9 Extinct or Nearly Extinct Brands That Still Have a Share in My Head

Try as I might, I can't forget them...

1. Doktor's Pet Center

As a kid, this place was always a stop-by on my trips to the local mall. Fortunately for me, I didn't know the back story: https://www.animals24-7.org/2019/10/28/secret-agent-for-animals-pete-paxton/

2. KB Toys - or KayBee Toy & Hobby

Started in 1922, this one blew up at the start of the last recession in '08. There were plans to bring it back in '19 and then, well, Covid. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KB_Toys

3. Kenny Rogers Roasters

When one of these opened around me in 1990, I thought I'd found the best fast food. Today, it seems the only place to find one is Malaysia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenny_Rogers_Roasters

4. Atari

Somehow, it's still alive., though as a retro brand reliving the glory days. https://www.atari.com/

5. Datek

Twenty years ago, Datek was one of the first online platforms for day-trading. I thought I was cool buying and selling Amazon stock and making an extra $25 per day. If only I'd just held it. https://www.encyclopedia.com/economics/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/datek-online-brokerage-services-llc

6. Miller SQA

Miller SQA stood for "Simple, Quick, Affordable." It was Herman Miller's way of selling slim downed product lines with shorter lead times than their typical 6-8 weeks. As a sales rep for them more than two decades ago, I loved it. I didn't realize what was happening behind the scenes. https://www.fastcompany.com/56840/herman-millers-leap-faith

7. Adobe Flash

For quite a while, it was huge. And then it wasn't.

8. Maximizer CRM

I'm a 23 year old salesperson who had just won a laptop in a company contest. It's 1995, though, so I have no idea what to do with it. Our top sales rep slips a 3.5" disc in my shirt pocket. It's a copy of Maximizer, the first CRM told I ever used. It changes everything for how I think about sales. Amazingly, they're still around but I haven't used it more than two decades. https://www.maximizer.com/

9. Pardot

This one won't sound recent to people who know it. Just a few months ago, Pardot was retired for the name, uh, "Salesforce Marketing Cloud Account Engagement." I remember when it was a fifty person start-up in Atlanta. I wonder how long my customers will call it Pardot?