Family Video.
7-elevens have had an interesting evolution. They used to be THE convenience store all over the 'burbs here in the East, back in the days before gas stations turned their service bays into convenience store space. But when that happened, it really undermined 7-Eleven in the 'burbs, because (a) a shitload of competition, and (b) you needed to stop for gas anyway, which gave the gas station convenience stores a big edge. 7-Elevens started putting gas pumps in their parking lots, but (a) they didn’t always have enough room for that, and (b) enough people preferred name-brand gasoline that that only helped but so much.
I’m amazed that they’ve survived, and have managed to reinvent themselves in ways that seem to work. But the idea of running the gas stations’ convenience stores seems like a brilliant fit, and their other obvious niche would be in urban spaces that are too densely built for gas stations to be viable.
Hardees. Really nasty food the last couple of times I tried them.
As for Starbucks, isnt the fact that McDonalds sells about the same latte for half the price hurting them?
We had a LJS/Taco Bell combo restaurant. I actually like the LJS chicken planks, so I was sad to see when they went full on Taco Bell.
If they were smart, they’d formalize that Amazon showroom deal somehow and get back a bit of that cash that all goes to Amazon right now. That would take them looking at Amazon as a partner, and not as the evil, implacable enemy though.
I was surprised when I saw an ad for Staples at my parents’ house recently. I forgot that it was Office Max & Office Depot that merged. I thought Staples had closed though. But no, just the one in a plaza near me.
I think Office Max & Staples have their place in society but there’s not enough demand for both. Office Max does have a great printing service and self-print but so does FedEx/Kinkos and they fit in tiny strip malls. Office Max still insists on being a huge store.
In fairness, I don’t know how it has been the last several years or so but in the 70s, 80s and 90s they had some great Journalism and Interviews. They were also one of the highest paying magazines for Fiction.
At this point, I think it’s more of a desperate, panicky hope that somebody out there really does read the articles. But kudos for finally admitting that no, they can’t compete with an ocean of free porn on the net.
People really do read the articles…afterwards.
But first you have to convince them to buy the magazine.
And when they reach into their wallet to pay, they aren’t thinking about which article to read first.
That bunny logo is well known…but for a reason: it implies that you’re gonna get more for your money when you buy Esquire or Maxim.
Playboy had a great run…but the end is nigh.
What’s happened to Playboy is kind of a shame. If they had properly managed the brand, it could be worth so much more. I could see the magazine as a cross between Cigar Aficionado, Wine Spectator and GQ, in that it could have been a guide for modern men in how to dress, eat and so forth. And perhaps they could have revived the Playboy Club, as a chain of more upscale places than the Hustler Club or Hooters.
Does Mad magazine have any brighter a future than Playboy? Do young people care about Mad anymore?
It’s local to the west coast, but grocery chain Haggen is having the most spectacular death spiral I’ve ever seen.
The stores they bought were sold to prevent a monopoly by Albertsons/Safeway. I’ve just learned that our local Haggen would be closing (after being open for less than five months). Now instead of having our beloved Albertsons that was in a completely different area than the Safeway, we’ll have NOTHING. Thank you, fucking FTC.
Haggen sucks.
I was really surprised that, even as the Blockbuster and Hollywood stores were going out of business, a Family Video was going into a vacant retail space up the block from me. They seem to be doing fine in my town, at least.
As was their original business, shipping DVDs by mail. Netflix has already changed businesses, so once more won’t be too hard.
I think Playboy has the exact same life expectancy as Hugh Hefner.
As for Harley-Davidson, isn’t the fact that Honda sells the same bike for half the price hurting them?
As for Apple, isn’t the fact that Lenovo sells the same laptop for a quarter of the price hurting them? 
Starbucks is a premium suburban yuppie brand. Might as well ask why “white girls” don’t buy knock-off Uggs and Coach bags. They aren’t buying it for the taste and quality, but for the logo.
The ones around here are branching out into delivery pizza. It’s called Marco’s and is good.
Just a few minutes ago, I heard on NBC News that traffic to their website quadrupled when they took the nudity off.
I guess there are plenty of other places where you can get racy stuff. :dubious:
Staples and Office Max/Depot have a pending merger, waiting on FTC antitrust review.
Similarly, I believe PetSmart is buying PetCo. Hopefully PetLand will go away, since I believe it’s the only one left that still sells puppies from puppy mills.
[QUOTE=nearwildheaven]
Just a few minutes ago, I heard on NBC News that traffic to their website quadrupled when they took the nudity off.
[/QUOTE]
Just a WAG, but probably because they’re no longer NSFW, guys can log in during the day.
Western Union is doing a booming business in this part of the world, kept alive by people using them to wire money to family members (or to bargirl sweethearts ;)).
An Aussie friend once said you give Western Union a bunch of money and they’ll send a little of it on.
I know people are thinking that the diesel scandal is what puts VW on this list of dying companies, but it ain’t happening. Even though they have not succeeded in the US to the degree they would like, VW is still a HUGE company. With all of their sub-brands, they have the highest revenues, profits and assets of any automaker in the world.