February 27, 2018

CHARLOTTE (January 18, 2018) -- CARSTAR North America, part of the Driven Brands Inc. family of automotive aftermarket franchise brands, has been ranked in Entrepreneur magazine’s Franchise 500. Recognized by entrepreneurs and franchisors as a top competitive tool of measurement, the Franchise 500 places CARSTAR 255th on the list up from 470th last year. Since 1989, CARSTAR has grown to become North America’s largest multi-shop operator (MSO) network of independently owned collision repair facilities.

“It’s an honor to be recognized among the top companies in the world,” said Michael Macaluso, president, CARSTAR North America. “Through the past year, we have continued integrating our operations across North America and strengthened our operational and financial performance. This an excellent sign of these accomplishments.”

The key factors that go into Entrepreneur’s evaluation include costs and fees, size and growth, support, brand strength and financial strength and stability. All franchises are given a cumulative score based on more than 150 data points, and the 500 franchises with the highest cumulative scores become the Franchise 500 in ranking order.

CARSTAR ended 2017 with record sales, growth and industry performance. The company says that its success can be attributed to several key factors. There were increases in repair volumes from the top insurance carriers, driven by CARSTAR’s EDGE Performance Group platform and continued KPI performance. Many CARSTAR locations repeatedly have a net promoter score exceeding 90 percent – a full 10 points higher than the industry average.