LIBERTY TAX SERVICE CEO JOHN HEWITT IS IFA'''S ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR
February 7, 2006 ( Virginia Beach , VA ) The International Franchise Association has named Liberty Tax Service Founder and CEO John Hewitt as Entrepreneur of the Year for 2006. The IFA presents this award to an “individual currently building a successful business venture who exemplifies the entrepreneurial spirit that franchising represents.” The IFA organization also weighs innovative management skills and the person'''s participation in the community service arena as significant criteria for this accolade.
“His unfettered drive, vision, and leadership have created avenues of success for over 2,000 franchisees he brought aboard the two companies he founded. Hewitt is a tough competitor on a mission that's escalated Liberty Tax to a national brand name in less than ten years,” said Martha O'Gorman, vice president of marketing for Liberty Tax Service , and a founding member of the Liberty management team.
Hewitt's tenure in tax franchising spans almost 37 years. He founded two franchise services ranked by Entrepreneur magazine in their top 50 on their Franchise 500 : Liberty Tax Service and Jackson Hewitt Tax Service. Hewitt grew Jackson Hewitt to 1,345 offices, and firmly established this new #2 tax service as the first successful national competitor against H&R Block. He and his father, Daniel Hewitt pioneered computerized tax preparation in the 80's, then established Jackson Hewitt as the first service to utilize this revolutionary technology. As CEO, Hewitt took Jackson Hewitt public in 1994. The company sold for $483 million in 1997. His entry in the tax service franchising sector was through an H&R Block tax class in 1969. By 1981, he was H&R Block's youngest regional director, managing over 2,000 preparers in 250 offices in one of Block's largest regions.
Hewitt's business success has enabled him to make a difference in the war against world hunger. In 1998, John Hewitt co-founded Stop Hunger Now www.stophungernow.com , a 501 © 3 non-profit international relief organization that coordinates immediate distribution of food and life savings aid on a global basis. Last year, he made substantial financial contributions to the tsunami relief effort through Stop Hunger Now. Liberty Tax Service offered free tax return preparation to those who made a donation of $100 or more for tsunami relief through SHN. The company launched this initiative in immediate response to a new IRS law enacted January 7 th that allows those who donate to the tsunami relief through approved non-profit organizations to claim this as a charitable donation on a 2004 tax return .
ABOUT LIBERTY
Liberty Tax Service ( www.libertytax.com ) has served 3 million customers. There are over 2,000 Liberty offices operating in the United States and Canada . The company provides free tax advice and free checking of self-prepared returns at each office. In January 2006, Entrepreneur magazine ranked Liberty Tax Service as #10 on its Franchise 500 overall list of best franchises. Accounting Today magazine ranked Liberty fastest growing on its list of top 100 tax & accounting companies released in March 2005.
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