To at least partially answer the question, however, our staff has broken the franchising industry into three major categories -- food-service, retail and service-based franchises. Within each group, a rigorous, in-depth analysis was performed on literally hundreds of proven franchise systems to arrive at what we feel are the top 100 franchises. Companies were evaluated on the basis of historical performance, brand identification, market dynamics, franchisee satisfaction, the level of initial training and on-going support, financial stability and various other key factors.

The end result of evaluating over 500 franchise systems is Bond's Top 100 Franchises. Many of the companies selected are household names (Blimpie, Century 21, Dunkin' Donuts, GNC, Jackson Hewitt, ServiceMaster Clean). Others are rapidly growing, mid-sized firms (Aaron's, Kumon, Long John Silver's, Merry Maids) that are also strong national players. Still others are somewhat smaller systems that demonstrate sound concepts, exceptional management and an aggressive expansion system (Carvel, Children's Orchard, FISH Window Cleaning, Red Roof Inns, Wing Zone). Unlike other publications that tout the "Best Franchises," there was absolutely no favoritism (usually a function of advertising dollars) shown to any franchise during the selection process.

The evaluation process is only the first of several critical and time-consuming steps toward ultimately owning your own franchise. We encourage you to look over the 100 exceptional companies listed in this book before making any final decision on a system that you will be married to for the next 10 or so years. The few hours you spend here could well mean the difference between a marginal and an exceptional investment decision. Do your homework!