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By Joe Halpern, Senior Writer at Franchise Times, The News and Information Source for Franchising
Article originally published by Franchise Times
Burkburnett, Texas — November 7, 2025 — Crystal Franz looks forward to the end of summer and beginning of fall. It’s the time of the year when the CEO of HomeWell Franchising for HomeWell Care Services hits the road for the company’s fall regional conferences around the country.
“I was in Dallas last week and I’m heading to Orlando, [Florida], this week and then Virginia later this month,” Franz said in September. “It’s a chance for me to meet with our franchisees, listen to them, talk with them about their businesses. It’s also a chance to give them company updates on our progress, which is always fun to do.”
Franz and her corporate team had a lot to celebrate with their franchisees this fall. The Texas-based senior care services franchisor expects to approach $180 million in systemwide sales in 2025 and surpass 150 units. This comes after HomeWell this year landed at No. 278 on the Franchise Times Top 400, an exclusive ranking of the largest franchise brands, with $138.6 million in sales in 2024. That’s a year-over-year increase of 30.8 percent. The company also posted 45.5 percent unit growth with the addition of 30 new territories last year.
“I love the interaction with our business partners because they’re the ones who are making an impact in their communities with families, helping their parents and grandparents age comfortably and safely at home,” Franz said.
Franz is a humble and determined executive who shied away from taking credit for her company’s success. She praised the system’s 130 franchisees who are operating in 107 territories for providing reliable and trusted non-medical in-home care services. HomeWell offers a range of personal, companion and specialty care programs, along with hospice and palliative care support, among other services.
Franz also acknowledged her corporate team for providing operators and their staff with the training, ongoing support and data insights needed to grow their businesses.
“It really is a team effort here and I feel very fortunate to be surrounded by real great people who are as passionate as me about improving the lives of seniors and serving our communities,” said Franz, who joined HomeWell in 2018 as vice president of brand strategy.
Under Franz’s watch, the company has increased the system revenue by 189 percent in the last five years. HomeWell has also more than doubled its footprint during Franz’s tenure as CEO by expanding into 10 new states. Meanwhile, the company’s average unit volume continue to rise, with single territory franchises coming in at more than $1.3 million and $3.2 million for multi-unit franchises open for more than a year.
In July alone, HomeWell signed eight new franchise agreements, resulting in nine additional territories—the highest number ever sold in a single month for the brand. It also opened five new agencies that month. As of September, the company had signed agreements with 32 new operators and expected to finish the year with an additional 35 new locations.
It’s certainly been an unprecedented run for both Franz and the company, which was founded by Joshua Hoffman in 1996. Prior to being recruited by the HomeWell Care Services marketing department, she led marketing for Comfort Inn and Comfort Suites under franchisor Choice Hotels International.
Franz served as the vice president of brand strategy, marketing and communications for HomeWell Franchising from 2018 to 2019 before being promoted to chief strategy officer and then to CEO at the end of 2021. Among the new initiatives she’s implemented were expanding the brand’s dementia care services through a national partnership with PocketRN and enhancing the company’s caregiver training as an expanded partnership with CareAcademy.
The company has also launched new signature programs during Franz’s tenure as CEO, like GoHomeWell, for post-medical care, and the HomeWell Cares Community Education Initiative. Through the latter program it offers free wellness and safety education to communities by providing educational events and downloadable support materials on health topics such as stroke awareness, senior isolation, heart health and fall prevention.
When asked what she enjoys most about her job, Franz didn’t have to give it much thought. “I love the work-life balance I have at HomeWell, along with the very talented people I get to work with,” said the mother of four children ages 8 to 14. “It really is a collaborative effort here.”
Casey McCleskey, HomeWell Franchising’s chief financial officer who has worked closely with Franz for seven years at the company, agreed. He said Franz’s strengths are being “a good people person and communicator.”
“Her background in marketing and communications has helped her tremendously,” McCleskey said. “She’s a great manager of people and I personally have really enjoyed working with her and strategizing with her on how to best fit people into their roles and how to keep job satisfaction here very high.”
About HomeWell:
HomeWell Care Services®, franchised by HomeWell Franchising Inc., provides personal care, companionship, and homemaker services for seniors and other homebound individuals so they can remain safely in the comfort of wherever they call home. HomeWell is committed to helping people live life more fully and offers special programs for fall prevention, post-medical care, and life enrichment.
HomeWell Franchising Inc. is a premier franchisor with nearly 70 locations representing more than 100 territories across the United States. The company has a strong pipeline of new agencies set to open. HomeWell has been recognized as a Franchise Business Review Top 100 low-investment franchise, an Inc. 5000 company, and consecutively ranked among the nation’s top franchises in Entrepreneur magazine’s Franchise 500®. For more information on HomeWell or to explore franchise opportunities, visit HomeWell Care Services or HomeWell Care Services Franchising.
For press inquiries, please contact:
Andrew Hurst, Communications Manager
817.203.8313, media@homewellcares.com
For franchising opportunities, please contact:
Mike Condon, Vice President of Franchise Development
817-623-4794, franchising@homewellcares.com
