The franchise world is constantly evolving, and so are the top franchise rankings, according to Entrepreneur magazine. The criteria for the publication’s 2017 Franchise 500 rankings are based on several factors, such as size of expansion in the U.S. and Canada including open and closure rates; overall cost and initial investment and royalty fees; and financial strength and stability based on audit statements.
Entrepreneur’s 38th annual Franchise 500 ranking consider new factors in today’s economy that are impacting business, like branding and social media presence, which was not relevant in previous rankings.
Beginning in July 2016, Entrepreneur asked franchisors to fill out an online form and submit a copy of their full current Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) or Canadian Disclosure Document. A total of 988 companies completed all the required information and then the submissions were evaluated before being entered for data and statistical analysis.
Entrepreneur scored each company based on more than 150 data factors, and the 500 companies with the highest scores became the Franchise 500. The ranking list includes initial franchise investment costs and ongoing franchise fees as reported in the ranking report.
The top 10 franchises in the ranking are:
10. Re/Max LLC
Initial Investment: $37,500 - $225,000
Initial Franchise Fee: $15,000 - $32,000
Founded by Dave and Gail Liniger in Denver in 1973, RE/MAX is a global network of more than 97,000 real estate agents in over 95 countries.
9. Sports Clips
Initial Investment: $189,300 - $354,500
Initial Franchise Fee: $25,000 - $59,500
Designed to target a previously underserved market, Sport Clips caters to men and boys by providing hairstyling in a sports-themed environment.
8. Wingstop Restaurants Inc.
Initial Investment: $346,775 - $733,249
Initial Franchise Fee: $20,000 - $20,000
Antonio Swad founded Wingstop in 1994, based on the popularity of buffalo-style chicken wings. In 1998, the privately owned company began franchising.
7. Ace Hardware Corp.
Initial Investment: $272,500 - $1,561,500
Initial Franchise Fee: $5,000 - $5,000
Ace Hardware began in 1924, when four hardware store owners joined together and bought merchandise in bulk in order to grow their profits and compete with larger stores. Ace has thousands of stores in seven countries.
6. Dairy Queen
Initial Investment: $1,083,525 - $1,850,425
Initial Franchise Fee: $35,000 - $35,000
The first Dairy Queen was location in 1940 in Joliet, Illinois and sold only soft-serve ice cream, but eventually, a variety of ice cream treats were added to the menu. Today, menus include food items through Dairy Queen's Grill & Chill concept.
5. Jimmy John’s Gourmet Sandwiches
Initial Investment: $329,500 - $557,500
Initial Franchise Fee: $35,000 - $35,000
Jimmy John Liautaud began the franchise with a refrigerator, a meat slicer, a freezer and an oven without even a posted menu or an outdoor sign. At that time he offered four sandwich varieties and 25-cent soft drinks. The franchisees bake bread at each store every day, and every sandwich is made fresh to order in 30 seconds.
4. The UPS Store
Initial Investment: $177,955 - $402,595
Initial Franchise Fee: $29,950 - $29,950
The UPS Store provides packaging, shipping, copy and print services, mailbox services, and computer time rentals for small businesses and individuals. Franchises are located throughout the United States and in Canada.
3. Dunkin Donuts
Initial Investment: $228,620 - $1,691,200
Initial Franchise Fee: $40,000 - $90,000
Dunkin' Donuts stores can be found in over 32 countries, and they serve 70 varieties of doughnuts, along with hot and cold coffee drinks, bagels, breakfast sandwiches and other baked goods. Dunkin' Donuts parent company, Dunkin' Brands Inc., also franchises Baskin-Robbins, and the two concepts are sometimes co-branded.
2. McDonald’s
Initial Investment: $1,008,000 - $2,214,080
Initial Franchise Fee: $45,000 - $45,000
McDonald's and the Golden Arches are an internationally recognized symbol of quick-service hamburgers, fries, chicken, breakfast items, salads and milkshakes.
1. 7-Eleven
Initial Investment: $37,550 - $1,149,900
Initial Franchise Fee: $10,000 - $1,000,000
7-Eleven's origins date back to 1927, when an employee of the Southland Ice Company in Dallas, Texas, began selling milk, bread and eggs in addition to the ice blocks. He then began opening convenience stores and went by the name Tote'm, since customers "toted" away their purchases. In 1946, when the stores' hours were extended -- from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. -- they got a new name.
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