8 of Your Favorite Brands That Almost Didn’t Make It

We all have a favorite retailer that we wish had stuck around longer, whether it was our favorite spot to save on essentials or treat ourselves to a once-in-a-while splurge, but the news isn’t all bad. 

In fact, plenty of your favorite stores spent time on the chopping block before making miraculous recoveries. 

Keep reading to learn about eight top sellers that you don’t have to wax nostalgic about because they’re still around today.

Amazon, e-readers, and the rise of online shopping seemed to herald the end of bookselling chains — at least for Borders, which ceased business operations in 2011. But Barnes & Noble managed to carve out space for itself in spite of the Amazon and Kindle juggernaut.

After struggling through the 2010s, the chain is firmly back on the playing field. Its sales have increased year over year, and the chain started expanding into new locations in 2023.

IBM — which stands for International Business Machines Corporation, in case you’ve always wondered — has been around for over 100 years. 

It was an industry stalwart for decades, but in the 1990s, IBM suffered a series of setbacks while trying to compete with smaller, cheaper personal computers during the dot-com boom.

Eventually, with help from a new CEO, the company pulled out of its tailspin. Today, IBM’s stock performance exceeds expectations, and the company continues to be a prime driver of innovation in the IT industry.

Arby’s spent several years as the butt of comedian Jon Stewart’s jokes on Comedy Central’s The Daily Show, and there wasn’t any question as to why. Up until 2013, the chain wasn’t performing particularly well, neither on late-night TV nor in the real world.

But with the introduction of a new CEO, the chain managed to gradually turn itself around. Per Arby’s, same-store sales have been up for the last 20 quarters in a row. 

Plus, the company was able to lay its beef with Stewart to rest before the end of his first Daily Show tenure in 2015, in part by creating a Stewart-inspired sandwich for its secret menu.

Applebee’s garnered an enthusiastic following during the 1990s, but when the Great Recession of 2008 struck, the casual dining chain seemed like it was headed for an early grave. 

Luckily, Applebee’s bounced back as the recession died down — though disaster struck again in 2020 with COVID-19, which shuttered restaurants around the nation.

Luckily, the following year, Applebee’s increased its profits by over 30%. And while Applebee’s plans to close stores around the country this year, the closures are part of a strategy to continue to shape the Applebee’s brand. 

Odds are good the eatery will be around to satisfy Americans’ appetizer cravings for years to come.

At this point in history, it’s almost unthinkable that the world’s biggest coffee chain nearly went under. However, around the time of the Great Recession, Starbucks actually laid off upwards of 6,500 employees and closed hundreds of stores nationwide.

Fortunately, CEO Howard Schultz was able to restore the company’s image and put it on track for sustainable growth.

Like Arby’s, Buffalo Wild Wings went through a period of decline during and after the 2008 recession. But when Inspire Brands acquired it — the same company that acquired and revamped Arby’s in 2013 — the chain was able to make a relatively quick turnaround. 

These days, it’s one of the nation’s ten fastest-growing chains with no slowdowns in sight.

Back in the 1980s, Nintendo was a successful Japanese brand without the solid international audience of competitors like Atari. 

The company’s fortunes turned in 1985 when the American video game industry entered a low period, and Nintendo introduced Super Mario Bros. — one of the most popular games ever made. 

Thanks to innovations like the Nintendo Switch, there’s no chance of Nintendo leaving the spotlight anytime soon.

Picturing a failing McDonald’s is almost as hard as picturing a failing Starbucks, but the brand’s sales stalled in 2015. Without a change, it was clear the company’s upward trajectory was about to reverse direction. 

Luckily for fast-food fans, McDonald’s steered back into success by adding new items and cutting some (though certainly not all, or even most) of its prices.

The next time you’re feeling nostalgic for one of your favorite long-gone brands, take a moment to remember everything you loved about it, from the scent of the store to the items it carried.

Treat yourself to a book from Barnes & Noble, a tasty drink from Starbucks, or go out to eat and enjoy everyone’s favorite fast food fries. 

After all, there’s no time like the present to create new memories that you’ll treasure decades from now.