Tariq Farid - CEO/President - 2008 Entrepreneur of the Year

Tariq Farid is the founder and CEO of Edible Arrangements^®. Farid's entrepreneurial experience began in the late 1980s when, with a $5,000 cash advance from his parents he purchased a local flower shop at age 17. Within two years, Tariq was operating four highly successful stores. His drive and determination lead him to start Edible Arrangements^® in 1999. From his experience working at a McDonald's as a teenager, Farid knew the power of an established franchise system. The first Edible Arrangements^® franchise opened in 2001 in Waltham, Massachusetts. Just ten years later it has grown to nearly 1,000 locations around the world. Today Farid is very active in all aspects of the business. In 2001 he founded Netsolace, the franchise management software company that franchisees use in their day-to-day operations, including order processing, training manuals, production and profitability tracking, and supply chain management. In 2008 Farid was named Entrepreneur of the Year by the International Franchise Association. In 2009 Farid was named The Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year. Much of Farid's success has been documented with countless interviews by major business publications and television networks.