Papa Murphy’s Is NOT Cookin’ RN, And The Internet Is Freaking Out 🍕💀
Okay besties, pull up a chair and grab a napkin because we need to have a serious chat about the state of our favorite "take and bake" joint. I’m talking about Papa Murphy’s, the OG spot where the pizza was always raw dough when you left the store. Yeah, that was the whole vibe. You take it home, you pop it in your oven, and boom—dinner is served. It was the ultimate hack for people who wanted that "fresh baked" energy without waiting 45 minutes for DoorDash. But plot twist: the chain is in a full-blown crisis, and my FYP is literally crying about it. 😭
So, what’s the tea? Papa Murphy’s is struggling. Like, *struggling* struggling. We’re not talking about a little dip in sales because everyone is on that Ozempic diet. We’re talking about stores shuttering left and right, franchisees dipping out, and the whole business model looking kinda sus. They just filed for bankruptcy. Again. Yes, AGAIN. This is like their second rodeo with Chapter 11 in the last few years, and honestly, the industry is shook. 💀
Let me break it down for you in terms we all understand. Imagine you have a group project. You’re the kid who brings the snacks, but you decide to bring the ingredients instead of the finished dish. You’re like, "Hey guys, here's a bag of flour and some sauce, assemble it yourself." That’s Papa Murphy’s. And for a while, that was cute. It was a niche, it was quirky. But then the economy hit the fan, and people were like, "Wait, why am I paying $15 for a pizza I have to cook myself when I can get a hot one from Little Caesars for $6?" Ouch. That’s the big brain math that’s hitting them hard. 🧠
The brand is getting crushed by the "value war." Everyone is fighting for the cheapest slice. Domino's is out here dropping $7.99 carryout deals. Pizza Hut is doing their weird "Big Dinner Box" thing. Even McDonald's is trying to eat their lunch with the $5 Meal Deal. Meanwhile, Papa Murphy’s is sitting there with their premium ingredients and artisan crusts like, "But we’re *higher quality*." And the public is just screaming, "WE DON'T CARE, WE'RE BROKE." 💸
But it’s not just the price. It’s the concept. The "Take and Bake" model was a genius idea in 1995 when we were all scared to use the internet. But in 2024? We are a society that wants instant gratification. We want the pizza in our mouth *now*. We don't want to wait 25 minutes for the oven to preheat while we hangry-stare at the box. The TikTok generation is all about convenience. We want ghost kitchens, robot delivery, and pizza that magically appears. Making us do the labor is a massive L. We already have to work 9-to-5; we don’t want to work at dinner time too. 🥱
And can we talk about the locations? Papa Murphy’s usually lives in these random strip malls next to a laundromat and a nail salon. It’s not a "destination" spot. You can't go in and hang out. There are no tables. No arcade games. No sad birthday parties with creepy animatronics. It’s literally a counter and a fridge. In the age of "experiential dining," that’s a hard sell. If I’m gonna leave my house, I want the full experience, or I want it delivered. There’s no in-between. Papa Murphy’s is stuck in the uncanny valley of pizza places. 👻
The financials are looking *rough*. They’ve been bleeding cash faster than I do after a night out in LA. They recently got acquired by some private equity firm, which is usually the kiss of death, and now they’re trying to restructure. This means they’re closing a bunch of underperforming stores, which is basically every store at this point. I saw a video on TikTok of a guy showing up to his local Papa Murphy’s and it was just... empty. Papers on the floor. The "Pizza" sign was still on, but the lights were off. It gave "last episode of a TV show before the network cancels it" vibes. So sad. 🕯️
But here’s the thing, the stans are NOT letting them go down without a fight. The Papa Murphy’s loyalists are a different breed. They will die on the hill that the "Cowboy" pizza is the best pizza in America. They’re out here reminiscing about the "Chicken Bacon Artichoke" like it’s a lost relic. The comments are flooding in. "Y'all better not touch my Gourmet Veggie!" "This is the only pizza my picky kids will eat!" "I’m literally flying across the country to buy a 'Stuffed Pizza' before they all close." The panic is real. It’s giving "Stan Twitter defending a flop era." 🐐
The truth is, Papa Murphy’s is the "indie artist" of the pizza world. They aren't mainstream. They have a cult following, but cults are small. They have good music, err, good pizza, but they don't get the radio play. They’re getting squeezed out by the big labels (Pizza Hut, Domino's, Papa John's) who have massive marketing budgets and can afford to give away pizzas at a loss. Papa Murphy’s is just trying to survive, selling raw dough to the people who know. But "knowing" isn't enough when you have bills to pay. 🧾
So what’s the move for Papa Murphy’s? They need a glow-up. A rebrand. They need to
Final Thoughts
Look, Papa Murphy’s isn’t dying because people stopped loving pizza—it’s because the brand got stuck selling a 20th-century convenience (take-and-bake) in a 21st-century market where delivery apps and premium frozen pies offer the same "fresh" promise with zero homework for the customer. The real tragedy isn’t the missed earnings call; it’s that they never figured out how to pivot their biggest asset—the ritual of finishing the bake at home—into an experience, not a chore. If the chain survives, it won’t be by slashing prices, but by finally admitting that a raw pizza on a cardboard tray is a product, not a destination.