Entrepreneur's 35th Annual Franchise 500(R) Ranks Travel Company as Franchise Elite

Expedia® CruiseShipCenters® Jumps to No. 200. End Quote

(1888PressRelease) January 21, 2014 - Bellevue, WA - Expedia CruiseShipCenters, a North American leader in sales of cruises and vacations, was recently ranked in Entrepreneur magazine's Franchise 500®, the world's first, best and most comprehensive franchise ranking. Recognized by entrepreneurs and franchisors as a top competitive tool of measurement, the Franchise 500® places Expedia CruiseShipCenters at No. 200 for its exceptional performance in areas including financial strength and stability, growth rate, and system size.

"It's really exciting to see Expedia CruiseShipCenters moving up in the most comprehensive franchise ranking in the world," said Matthew Eichhorst, President of Expedia CruiseShipCenters. "Our main goal as an organization is twofold: grow our franchise network, and make each of our franchisees more profitable. Our Franchise 500® ranking this year confirms that we are achieving success in both of these areas."

This year marks Expedia CruiseShipCenters' sixth consecutive year on Entrepreneur magazine's 2014 Franchisee 500® list. Moving up the ranks from No. 473 in 2013 to its current position at No. 200, Expedia CruiseShipCenters continues to excel as it has grown to 180 franchise locations, including 44 U.S. stores operating in 17 different states. In 2013 alone, the company signed 15 new franchise locations and have a plan of signing another 30 by the end of 2014 with specific focus in Washington, California, Texas, Florida and New York. With 42 Million North Americans intending to take a cruise within the next 3 years, the company is poised for continued growth and is well on its way to achieving its vision of becoming the No.1 Cruise Vacation Specialist in the World.

"Compiling the Franchise 500® every year gives us the opportunity to share data-driven insights, reflect on areas seeing progress and acknowledge the companies that have risen to the top," says Amy Cosper, VP and editor in chief of Entrepreneur. "Franchises play an important part in economic growth, and the names in the ranking are leading the way with their continued and emerging business success."

The rankings for all 500 companies are determined using an exclusive formula that takes into account objective and quantifiable factors. An independent CPA analyzes all financial data. The most important factors include financial strength and stability, growth rate and size of the system. All franchises are given a cumulative score, and the 500 franchises with the highest cumulative scores become the Franchise 500® in ranking order.

Over its 35 years in existence, the Franchise 500® has become both a dominant competitive measure for franchisors and a primary research tool for entrepreneurs. Expedia CruiseShipCenters' position on the ranking reinforces its strength in the industry.

With an Expedia CruiseShipCenters travel franchise, you can enjoy the benefits of owning a profitable retail business, while making dream vacations come true. To learn more about Expedia CruiseShipCenters please visit www.expediafranchise.com.

ABOUT EXPEDIA CRUISESHIPCENTERS
Named a fast-growing franchise by MSN Money, Expedia CruiseShipCenters provides exceptional value and expert advice for travelers booking cruises and vacations through its network of 180 franchise locations. As part of Expedia, Inc., the company's 4,000 Vacation Consultants have been navigating spectacular vacation experiences for customers across North America for more than 25 years. For more information on joining the Expedia CruiseShipCenters team, visit www.expediafranchise.com.

Expedia is either a registered trademark or trademark of Expedia, Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. Other logos or product and company names mentioned herein may be the property of their respective owners. © 2014 Expedia, Inc. All rights reserved. CST # 2029030-50 and CST # 20893-43

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