HTeaO
HTeaO, a Fort Worth-based company, came in at No. 354 in Entrepreneur magazine’s Top 500 franchises, further establishing itself among leading franchisees.
Fuzzy’s, the Baja-inspired diner founded in Fort Worth but now based in Irving, came in at No. 434.
The top five franchises: Taco Bell, Jersey Mike’s Subs, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, The UPS Store, and Ace Hardware.
The publication said 1,389 companies — a record number — applied for a place on the list. Submissions were analyzed for cost and fees, support, size and growth, and brand strength.
Each franchise is given a cumulative score based on an analysis of more than 150 data points, and the 500 franchises with the highest cumulative scores become the Franchise 500 in ranked order.
Over its 45 years the Franchise 500 has become both a competitive measure for franchisors and a primary research tool for potential franchisees.
A year ago, HTeaO ranked No. 9 on the magazine’s “top new and emerging franchises.”
HTeaO has made a Starbucks-esque slash with tea.
The company is the dominant, first-to-market store that sells tea.
“Man, it’s so crazy,” Justin Howe, company CEO, told us for a story in January. “‘You sell only iced tea?’ I get that question twice a week. How did Starbucks take coffee out of a pancake restaurant and put it on the corner of the street? It’s so obvious. How did no one think of this kind of concept for tea?”
In January, HTeaO, founded in 2018, opened its 100th franchise in College Station.
The investment in opening an HTeaO store is $750,000, including a $40,000 franchise fee.
Fuzzy’s Taco Shop was founded in 2003 in Fort Worth. Its first store, which is still in operation, was on Berry Street near the campus of TCU. It entered the marketplace as an innovator, offering a new twist on Mexican favorites at a value price point.
Fuzzy’s has been franchising since 2009.
In December 2022, Dine Brands Global acquired Fuzzy’s from Experiential Brands, a subsidiary of NRD Holding Company. As of September, 47 franchise groups operated 137 Fuzzy's restaurants in 18 states. One company-owned restaurant in Texas makes 138 restaurants total.