Size and presence
16.9% of the 437 franchise networks with at least 30 CNPJs in May 2023 shrank by more than a third, and 2.3% when only deregistration counts as an exit
of the 437 networks with at least 30 active CNPJs in May 2023 had, in October 2026, a stock more than a third smaller, by trade name
See the full table (8 rows)
| Segment | Networks | Grew | Remained stable | Shrank by up to a third | Shrank by more than a third |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Food | 108 | 30 (27.8%) | 30 (27.8%) | 21 (19.4%) | 27 (25.0%) |
| Services and other businesses | 99 | 34 (34.3%) | 21 (21.2%) | 23 (23.2%) | 21 (21.2%) |
| Health, beauty and wellness | 83 | 31 (37.3%) | 19 (22.9%) | 20 (24.1%) | 13 (15.7%) |
| Fashion and accessories | 74 | 26 (35.1%) | 30 (40.5%) | 12 (16.2%) | 6 (8.1%) |
| Education | 33 | 6 (18.2%) | 7 (21.2%) | 13 (39.4%) | 7 (21.2%) |
| Food, retail and distribution | 22 | 15 (68.2%) | fewer than 5 | fewer than 5 | fewer than 5 |
| Other segments | 18 | 10 (55.6%) | fewer than 5 | fewer than 5 | fewer than 5 |
| All | 437 | 152 (34.8%) | 114 (26.1%) | 97 (22.2%) | 74 (16.9%) |
Effect of the trade name and other variantsShare of networks in each band, according to the criterion. The return variants keep the same initial snapshot and add to the final stock the CNPJs of the initial stock in the indicated condition.
| Criterion | Networks | Grew | Remained stable | Shrank by up to a third | Shrank by more than a third |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main, by trade name | 437 | 34.8% | 26.1% | 22.2% | 16.9% |
| Returning to the stock spelling variations, another CNAE, group name and blank name | 437 | 36.4% | 27.9% | 21.1% | 14.6% |
| Also returning active CNPJs with another name | 437 | 40.3% | 32.3% | 17.6% | 9.8% |
| Also returning inapt status, suspension and moves to another network, so that only deregistration counts as an exit | 437 | 55.6% | 31.8% | 10.3% | 2.3% |
| Only networks with at least 30 CNPJs also in the current profile | 383 | 39.7% | 29.2% | 19.8% | 11.2% |
| Without removing CNPJs with an MEI election from the initial snapshot | 472 | 30.3% | 22.9% | 20.6% | 26.3% |
| Networks with at least 50 CNPJs in the initial snapshot | 275 | 31.6% | 30.9% | 20.0% | 17.5% |
| Networks with at least 100 CNPJs in the initial snapshot | 129 | 31.8% | 31.0% | 20.9% | 16.3% |
What happened to the CNPJs of the initial stockStatus in October 2026 of the CNPJs active in May 2023, as a share of the initial stock of each band. The last row shows the entries in the period, newly opened or coming from another name.
| Outcome | Grew | Remained stable | Shrank by up to a third | Shrank by more than a third |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Remain in the network with the same name | 72.8% | 72.2% | 59.7% | 40.1% |
| Deregistration | 16.3% | 15.7% | 19.0% | 26.8% |
| Inapt status or suspension | 5.3% | 6.7% | 11.4% | 17.6% |
| Active, under another name | 3.9% | 3.4% | 7.4% | 8.6% |
| Active, with a name variation, another CNAE or the name of a group company | 0.7% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.5% |
| Active or with unread status, without a trade name | 0.9% | 1.2% | 1.7% | 6.4% |
| Entries in the period, relative to the initial stock | 84.0% | 27.3% | 20.1% | 11.1% |
By size in the initial snapshotNumber of active CNPJs of the network in May 2023.
| Size | Networks | Grew | Remained stable | Shrank by up to a third | Shrank by more than a third |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 to 49 CNPJs | 162 | 65 (40.1%) | 29 (17.9%) | 42 (25.9%) | 26 (16.0%) |
| 50 to 99 CNPJs | 146 | 46 (31.5%) | 45 (30.8%) | 28 (19.2%) | 27 (18.5%) |
| 100 to 299 CNPJs | 109 | suppressed | 31 (28.4%) | 22 (20.2%) | suppressed |
| 300 CNPJs or more | 20 | fewer than 5 | 9 (45.0%) | 5 (25.0%) | fewer than 5 |
Combined stock of each bandActive CNPJs in the three snapshots. No network accounts for more than half of the stock of a band.
| Range | Networks | May 2023 | October 2025 | October 2026 | Change in the period |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grew | 152 | 14,873 | 22,625 | 23,330 | +56.9% |
| Remained stable | 114 | 16,439 | 17,114 | 16,358 | -0.5% |
| Shrank by up to a third | 97 | 11,784 | 10,712 | 9,403 | -20.2% |
| Shrank by more than a third | 74 | 7,304 | 5,064 | 3,738 | -48.8% |
The network evolution indicator measures the combined stock and the networks that today have at least 30 CNPJs (Brazilian company registry). This indicator starts from the initial snapshot. Among the 437 networks in the universe with at least 30 active CNPJs in May 2023, 152 grew by more than 10% through October 2026, 114 stayed within 10% up or down and 171 shrank by more than 10%, of which 74, or 16.9% of the set, lost more than a third of their stock. In the period, the set changed by +4.8% and active establishments with a trade name in the general database, without an MEI (individual microentrepreneur regime) election, by +15.9%, according to the 1% sample, and the set, closed at the initial date, does not include networks that exceeded 30 CNPJs later.
The count is by trade name, and part of the decline is an effect of the registry. When the CNPJs that only changed spelling, changed CNAE (national classification of economic activities) or were left without a name are returned to the stock, the networks with a decline above a third go from 74 to 64. With active CNPJs under another name added, they go to 43, and, when only deregistration counts as an exit, to 10, which equals 2.3% of the set.
In the networks that shrank by more than a third, 40.1% of the initial stock keeps the name, 26.8% was deregistered, 17.6% is classified as inapt or suspended and 8.6% remains active under another name, and entries add up to 11.1% of the initial stock, compared with 84.0% in the networks that grew. Of the inapt-status cases and suspensions in this group, 64.2% arose in the last interval, from October 2025 to October 2026.
How we calculate
We apply the current trade name expression and CNAE subclasses to the snapshots of the CNPJ database of May 2023, October 2025 and October 2026, and count the 14-digit CNPJs with active status. From the May 2023 snapshot, 2,857 CNPJs with an MEI election that do not appear in the following snapshots are removed, because the file of that reference month still included the trade name of this group, as in the network evolution indicator. The networks in the universe with a count by Receita Federal (the federal tax authority) and at least 30 CNPJs in that snapshot are included, with or without a complete profile today.
Requiring 30 CNPJs at the end as well would remove precisely the networks that shrank the most, because a network starting from 30 to 44 cannot lose a third without falling below that floor. In that subset, of the 383 networks measured today, the share with a decline above a third would be 11.2%. The bands are grew, above +10%, stable, from -10% to +10%, shrank by up to a third and shrank by more than a third, comparing only the first and the last snapshot.
Each CNPJ of the initial stock receives a class in October 2026, by comparing status and name. Spelling variation is recognized by the root of the brand name. The variants return the CNPJs of each class to the final stock and keep the entries, so they measure how much of the decline results from the registry. A cell with fewer than 5 networks is suppressed, and so is the second smallest in the row or column when the difference would reveal it. The Other segments row combines tourism and hospitality and gyms and sports.
What this figure does not show
- The trade name is the only link between a CNPJ and a network. A unit may remain in the network under another name, leave it while keeping the name or have the field deleted. In the variant that returns active CNPJs with another name, 31 networks leave the band of decline above a third.
- A change of legal name under the same CNPJ does not alter the count, because the legal name is not read. It only interferes when the trade name is rewritten at the same time, and 7.5% of the new names have the form of a legal name. A change of owner with a new CNPJ counts as one exit and one entry, with no effect on the balance if the name is kept.
- A change of name by the network itself affects the result. The expression is the current one, and if the old brand is not provided for, the renamed network appears to grow, while a network that migrates its units to another banner appears to shrink. Moves to networks of the same group were treated as a name variation where the universe records the group.
- The universe is that of networks identified today. Networks already defunct are not included, which underestimates the decline. Namesakes enter the count, and their movement does not reflect the network. A network whose units operate under an MEI election is undercounted at both dates.
- Inapt status is an administrative measure and can be reversed, and, in the variant that returns it to the stock, the CNPJ classified as inapt may already be closed. 0.1% of the initial stock are CNPJs without a name in October 2026 from networks without a complete profile, whose status was not read and which were returned as active in the variants.
- The result compares two dates, and the evolution between them is not considered. A CNPJ does not equal an operating unit, and the decline in the registry does not report a reason or indicate the situation of the franchisor.
Frequently asked questions
How many franchise networks are shrinking in Brazil?
Among the 437 networks with at least 30 active CNPJs in May 2023, 171 shrank by more than 10% through October 2026, and 74 lost more than a third of their stock, by trade name in the CNPJ (Brazilian company registry). When only deregistration, the closure of the registration, counts as an exit, the second count falls to 10 networks. The set includes networks that later fell below 30 CNPJs, and for this reason the share in decline is larger than in the network evolution indicator, which starts from the networks measured today.
Do franchises that lose units close or just change their name?
In the networks that shrank by more than a third from May 2023 to October 2026, 26.8% of the initial stock was deregistered in the CNPJ (Brazilian company registry), 17.6% was classified as inapt or suspended and 8.6% remains active under another name. The registry does not report the reason or the status of the franchise contract.
Do small franchise networks shrink more than large ones?
According to the CNPJ (Brazilian company registry), the share is similar. Among networks with 30 to 49 CNPJs in May 2023, 16.0% shrank by more than a third through October 2026, compared with 16.3% among those that had 100 CNPJs or more. The difference between sizes appears in the share that grew, which is larger in the smaller band.
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Size and presenceOther indicators in the same group
Maintained by Marktech, which serves franchise networks and franchises. The brands cited belong to their owners and are mentioned here only to identify the network the data refers to.