Tutor Doctor Jumps 100 Spots to Earn the 158th Spot on Entrepreneur Magazine’s 2018 Franchise 500

Every year, franchisors across the globe apply to be a part of one of the most coveted industry rankings: Entrepreneur’s Franchise 500. The list—which highlights the year’s top business ownership opportunities—offers insight into the brands that are the ones to beat for the year ahead. And this year, Tutor Doctor earned the 158^th spot and was also ranked as the number one in-home tutoring franchise in the world.

For Tutor Doctor, one of the industry’s fastest growing supplemental education concepts, being included in the top half of the Franchise 500 list is a major milestone. The brand jumped 100 spots over its position last year, marking a year of impressive growth and climbing demand for its services. Tutor Doctor’s spot on the Franchise 500 also comes as the brand works towards its goal of becoming a household name in countries all over the world, ultimately boosting its visibility and solidifying its position as a concept to beat.

“We couldn’t be more excited about our ranking on this year’s Franchise 500 list. The fact that we were able to improve our ranking by 100 spots between 2017 and 2018 proves that the steps that we’re making to enhance our franchise system are working, signaling that we’re heading in the right direction. Plus, being recognized as the top franchise in our segment—the in-home tutoring industry—is a clear sign that we’re on the right path,” said Scott Thompson, Vice President of Global Franchise Development for Tutor Doctor. “Our plan now is to continue building on our momentum to create the best possible business ownership opportunity for our franchisees—whether they’re new or have been a part of our system for years.”

Tutor Doctor managed to make this impressive jump in a year that Entrepreneur is saying it was able to release its most comprehensive ranking in almost four decades. That’s because the competition was stiff to earn a spot on 2018’s Franchise 500—for the first time in 25 years, more than 1,000 companies applied to be a part of the list. And once submitted, every brand is judged against Entrepreneur’s five pillars that define the best of the best in the franchising industry.

The first pillar is costs and fees—Entrepreneur looks at the franchise fee, total investment and royalty fees that come with each business ownership opportunity. The publication also looks at the size and growth of a franchise brand, including its growth rate, closures and open and operating units. Then, Entrepreneur examines the support that comes with every brand submitted for the Franchise 500, including training times, marketing and operational support, franchisor infrastructure, financing availability and litigation. Another pillar that franchisors are judged on is brand strength, including social media, system size, years in business and years in franchising. Lastly, Entrepreneur takes financial strength and stability into consideration by analyzing a brand’s audited financial statements.

Given that criteria, it’s easy to see why Tutor Doctor was able to earn such a high ranking. The Toronto-based brand has a strong global presence, and it’s been prioritizing individualized tutoring services in a segment that’s filled with overcrowded classrooms and increasing academic pressure. Tutor Doctor also boasts about 300 franchisees operating in 500 territories—102 of which were launched in 2017 alone. And given the extensive support system and enhanced technology platform that the brand has in place, its startup costs are reasonable. Franchisees who sign an agreement for a local territory can expect their initial investment to fall between $68,500 and $96,700, with startup costs for a regional territory ranging from $73,500 and $101,700.

“Every part of our franchise system is designed with our local owners in mind. Our number one priority as a franchisor is setting them up for success, and it’s not a responsibility that we take lightly,” Thompson said. “That commitment to helping our franchisees reach their full potential as business owners is what opened the door to our Franchise 500 ranking, and it’s what continues to inspire us to improve our system whenever we can. We’re looking forward to furthering our expansion efforts and extending our reach in communities worldwide, and we plan on capitalizing on all that our Entrepreneur ranking has to offer.”