Lawn Doctor Franchise: 47 Years on Entrepreneur Franchise 500

Each year, Entrepreneur’s Franchise 500 ranking is published, highlighting the strongest franchise brands in the industry. The list is prepared through the evaluation of over 150 data points spanning categories like growth, support and financial strength. In other words, size or rapid growth alone won’t guarantee a brand a spot in the ranking.

For many franchise brands, being included in the ranking is an important achievement. According to a recent Entrepreneur article, only three brands have enjoyed the honor every year since the ranking started 47 years ago. McDonald’s and Dunkin’, two industry giants, make sense. The third is Lawn Doctor, a smaller brand but clearly just as strong.

Part of the larger Happinest Brands portfolio, Lawn Doctor is a 665-unit lawn care brand. While the brand has evolved over the years, CEO Scott Frith told Entrepreneur that the brand’s commitment to taking care of its franchisees has also been a key contributor to its success.

“My father once said, ‘Treat a franchisee as if they can leave you tomorrow and you’ll be okay.’ In other words, make sure you understand their value in building this business alongside you. And that’s been a guiding principle,” Frith said.

“So a real differentiator for us is how we’ve created the structures to help every franchisee unlock [success]. We’ve really ramped up training. For new franchisees, we have pre-training with digital content, then class for a week, practical training in the field — and then it’s ongoing with new initiatives.

You also have a dedicated person with you for two years.”

As Frith looks toward the future, he’s transparent about what has and hasn’t worked for Lawn Doctor, and he recognizes how the brand’s strength and history benefit owners across the Lawn Doctor system and larger Happinest Brands network.

“Lawn Doctor, almost 60 years old now, is bringing a lot of operational experience — nearly 4,000 years between our franchisees and our team — across the platform,” he said. “So certainly that brings value to emerging brands that are small and learning.”