Bryon Stephens,
CO-FOUNDER

Hailing from Logansport, Indiana, Bryon Stephens’ experience in franchising across multiple industries has positioned him as a top player in brand development.

Working for A&W Restaurants, Bryon led the development efforts that saw the start and evolution of co-branding – putting two great brands together under one roof. The initiative led to A&W’s acquisition of Long John Silver’s, and Tricon Global Restaurants’ subsequent acquisition of Yorkshire Global Restaurants, forming Yum! Brands, the world’s largest restaurant company with more than 32,000 restaurants operating in 150 countries around the world.

Bryon believes the key to seeing powerful growth results is a company’s culture. By operating within a set of self-determined cultural beliefs, the company establishes a tangible guideline that each of its constituents can follow, no matter how large the business grows.

With that wisdom, Bryon joined Marco’s Pizza in 2004. As Vice President of Development – and later, Chief Operating Officer – his innovative approach to systemwide expansion led to the company’s rapid, award-winning growth.

After being named President of Marco’s Pizza in 2014, Bryon focused on the strategic alignment of operations, marketing, supply chain, finance, information technology and restaurant development to accomplish bold sales and growth goals, while maintaining high benchmarks for product quality and guest satisfaction. Under his leadership, Marco’s grew from 139 units to nearly 800 by the end of 2017, unit profitability increased significantly, and systemwide sales increased to nearly $500 million annually.  In 2017, Bryon served as CEO of the Extreme Leadership Institute, which follows the teachings of Extreme Leadership’s Chairman Steve Farber, and educated business leaders and teams on how to become extreme leaders and drive radical results.

Stephens teamed up again with friend and colleague Cameron Cummins in 2018 to launch Pivotal Growth Partners (PGP), a full-service growth and development firm and brand accelerator. With a proven track record of success, the organization has excelled in identifying emerging brands with big potential, and then partnering with them to build on their strengths while simultaneously developing the systems, processes, people, and culture to collectively drive sustainable growth. In 2022, PGP was named to Inc Magazines’ Inaugural Power Partner Awards, honoring B2B organization across the globe with a proven track record supporting entrepreneurs and helping start-ups grow.

Named as One of the Most Influential Players in the Restaurant Industry by Nation’s Restaurant News as part of its Reader’s Pick Power List, Bryon has also worked with a number of entrepreneurs to launch successful start-up restaurant concepts as a business consultant, focusing on marketing, branding, growth and operational systems, and execution.