2022 Dominators

Multi-unit and multi-brand operators continue to increase in number—and they’re getting bigger every year. These “dominators” grow their portfolios through acquisitions, new unit buildouts, refranchising, and buying up units from retiring franchisees. This trend accelerated during Covid-19 as smaller or weaker operators sell to larger and stronger ones.

That’s why we have to provide an “asterisk” to the rankings yet again this year: they were compiled from FDDs created during the pandemic—and thus are not as representative as in the past as franchisees both large and small divest units, file for Chapter 11 protection, or simply decide it’s time to retire or move on to new adventures. On the upside, there are the franchisees and brands that quickly adapted, were deemed essential early on, or whose business model accommodated the evolving new normal (drive-thrus, delivery, carryout, smaller footprints, etc.) Banking on their good credit, solid infrastructure, and proven track record, these dominators moved forward and are creating historically large franchisee organizations that have changed the face of franchising.

Even during these post-pandemic (we hope) times, they continue to create jobs by the thousands, hiring young employees and providing a career path for them to grow. They do business with local suppliers—lots of them! And they give back to their communities, encouraging their employees to support local organizations and charities—especially now.

(Think hurricanes, floods, droughts, and inflation.) No franchisee gets to the top without years of hard work, sacrifice, perseverance, and an unwavering desire to be the best. So congratulations to this year’s Dominators!

Largest Franchisees By State STATE (and D.C., P.

R.) LARGEST FRANCHISEE UNITS ALABAMA TACALA 120 ALASKA MICHAEL DAVIDSON SUBWAY DEVELOPMENT OF ALASKA (tie) 21 ARIZONA DESERT DE ORO FOODS 172 ARKANSAS K-MAC ENTERPRISES 95 CALIFORNIA G&M OIL CO 278 COLORADO ALVARADO CONCEPTS 94 CONNECTICUT WENDPARTNERS FRANCHISE GROUP 44 D.C.

TEAM WASHINGTON 9 DELAWARE MICHAEL A MEOLI 16 FLORIDA FLYNN RESTAURANT GROUP 175 GEORGIA GPS HOSPITALITY 101 HAWAII SCANLAN MANAGEMENT 60 IDAHO FLYNN RESTAURANT GROUP 42 ILLINOIS DHANANI GROUP 208 INDIANA CARROLS RESTAURANT GROUP 101 IOWA MERCHANT INVESTMENTS 40 KANSAS ROTTINGHAUS COMPANY 150 KENTUCKY FOURTEEN FOODS 62 LOUISIANA GPS HOSPITALITY 119 MAINE FQSR (DBA KBP BRANDS) 29 MARYLAND FLYNN RESTAURANT GROUP 91 MASSACHUSETTS HK ENTERPRISES 73 MICHIGAN VISION GROWTH PARTNERS/SUPER C GROUP 79 MINNESOTA BORDER FOODS 87 MISSISSIPPI FLYNN RESTAURANT GROUP 130 MISSOURI FLYNN RESTAURANT GROUP 140 MONTANA MERIDIAN RESTAURANTS UNLIMITED THE TAX DOCTORS (tie) 21 NEBRASKA DHANANI GROUP 42 NEVADA TERRIBLE HERBST 85 NEW HAMPSHIRE THE NAPOLI GROUP 32 NEW JERSEY BRIAD RESTAURANT & LODGING GROUP 62 NEW MEXICO B & B CONSULTANTS 68 NEW YORK METRO FRANCHISING COMMISSARY 139 NORTH CAROLINA CARROLS RESTAURANT GROUP 150 NORTH DAKOTA MIDWEST SUBWAY DEVELOPMENT 20 OHIO THE COVELLI FAMILY LIMITED PARTNERSHIP 135 OKLAHOMA LOVE’S TRAVEL STOPS & COUNTRY STORES 105 OREGON AAMBROSIA QSR 60 PENNSYLVANIA FLYNN RESTAURANT GROUP 123 PUERTO RICO SOUTH AMERICAN RESTAURANTS/LARREA GROUP 113 RHODE ISLAND THE JAN COMPANIES 25 SOUTH CAROLINA CAROLINA RESTAURANT GROUP 53 SOUTH DAKOTA VELARDE 23 TENNESSEE CARROLS RESTAURANT GROUP 125 TEXAS SUN HOLDINGS 427 UTAH SIZZLING PLATTER 64 VERMONT VERMONT DONUT ENTERPRISES 15 VIRGINIA BODDIE-NOELL ENTERPRISES 176 WASHINGTON NORTHWEST RESTAURANTS 106 WEST VIRGINIA LITTLE GENERAL STORE 48 WISCONSIN VELARDE 108 WYOMING GRAND MERE CAPITAL 20 ENTIRE U.S. (50 states, Washington, D.

C., Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands) MSA FRANCHISED UNITS LOS ANGELES-RIVERSIDE-ORANGE COUNTY CA 19,133 NEW YORK-NORTHERN NEW JERSEY-LONG ISLAND NY-NJ-CT-PA 18,836 CHICAGO-GARY-KENOSHA IL-IN-WI 11,158 WASHINGTON-BALTIMORE DC-MD-VA-WV 10,609 DALLAS-FORT WORTH TX 10,405 HOUSTON-GALVESTON-BRAZORIA TX 9,451 ATLANTA GA 8,607 SAN FRANCISCO-OAKLAND-SAN JOSE CA 7,779 BOSTON-WORCESTER-LAWRENCE MA-NH-ME-CT 7,372 PHILADELPHIA-WILMINGTON-ATLANTIC CITY PA-NJ-DE-MD 7,119 DETROIT-ANN ARBOR-FLINT MI 6,477 PHOENIX-MESA AZ 5,973 SEATTLE-TACOMA-BREMERTON WA 5,049 DENVER-BOULDER-GREELEY CO 4,955 MIAMI-FORT LAUDERDALE FL 4,642 MINNEAPOLIS-SAINT PAUL MN-WI 4,636 TAMPA-SAINT PETERSBURG-CLEARWATER FL 4,536 SAN DIEGO CA 3,861 CHARLOTTE-GASTONIA-ROCK HILL NC-SC 3,828 ORLANDO FL 3,781 SAINT LOUIS MO-IL 3,713 CLEVELAND-AKRON OH 3,540 PORTLAND-SALEM OR-WA 3,367 LAS VEGAS NV-AZ 3,229 CINCINNATI-HAMILTON OH-KY-IN 3,221 INDIANAPOLIS IN 3,171 SACRAMENTO-YOLO CA 3,063 SAN ANTONIO TX 3,058 AUSTIN-SAN MARCOS TX 3,003 KANSAS CITY MO-KS 2,989 NASHVILLE TN 2,984 RALEIGH-DURHAM-CHAPEL HILL NC 2,946 PITTSBURGH PA 2,834 NORFOLK-VIRGINIA BEACH-NEWPORT NEWS VA-NC 2,803 COLUMBUS OH 2,740 MILWAUKEE-RACINE WI 2,391 JACKSONVILLE FL 2,322 SALT LAKE CITY-OGDEN UT 2,242 OKLAHOMA CITY OK 2,087 WEST PALM BEACH-BOCA RATON FL 2,054 RICHMOND-PETERSBURG VA 1,956 GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG-ANDERSON SC 1,877 HARTFORD CT 1,815 GREENSBORO--WINSTON-SALEM--HIGH POINT NC 1,788 LOUISVILLE KY-IN 1,668 NEW ORLEANS LA 1,654 MEMPHIS TN-AR-MS 1,611 KNOXVILLE TN 1,504 OMAHA NE-IA 1,471 GRAND RAPIDS-MUSKEGON-HOLLAND MI 1,444 BIRMINGHAM AL 1,439 DAYTON-SPRINGFIELD OH 1,334 TULSA OK 1,286 CHARLESTON-NORTH CHARLESTON SC 1,285 SARASOTA-BRADENTON FL 1,241 LITTLE ROCK-NORTH LITTLE ROCK AR 1,175 COLORADO SPRINGS CO 1,161 FRESNO CA 1,159 TUCSON AZ 1,148 FORT MYERS-CAPE CORAL FL 1,144 COLUMBIA SC 1,129 DES MOINES IA 1,119 ALBUQUERQUE NM 1,115 BUFFALO-NIAGARA FALLS NY 1,085 BATON ROUGE LA 1,069 HONOLULU HI 1,064 BOISE CITY ID 1,028 LEXINGTON KY 991 ROCHESTER NY 990 MOBILE AL 980 ALBANY-SCHENECTADY-TROY NY 972 WICHITA KS 937 EL PASO TX 933 CHATTANOOGA TN-GA 930 PROVIDENCE-FALL RIVER-WARWICK RI-MA 919 HARRISBURG-LEBANON-CARLISLE PA 918 BAKERSFIELD CA 911 MADISON WI 906 AUGUSTA-AIKEN GA-SC 843 DAYTONA BEACH FL 842 MELBOURNE-TITUSVILLE-PALM BAY FL 836 STOCKTON-LODI CA 836 ALLENTOWN-BETHLEHEM-EASTON PA 830 LAKELAND-WINTER HAVEN FL 808 FAYETTEVILLE-SPRINGDALE-ROGERS AR 805 JACKSON MS 791 TOLEDO OH 759 SAVANNAH GA 755 PENSACOLA FL 750 HUNTSVILLE AL 749 FORT WAYNE IN 712 SYRACUSE NY 706 MYRTLE BEACH SC 702 MCALLEN-EDINBURG-MISSION TX 698 WILMINGTON NC 690 PROVO-OREM UT 683 FORT PIERCE-PORT SAINT LUCIE FL 654 JOHNSON CITY-KINGSPORT-BRISTOL TN-VA 653 SCRANTON--WILKES-BARRE--HAZLETON PA 646 MODESTO CA 641 SPOKANE WA 640 RENO NV 639 SPRINGFIELD MO 636 LAFAYETTE LA 633 MACON GA 617 YOUNGSTOWN-WARREN OH 603 Largest Franchisees By Region WEST (AK, CA, HI, OR, WA) UNITS G & M OIL CO 278 HARMAN MANAGEMENT 242 AMERICAN WEST RESTAURANT GROUP 233 FLYNN RESTAURANT GROUP 212 AKASH MANAGEMENT 211 MOUNTAIN WEST (CO, ID, MT, UT, WY) UNITS FLYNN RESTAURANT GROUP 160 SIZZLING PLATTER 105 HARMAN MANAGEMENT 104 ALVARADO CONCEPTS 94 MBN BRANDS 81 SOUTHWEST (AZ, NV, NM) UNITS DESERT DE ORO FOODS 182 B & B CONSULTANTS 115 TERRIBLE HERBST 85 STINE ENTERPRISES 79 QUALITY BRAND GROUP 64 PLAINS (IA, KS, MO, NE, ND, OK, SD) UNITS ROTTINGHAUS COMPANY 285 FLYNN RESTAURANT GROUP 269 K-MAC ENTERPRISES 162 LOVE’S TRAVEL STOPS & COUNTRY STORES 158 FUGATE ENTERPRISES 138 MIDWEST (IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, WI) UNITS DHANANI GROUP 331 CARROLS RESTAURANT GROUP 288 FQSR (dba KBP BRANDS) 277 VISION GROWTH PARTNER/SUPER C GROUP 212 BORDER FOODS 177 EYM GROUP 177 SOUTH (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, IA, MS, NC, SC, TN, TX, VA) UNITS FLYNN RESTAURANT GROUP 854 SUN HOLDINGS 500 FQSR (dba KBP BRANDS) 496 CARROLS RESTAURANT GROUP 460 DHANANI GROUP 369 EAST (DC, DE, MD, NJ, NY, PA, WV) UNITS FLYNN RESTAURANT GROUP 262 CARROLS RESTAURANT GROUP 229 FQSR (dba KBP BRANDS) 143 METRO FRANCHISING COMMISSARY 139 BRIAD RESTAURANT & LODGING GROUP 113 NEW ENGLAND (CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT) UNITS DHANANI GROUP 100 HK ENTERPRISES 89 DE FOODS 61 FLYNN RESTAURANT GROUP 60 PR RESTAURANTS 60 Note: Data based on most current FDDs.