Last year, while the pandemic was wreaking havoc on the restaurant industry , one of the largest restaurant operators to be affected was NPC International , a major franchisor of several national fast-food brands, including Pizza Hut. NPC declared bankruptcy in July 2020, exposing its 1,200 locations of the beloved pizza chain to potential closure. But as it turns out, NPC's implosion couldn't have been better timed. Based on comments from David Gibbs, CEO of Pizza Hut's parent company Yum! Brands, who spoke to investors in a conference call on Monday , the future of the Pizza Hut brand was never at stake in the NPC bankruptcy. In fact, it allowed Yum! to accelerate a strategy it's been pursuing since before the pandemic: ridding the Pizza Hut brand of less profitable dine-in locations. In fact, at the time of NPC's bankruptcy proceedings, 300 of its units were already scheduled for closure. RELATED: The Saddest Restaurant Closures in Your State According to Gibb