Pizza Hut Ecuador Changes Hands — Pepperoni Holdings (Panama) Acquires 80-Location Franchise for $7.8M

The Transaction

Sodetur SA (Sociedad de Turismo) — the Ecuadorian entity operating the Pizza Hut franchise network — was sold for $7.8 million, with the transfer registered March 11, 2026, per Primicias (source).

Parties

Side	Entity
Seller	Telepizza Gestión / Food Delivery Brands (Spain-based franchise holder)
Buyer	Pepperoni Holdings (Panama domicile)
Buyer backing	Three Ecuadorian shareholders who are executives at Grupo Hanaska

Operational Scope

Metric	Value
Pizza Hut locations	~80 nationwide
2023 revenue (Sodetur)	$29.1 million
2023 net result	($1.3 million) loss
2024 financials	Not yet filed

Corporate Context

• Telepizza acquired Sodetur in May 2018, bringing Pizza Hut Ecuador into the Telepizza Gestión / Food Delivery Brands portfolio. That period was defined by Telepizza's broader Latin American franchise aggregation strategy.
• Grupo Hanaska — the professional backgrounds of Pepperoni Holdings' shareholders — is an Ecuadorian services group specializing in "collective food services, industrial support and maintenance services."
• Corporación Favorita acquired 51% of Grupo Hanaska in June 2020. This indirect connection means that through Grupo Hanaska's executives' personal capacity, Ecuador's largest retail conglomerate now has informal proximity to Pizza Hut Ecuador's new ownership — though Favorita itself is not a direct party to the transaction.
• Reporting bylined by Santiago Ayala Sarmiento of Primicias.

Deal Read

The $7.8 million price against $29.1 million in 2023 revenue implies a revenue multiple of approximately 0.27x — a distressed-asset valuation consistent with Sodetur's documented 2023 net loss. A healthy QSR franchise typically trades at 0.5-1.2x revenue or 6-10x EBITDA.

Key inferences:

• Telepizza's exit is defensive. The parent group has been consolidating its global footprint; Ecuador is a relatively small unit with negative recent performance.
• Hanaska executives are buying operational turnaround exposure. Their industrial food services background provides procurement and operational leverage not available to the prior owner.
• Panama vehicle suggests tax and governance optimization. Pepperoni Holdings' domicile is standard structure for Latin American multi-jurisdiction operating assets.

Sector Implications

• Ecuador QSR consolidation continues. The market has seen ongoing ownership changes at the franchise level as international parents reassess regional exposure.
• Employment impact — Sodetur is a meaningful employer across its 80 locations. Operational changes under new ownership typically include staff restructuring; the transaction registration does not disclose headcount plans.
• Supplier chain — new ownership with Grupo Hanaska linkages may restructure food procurement, potentially toward Favorita-adjacent supply chains (though no such consolidation has been announced).
• Consumer impact minimal short-term. Pizza Hut branding, menu, and pricing are governed by the master franchise agreement with Yum! Brands, which remains unchanged.

What to Watch

• Sodetur's 2024 financial statements, which are pending at the Superintendencia de Compañías, will confirm the financial trajectory the new owners are inheriting.
• Store count changes through 2026 — closures, openings, or rebrandings under Pepperoni Holdings.
• Yum! Brands franchise renewal terms — master franchise agreements typically have 10-20 year horizons; Yum!'s sign-off on the ownership change is implicit in the transaction closing.
• Competitive response from Domino's Ecuador and Papa John's, which have competing footprints.
• Hanaska / Favorita vertical integration — any explicit supply or service agreements disclosed through future filings.

Source: Primicias