OCRegister:
Franchised businesses lost 409,000 businesses and an estimated $5.7 billion in revenue in 2009, according to a new report by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP for the International Franchise Association Educational Foundation.
Many of the best-known companies in the United States have grown through franchising, including McDonalds, 7-Eleven, Big O Tires, ACE hardware stores, Midas Muffler Shops and Molly Maids.
The report shows the hit franchisees took from the recession. The 2010 outlook is better, the report said.