009, in the Dallas market.[54]
Pizza Hut developed a pizza to be delivered to the
International
Pizza Hut's international presence under Yum! Brands includes:
Pizza Hut's China operations are part of the Yum! spinoff Yum China. Pizza Hut was one of the first American franchises to open in Iraq.[73]
Advertising
United States
Pizza Hut's first television commercial was produced in 1965 by Bob Walterscheidt for the Harry Crow agency in Wichita, and was entitled "Putt-Putt to the Pizza Hut". The ad looks just like an old movie and is set in fast motion. It features a man in a business suit and tie, played by Ron Williams, who was then a production manager for Wichita's ABC affiliate KAKE-TV, as he orders take-out, leaves his house, and gets into his 1965 Mustang JR to drive to Pizza Hut, where he is chased by a variety of townspeople, portrayed by neighborhood kids, Walterscheidt and his daughter, and various employees for Harry Crow and KAKE-TV. He goes inside Pizza Hut to pick up his pizza and drives home. People eat all the pizza before the man who ordered it can get any, which makes the man very upset, so he calls Pizza Hut again. The ad first aired on November 19, 1966, during halftime of the Notre Dame vs. Michigan State "Game of the Century", and dramatically increased sales for the franchise. "Putt-Putt to the Pizza Hut" ran on TV for eight years and was nominated for a Clio Award.[105][106]
Until early 2007, Pizza Hut's main advertising slogan was "Gather 'round the good stuff".
Criticism
In October 2007, the UK lobby group "Consensus Action on Salt and Health" criticized Pizza Hut for high salt levels in its meals, noting that some items contained more than double the daily recommended amount for adults. A company spokesperson clarified that the surveyed pizzas were not part of family meal deals and stated that Pizza Hut had been working to reduce sodium since 2004.[143]
Between 2008 and 2010, the company removed over 15% of salt across its menu to meet the Food Standards Agency 2010 targets.[144]
In the United States, delivery drivers filed a class-action lawsuit in July 2014, alleging that Pizza Hut paid net wages below the minimum wage due to unreimbursed automobile expenses, violating the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.[145]
Pizza Hut's attempt to dismiss the case in November 2015 was unsuccessful.[146] In December 2016, the case, Linkovich v. Capital Pizza Huts, Inc., et al., was decided through arbitration, resulting in the payment of damages by the company.
Animal welfare
Pizza Hut was the target of criticism by a World Animal Protection assessment in 2018, which claimed that it demonstrated "limited evidence" of concern with the humane handling of livestock in its operations.[148]
In 2021, Yum! Brands, the owner of Pizza Hut, committed to using only cage-free eggs in the majority of its locations by 2026, and in all locations globally by 2030. The commitment came following the "largest public cage-free campaign" at that time.[149]
In film and popular culture
The film ''Slice of Life: The American Dream. In Former Pizza Huts'', directed by Matthew Salleh and released in 2024, is a documentary about people who have converted former Pizza Hut buildings across America into a variety of new enterprises.[150]
See also
- List of pizza chains
- List of pizza chains of the United States
- List of pizza franchises
- List of pizza varieties by country
Further reading
External links
- The Original Pizza Hut Museum at wichita.edu
References
- PIZZA HUT - Trademark Details Justia Trademarks, retrieved February 28, 2026^
- Senior Officers & Leadership Team Yum! Brands, retrieved April 24, 2021^
- Pizza Hut to close up to 300 locations operated by bankrupt franchisee