Donatos Pizza is pressing forward on a long-term goal of more than 100 Texas locations, with two Houston-area openings in Atascocita and Missouri City slated for later this year and active franchise recruitment continuing in the Dallas-Fort Worth market.
The Columbus, Ohio–based chain, which operates more than 177 traditional stores and appears in over 250 non-traditional venues nationwide, has identified Texas as a cornerstone of its growth strategy. The brand entered the state through DFW, signed multiple development agreements there, and is now extending that playbook into Houston — one of the most competitive pizza markets in the country.
Franchise Push in Dallas
To accelerate partner recruitment, Donatos Pizza sent leadership to Franchise Expo Dallas on September 18–19 at the Irving Convention Center. Jeff Baldwin, VP of Development and Franchising, framed the timing as favorable: "We've already made significant progress in Dallas-Fort Worth, and with Houston now moving toward its opening, there are more opportunities for the right franchise partners to grow with us."
CEO and President Kevin King reinforced the urgency, pointing to current market momentum as a compelling entry point for prospective owners looking to scale with the brand across the state. For operators tracking QSR and fast-casual franchise expansion, Donatos' coordinated DFW-and-Houston approach reflects a broader regional clustering strategy — anchoring name recognition in one metro before pushing into adjacent markets.
Beyond Traditional Locations
Donatos is also angling for a foothold in college foodservice. The brand will make its first appearance at the NACAS C3X: The College & University Foodservice Expo, running September 27–30 at McCormick Place in Chicago. The exhibit will highlight smaller-format location capabilities and the PeppTron — Donatos' fully autonomous pizza-making robot — as a fit for high-volume, space-constrained university environments.
The non-traditional channel is already significant for the brand: in addition to its franchised stores, Donatos pizza is currently served inside select Red Robin restaurants, demonstrating the flexibility of its licensing and partnership model. Showing at NACAS signals that the company sees campus dining as another meaningful distribution layer, one that could meaningfully complement its franchise growth without cannibalizing existing territories.
For foodservice operators and franchisees monitoring pizza-segment expansion and non-traditional venue strategy, Donatos represents a case study in multi-channel growth — blending conventional franchise development with autonomous-format technology and embedded partnerships to widen consumer reach. Prospective Texas franchisees can find development details at donatosfranchise.com.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
