John Liautaud's recipe for a good food franchise: At 19, he started Jimmy John's gourmet sandwich shop with used equipment. To drum up business, Liautaud gave out sandwiches for free.

Exclusive: Sandwich chain Jimmy John's to hit the auction block - sources | Reuters

Today, there are more than 1, Jimmy John's shops. He won a following in the college crowd for his cheap prices, delivery and sense of humor.

Jimmy John's Franchise, LLC: Private Company Information - Bloomberg

An example of the company's wit? It sells boxer shorts emblazoned with the company logo and the phrase ''free smells. This list features the most popular franchises over the past decade -- and how well their owners have done at repaying startup loans backed by the SBA.

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Uber CEO Travis Kalanick resigns. Business Culture Gadgets Future Startups Powering Your World Upstarts Innovative Cities Unhackable 15 Questions. Chevy Bolt EV named Top Safety Pick. Log In Log Out. Loan data is from the Small Business Administration, covering loans made from October through September Only those franchises for which the SBA backed 70 or more loans were included.

A loan was counted as "failed" if the franchisor stopped repaying the loan and the SBA had to purchase -- or take over -- the loan. Business Markets Investing Economy Tech.

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