Hwy 55 Burgers, Shakes & Fries was recently ranked in Entrepreneur magazine’s Franchise 500, the world’s first, best and most comprehensive franchise ranking.
Recognized by entrepreneurs and franchisors as a top competitive tool of measurement, the Franchise 500 places Hwy 55 as #381 (up 99 spots from the 2016 ranking) for its exceptional performance in areas including financial strength and stability, growth rate, and brand power.
“Hwy 55 is more than a franchise concept, it’s a true American success story. I founded Hwy 55 Burgers, Shakes & Fries to provide something that I felt was missing: great food, friendly service and honest value in a fun and uplifting environment,” said Hwy 55 president and founder Kenney Moore. “We have nearly 50 current franchise owners who started as hourly-waged employees. It shows that hard work, dedication and commitment can lead to amazing success.”
Moore recently published a book, Behind the Drive, which details his own journey from growing up poor to now owner and founder of America’s next great burger joint. Moore also flipped every burger himself for his brand’s first two years of business. His brand is now in its 26th year in business and has sold the rights to more than 1,000 franchise locations around the world. Currently with 135 locations in 11 states, Hwy 55 is one of the fastest growing restaurant brands in the US.
Hwy 55 Burgers, Shakes & Fries boasts a fresh, All-American diner experience with fresh, never-frozen burgers, premium sliced cheesesteaks piled high on steamed hoagies, and frozen custard made in-house every day. With its open-grill design, the kitchen’s dedication and care when handcrafting meals is front and center. Hwy 55 won BurgerBusiness.com’s “Best Burger” in 2012 and in 2014.
“In order to reflect the evolving business world at large, we at Entrepreneur continue to evolve our annual ranking, too,” says Ryan Shea, president of Entrepreneur. “We’ve developed new ways to measure and analyze our collected data as new critical data points come into play. We take into account pertinent factors such as social media presence and financing availability, which have become increasingly important in today’s economy. The result is a more complete and relevant Franchise 500 that can serve as a valuable resource for our readers.”
The key factors that go into Entrepreneur’s evaluation include costs and fees, size and growth, support, brand strength, and financial strength and stability. All franchises are given a cumulative score based on more than 150 data points, and the 500 franchises with the highest cumulative scores become the Franchise 500 in ranking order.
Over its 38 years in existence, the Franchise 500 has become both a dominant competitive measure for franchisors and a primary research tool for entrepreneurs. Hwy 55’s position on the ranking reinforces its strength in the industry.
To view Hwy 55 in the full ranking, visit www.entrepreneur.com/franchise500. Results can also be seen in the January/February issue of Entrepreneur available now on newsstands.
Hwy 55, a retro-themed diner that features fresh, never-frozen hand-pattied burgers, house-made frozen custard, and other classic favorites in a unique open-kitchen setting, was founded in Goldsboro, North Carolina in 1991. Hwy 55 reflects founder Kenney Moore’s commitment to authentic hospitality and fresh food. Widely known in the state for its fresh food and service that exceeds expectations, the chain won BurgerBusiness.com’s “Best Burger” in 2012. It also was recently named a top 500 franchise in the United States by Entrepreneur magazine and a “Next 20” restaurant brand by Nation’s Restaurant News. HWY 55 currently has 135 locations in 11 states, Denmark and the United Arab Emirates. Like HWY 55 on at https://www.facebook.com/Hwy55burgers or follow us at https://twitter.com/hwy55burgers. For more information, visit https://www.hwy55.com.
