Fitness Franchises Top List

IRVINE, CA — What do Subway, Quiznos and Curves have in common? They are the top three franchises of 2006 according to Entrepreneur magazine's Franchise 500® 2006 Rankings and Top New Franchises 2006 Rankings. Curves isn't the only club on the list. Both well-known and up-and-coming fitness franchises topped the list. In fact, three fitness franchises were listed in the top 100 including Curves at the number three spot, Jazzercise Inc. at the 25th spot and Gold's Gym at 76.

The Top New Franchises 2006 list included four fitness franchises: Anytime Fitness (No. 14), Cuts Fitness For Men (No. 17), StrollerFit Inc. (No. 27) and Liberty Fitness for Women (No. 42).

“We are honored to be recognized by Entrepreneur magazine as one of the Top 20 New Franchises for 2006,” said John Gennaro, Cuts Fitness founder and president. “The award is a testimonial to our entire team of employees, franchisees and a very passionate member base.”

Each year the magazine lists the top franchises according to a company's financial strength and stability, growth rate, size of the system, the number of years in business and length of time franchising, startup costs, litigation, percentage of terminations and whether the company provides financing. Entrepreneur magazine does not measure subjective elements such as franchisee satisfaction or management style, according to the magazine's Web site.