Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria franchise: cost, fees & unit track record
Opening a Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria franchise takes Up to $759,000 all-in, per its franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05). The initial franchise fee is $15,000 – $60,000. Ongoing, franchisees pay a royalty of 5% on sales plus an ad-fund contribution of up to 3%. To qualify, Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria asks for $125,000 in liquid cash. Anything the filings do not state is marked "Not disclosed" below — never estimated.
Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria franchise costs and fees
| Verification mark | Cost item | Low | High | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise feeOne-time, paid to the franchisor at signing | $15,000 | $60,000 | $15,000 to $60,000 | |
| Initial investment (all-in)FDD Item 7-derived range: build-out, equipment, opening costs | n/d | $759,000 | Up to $759,000 | |
| Net worth requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | Not disclosed1 | Not disclosed1 | ||
| Liquid cash requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | $125,000 | $125,000 | $125,000 | |
| Cash to open (all-in range) | n/d | $759,000 | Up to $759,000 | |
- 1 "Not disclosed" means Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria's filings do not state this figure. We publish the gap instead of estimating it.
| RoyaltyOngoing, % of sales | 5% |
|---|---|
| Ad fundOngoing, % of sales | Up to 3% |
| Initial termLength of the first franchise agreement | 10 years |
See the full Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria cost breakdown — what's in that number and what isn't
How Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria's cost compares
A dollar figure means more with a yardstick. Here is where Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria's disclosed cost sits against the Food & Beverage category:
- Initial franchise fee of $15,000 — about 57% below the Food & Beverage median of $35,000.
Category medians are computed from the Food & Beverage brands in our data that disclosed each figure — a benchmark for scale, not a quality judgment. See all Food & Beverage franchises
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How Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria's units have held up
Openings and closures from FDD Item 20-style unit history, 2014–2020: began the window at 20 units; 0 units opened, 2 closed, ending at 16 units. (partial records: 2017, 2018 are not in the source data — totals span the reported years only.)
Not enough history to compute a survival figure — we need at least three years of unit data, and we don't extrapolate.
What about earnings?
We don't publish per-brand earnings figures — for Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria or anyone else. The only primary source is Item 19 of the brand's own franchise disclosure document (FDD), and no law requires a franchisor to publish one, so the "average owner income" numbers circulating elsewhere are usually unsourced or survivorship-biased. Ask Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria for its current FDD and read Item 19 yourself — and if there is no Item 19, that silence is information too.
What this data can't tell you
Everything on this page comes from disclosure filings — fees, ranges, and unit counts. Four questions that matter just as much are not in any filing we can source, so we say so instead of guessing:
- The hours and the labor
- No dataset field says whether Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria is a manage-from-a-laptop business or a 60-hour week in disguise. Item 15 of the FDD states whether you're obligated to run the business personally, and Item 11 lists what the franchisor actually does for you — then ask current owners what their week looks like (validation calls), not the sales team.
- How hands-on the ownership really is
- "Semi-absentee" is a pitch, not a filing field. Treat any hands-off claim as unverified until it's consistent with Item 15 and with what multiple current franchisees tell you — what absentee ownership actually means.
- Your territory — whether it's protected, and whether it's open
- Two territory questions sit outside our data. Whether Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria grants a protected or exclusive area is set in Item 12 of the FDD and varies brand to brand — some grant none, and the carve-outs (online sales, national accounts) matter as much as the map. And filing data can't say what's open in your market this month; only Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria can confirm current availability. Ask both before you inquire, and get the answer in writing.
- What owners earn
- Covered honestly above: our dataset has no earnings fields, the only primary source is the brand's own Item 19, and here is how to read that evidence.
About the Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria franchise
Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria is a food & beverage franchisor with 16 units at the end of 2020 (FDD Item 20-style unit history). Between 2014 and 2020, it began the window at 20 units; its filings record 0 unit openings and 2 closures, ending at 16 units (partial records: 2017, 2018 are not in the source data — totals span the reported years only). Its parent company is BMPP Franchising, Inc..
No franchise-related lawsuits reported in the disclosure data we hold (FDD Item 3, as of 2026-05) — an absence in our sources, not a guarantee; confirm against the brand's current FDD.
From the franchisor's materials
The Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria franchise is a license to independently own and operate a single retail dine-in and take-out full size pizzeria (an “Outlet”) serving proprietary pizzas, including Big Mama Pizza, Big Papa Pizza, Giant Sicilian Pizza and Egg Gondola Pizza (collectively, “Big Mamas and Papas Products"), and also serving other beverages, food, and related merchandise, products and accessories, using designated concepts, designs, recipes, authorized equipment and techniques If you want to and are financially and operationally qualified in our judgment to do so, you and we may enter into an Area Development Agreement (“ADA"), under which you will be granted the opportunity to develop a number of additional Outlets under a mutually agreed timetable and within a negotiated development area The form of ADA is attached as Exhibit E to this disclosure document
Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria franchise: quick answers
- How much does a Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria franchise cost?
- Up to $759,000 all-in to open, per Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria's franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05).
- How many Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria units are there?
- 16 units at the end of 2020 (FDD Item 20-style unit history).