Papa Johns has appointed Chris Lyn-Sue, senior vice president and general manager of international for the chain, as its new global chief marketing officer, per a press release. Current CMO Jenna Bromberg will depart to pursue other opportunities, but will serve in an advisory capacity through Aug. 28 to support the transition.
In addition, the company in the second half of the year will rebalance its media mix toward greater mass exposure, according to President and CEO Todd Penegor. The marketing shake up arrives as Papa Johns continues to struggle, due in part to a soft consumer environment and a highly competitive QSR landscape. Global and North American comparable sales decreased 5.7% and 8.3%, respectively, in Q2, per results shared on Thursday.
“In this highly competitive environment, we recognize the importance of protecting share of voice on mass channels, while still supporting a balanced channel mix to reach customers where they engage most. Maximizing the impact of our marketing investment requires balancing broad national awareness with local relevance,” Penegor said on a Thursday call discussing the company’s Q2 earnings.
Papa Johns earlier this year reestablished marketing co-ops across 50 markets in the U.S., including the majority of its priority markets, to support more effective localized targeting and brand support. Markets supported by the co-ops and supplemental local spend outperformed other markets by 200 basis points, Penegor said on the call. To further these efforts, Papa Johns will stand up a field marketing team and plans to reinstate co-ops for the majority of the system by the end of this year.
Papa Johns will also roll out a more focused third-party aggregator strategy to drive trial for the brand, Penegor said on the call. The company will optimize its promotional approach and refine its allocation of national and local third-party marketing spend. The chain sees more than 85% of sales generated on digital channels, inclusive of aggregators, and is working to leverage its new e-commerce and CRM platforms to drive personalization.
Lyn-Sue joined Papa Johns in 2022 and served as interim CMO in 2024. The executive, who previously held global brand leadership and marketing roles at Popeyes, Restaurant Brands International and Bacardi, has been “instrumental” in the company’s international expansion, per the press release.
Bromberg joined Papa Johns in November 2024 and oversaw multiple activations designed to drive cultural relevance for the brand, including a tie-up with Pixar’s “Toy Story 5” that featured four Pizza Planet pop-ups in key global locations. The activations generated approximately 4 billion total earned media impressions and thousands of organic social posts, Penegor said on the call.
