Recently, we've bidden farewell to Borders, Circuit City and Linens 'n Things. Here are five more once-thriving chains that are probably doomed thanks to lousy management or just being in the wrong business at the wrong time.
The 63 restaurants Friendly's closed on Wednesday resulted in about 1,260 layoffs -- more than 12% of the company's 10,300 person workforce. Everyone from managers to dishwashers were told Tuesday evening that the following day would be their last at Friendly's.
Unlike the military base closures that occurred in the 1990s, the 20 bases that the government is scheduled to close next year come at a time of great economic uncertainty. Not only will the closures take a toll on already-suffering local economies but it could also send real estate markets in those areas spiraling further downward.
When Lowry Air Force base closed in 1994, the surrounding area not only lost a major employer (which supplied some 7,000 people with jobs) but it also took a big chunk out of the area's population -- and threatened its economy.
Of three Slate spinoff sites launched in the beginning of 2008, two have already folded. Will The Root, a site targeting African-American audiences, succeed where its siblings failed? There's some reason to think it might.
