Startup Journal turned to FRANdata to help us come up with a group of 25 high performers for our readersʼ consideration. Ultimately, we cannot say that these franchises are the best in the U.S. or that they are the outfits that will net potential franchisees the most profit. Rather, we looked to create a list of franchises that are well established, have experienced leadership, exhibit overall financial health and have a proven record of franchis- ing success. Our list is not a ranking; franchises appear in alphabetical order... We looked at their net income (profit) and shareholdersʼ equity (assets minus liabilities) for fiscal 2004 to try to ensure that franchises on our list were financially sound. The capital base of franchises in our final 25, as mea- sured by shareholdersʼ equity, was at least $950,000 for fiscal 2004. All franchises in our final group exceeded a 25% return-on-equity ratio (net income divided by shareholdersʼ equity) average over the past three years and in 2004. Itʼs also worth noting that our 25 franchises had positive net income over the prior three years.