IRVINE, Calif. (June 26, 2018) – EY today announced that Shirin Behzadi, CEO of Home Franchise Concepts (HFC), the largest family of direct-to-consumer brands in the home improvement space, received the Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2018 Award in the Direct to Consumer category in Orange County.

Considered the world’s most prestigious business honor for entrepreneurs, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Award recognizes inspirational business leaders excelling in areas such as innovation, financial performance and personal commitment to their businesses and communities. Behzadi was selected after completing a series of in-person interviews evaluated by an independent panel of judges, and the award was presented at a special gala event at the Monarch Beach Resort on June 22.

HFC is the franchisor of the Budget Blinds, Tailored Living and Concrete Craft brands, supported by more than 1,400 franchise territories operating in 10,000 cities in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

The award comes during a season of professional recognition for Behzadi including nomination to the Orange County Business Journal “OCBJ 500,” selection as a presenter at the Franchise Times Finance and Growth Conference and the subject of a May 2018 cover profile in Franchise Times magazine, a leading journal of the franchising industry.

Under Behzadi’s direction, HFC has grown into one of the largest and most respected franchisors in the country, on track to reach $700 million in sales in 2018, up from $600 million last year and a 71-percent increase in systemwide sales since 2015.

During its 25th anniversary year of 2017, HFC celebrated a record 2.6 million Budget Blinds window-covering installations (and 25 million installations since the brand’s founding year of 1992) at a record pace of 50,000 per week. Also through 2017, Tailored Living organized more than 245,000 lives and Concrete Craft installed more than 3 million square feet of decorative concrete.

To set the stage for continued growth, Behzadi relocated the company in May to state-of-the-art offices in Irvine, Calif., offering double the space for interactive product displays and training, education and support facilities for the company’s growing base of franchisees and employees.

Home Franchise Concepts’ brands continue to climb the prestigious Entrepreneur Magazine’s “Franchise 500,” with Budget Blinds listed at #23 in the 2018 ranking. Military Times ranked Budget Blinds #2 and Tailored Living #3 for Best Franchises for Veterans 2018.

Founded and produced by EY, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards are nationally sponsored by SAP America, the Kauffman Foundation and Merrill Corporation, and in Orange County by Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth, Hollencrest Capital Management, Lockton Companies, Tangram Company and Woodruff‑Sawyer & Company.

To see a list of the six Entrepreneur Of The Year 2018 Orange County Award winners, go to www.ey.com/us/en/about-us/entrepreneurship/entrepreneur-of-the-year/oc-2018-regional-winners.

About Home Franchise Concepts
Home Franchise Concepts (HFC) is the top-selling family of direct-to-consumer brands in the home-related goods and services space, one of the world’s largest franchise businesses and a recognized leader in franchisee-franchisor relationships. HFC’s three brands including Budget Blinds®, Tailored Living® and Concrete Craft® are consistently rated at the top of their categories and supported by nearly 1,400 franchise territories in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

About Entrepreneur Of The Year®
Entrepreneur Of The Year®, founded by EY, is the world’s most prestigious business awards program for entrepreneurs, chosen from an independent panel of judges including entrepreneurs and prominent leaders from business, finance, and the local community. The program makes a difference through the way it encourages entrepreneurial activity among those with potential and recognizes the contribution of people who inspire others with their vision, leadership and achievement. As the first and only truly global awards program of its kind, Entrepreneur Of The Year celebrates those who are building and leading successful, growing and dynamic businesses, recognizing them through regional, national and global awards programs in more than 145 cities in more than 60 countries. www.ey.com/eoy

About EY’s Growth Markets Network
EY’s worldwide Growth Markets Network is dedicated to serving the changing needs of high-growth companies. For more than 30 years, we’ve helped many of the world’s most dynamic and ambitious companies grow into market leaders. Whether working with international mid-cap companies or early stage, venture-backed businesses, our professionals draw upon their extensive experience, insight and global resources to help your business succeed. For more information, please visit us at ey.com/sgm or follow news on Twitter @EY_Growth.

About EY
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