You Might Not Know The Name Of America's Largest Pizza Chain

When you think of American pizza chains, a few big names probably come to mind. Domino's and Pizza Hut are a familiar site in practically every U.S. city, and names like Little Caesars and Papa John's are right up there as well. You would probably assume that one of these giants is the biggest pizza chain in America, but you'd be wrong about that. The pizza chain with the most locations in the U.S. is Hunt Brothers Pizza, yet despite its dominant position, there's a strong chance you've never even heard of it.

Hunt Brothers isn't just the largest pizza chain in the U.S. — it's the largest by a landslide. According to ScrapeHero, there are 9,703 Hunt Brothers locations as of 2024. Compare that to Domino's and Pizza Hut, each of which has just shy of 7,000 franchise outposts. Papa John's barely tops 3,000 locations, less than ⅓ of Hunt Brothers, so why isn't the latter a household name?

There are a few reasons that you might not know of Hunt Brothers Pizza. For starters, although it boasts the most total locations of any American pizza chain, it is only present in 36 states, mainly in the South and Midwest. Compare that to Domino's, Pizza Hut, Little Caesars, and Papa John's, which have locations in all 50 states. The other key factor is that Hunt Brothers operates on a completely different business model than these other chains, quietly hiding its locations right in front of our eyes.

Hunt Brothers was unique from the outset. The namesake founders, brothers Don, Lonnie, Jim, and Charlie Hunt brought an unusual background to the business. They had grown up in the food business thanks to their father, who owned a restaurant, but in adulthood, the brothers pivoted to wholesale distribution. Beginning in 1962, they ran a company called Pepe's Pizza, which was not, as the name might suggest, a pizzeria. Instead, they made pizza ingredients — dough, sauce, etc — and sold them to local businesses. Most of their customers were not restaurants, but rather venues that offered food as a side note, such as bars, movie theaters, and bowling alleys.

The brothers eventually sold Pepe's, each starting their own wholesale businesses, but in 1991, they reunited to create Hunt Brothers Pizza. They took the wholesale distribution concept they had followed with Pepe's and expanded on it. Instead of just distributing the ingredients for pizza, they would start selling whole, par-baked pizzas along with all the equipment needed to make them. Whereas other pizza companies looked to establish independent locations, the Hunts took a different approach, installing pizza ovens in pre-existing businesses that could use an extra source of income. This atypical model would prove to be wildly successful.

We tend to associate pizza chains with delivery services, and brands that break the mold go overlooked. For instance, Costco probably won't ever deliver pizza, but it has quietly become one of the largest pizza chains in the nation thanks to its food court. Hunts Brothers is a similar scenario. Its pizzas are found inside other businesses, primarily gas stations and convenience stores. If the owners of these businesses want an extra source of income, they can sell pizza by partnering with Hunt Brothers, which provides the equipment and ingredients.

The pies arrive frozen, and each business is responsible for adding popular pizza toppings and baking them. Once sliced, the pizzas are kept in a warming case where customers can buy them by the slice. The owners of these businesses pay Hunt Brothers about $10,000 for their equipment, which includes a pizza oven, freezer, and display case. Unlike most fast food franchising models, Hunt Brothers doesn't charge a fee to franchisees or even a contract. However, the franchisee needs to continue paying for ingredients.

Hunt Brothers Pizza is hidden in plain sight, tucked away in convenience stores between racks of chips and tanks of coffee. The final stroke of brilliance from the Hunts was to target rural areas unserved by other major pizza chains. The brand barely advertises aside from sponsorships with NASCAR. Today, Hunt Brothers has a cult following of sorts in the South, where many prefer it to its big-name rivals.