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Marco鈥檚 Pizza is on its way to New Mexico 鈥� for real this time.

After previous plans to bring the pizza chain to the state stalled last year, Marco鈥檚 announced last week that it will bring three locations to the Land of Enchantment with the help of new franchisees.

Hall Foods LLC, led by the El Paso-based Hallal family, signed a franchise agreement with the Ohio-based restaurant chain in February. The first location is slated to open in Las Cruces at 3835 East Lohman Avenue in July. The other two locations have yet to be determined, but the second one will be in sa国际传媒官网网页入口, said Yiris Hallal.

Hallal is a veteran entrepreneur and leader of the technology company Sysol, which serves commercial and industrial sectors across El Paso and cities throughout northern Mexico.

It was sometime last year when Hallal realized that the experience he gained growing his company across several cities could translate to franchising and growing something different in the U.S. He said he and his family clicked with Marco鈥檚 because of its human-centered culture, fast growth and clear business plan.

鈥淔ranchising with Marco鈥檚 gives us the advantage of a strong operational playbook,鈥� Hallal said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e stepping into a system designed for efficiency and scalability, while still maintaining ownership of how we grow the business. Being part of the brand鈥檚 expansion in New Mexico is something we鈥檙e really excited about.鈥�

It isn鈥檛 the first time someone has tried to bring Marco鈥檚 to New Mexico.

Local Fiesta Auto Insurance operators Chris and Kristian Ornelas were going to bring nine Marco鈥檚 restaurants to the state, with the first two slated to open in the sa国际传媒官网网页入口 and Rio Rancho areas by the end of March 2025. However, those plans never materialized.

It鈥檚 unclear why that deal did not move forward. But with the new agreement finalized and the first location鈥檚 opening month already set, the pizza chain said it is now 鈥減ositioned to build a meaningful presence in the Southwest.鈥�

鈥淭his agreement represents an exciting opportunity to continue building the Marco鈥檚 brand in new territories,鈥� said Gerardo Flores, the chain鈥檚 chief development officer. 

Founded in 1978, Marco鈥檚 Pizza 鈥� known for its made-from-scratch dough and three fresh signature cheeses 鈥� operates more than 1,200 restaurants across 35 states and internationally.  

Hallal, who will continue running Sysol, is launching the Marco鈥檚 venture in partnership with his brother, David Hallal, and his daughter, Daniela Hallal, who will relocate to Las Cruces to manage the first location.

鈥淲e like pizza,鈥� Yiris Hallal said. 鈥淎nd it鈥檚 something that, as a family, it鈥檚 going to bring us together.鈥�

The Las Cruces restaurant will occupy 1,200 square feet of existing space inside a shopping strip that also includes a Dunkin鈥� and Great Clips. The location is expected to employ 25 full- and part-time employees. 

The family signed a letter of intent to open the second location at a site near Cottonwood Mall in sa国际传媒官网网页入口, aiming to launch that one in December, Yiris Hallal said. They are currently evaluating sites for the third location, which will also likely be in sa国际传媒官网网页入口.

鈥淲e鈥檙e very oriented to customer service, to talk to people and try to make them a little bit happier 鈥� if that鈥檚 through pizza, then we鈥檙e pretty happy about that,鈥� Yiris Hallal said. 鈥淗opefully we can keep growing and growing.鈥�

Kylie Garcia covers retail and real estate for the Journal. You can reach her at kgarcia@abqjournal.com.