THE BIGGEST BUSINESS COMEBACKS OF THE PAST 20 YEARS (1)
OUR VERDICT
IS IN: APPLE STAGED THE MOST IMPRESSIVE RECOVERY OF THE LAST 20 YEARS. HERE ARE OTHERS THAT OVERCAME HARD TIMES.FIRST FIVE BELOW
1. Apple: The Most Impressive Business Comeback
Of The Past 20 Years
In our fast-changing,
startup-crazed economy, it can seem like only the newest companies have the
agility to thrive. But entrepreneurship can propel businesses of all sizes and
ages—look no further than Apple, which almost foundered in the late '90s
before Steve Jobs resurrected it to become the most valuable company
in the world. In our estimation, Apple's triumph is absolutely the No. 1
business comeback of the last two decade.
So what are the other
biggest turnarounds of the past 20 years—and what can we learn from them? As part
of our 20th anniversary (Fast
Company’s first issue
appeared in November 1995),
we’ve identified the top business comebacks of the past two decades.
Once the world’s
most revered automaker, GM faced disaster in the late 2000s when it
filed for bankruptcy and laid off tens of thousands of workers. Which makes it
all the more extraordinary that just a year after the federal government’s bailout plan earned it the sarcastic
nickname "Government Motors," the company roared back to
profitability. After trimming costs and killing its struggling Pontiac, Saturn,
and Hummer divisions, GM went public again, raising roughly $20 billion. By the
end of 2013, the government had sold off the last of its GM shares, capping a
remarkable turnaround that saved an estimated 1.2 million jobs.
As the home of
Spider-Man, Captain America, and other iconic characters, Marvel has long been
the comic-book world’s biggest player. But in the mid-1990s the comics market
crashed, Marvel went broke, and there was no superpower strong enough to stave
off bankruptcy. But fear not! After restructuring, our hero changed its
approach, focusing on movies rather than paper and ink. Today, Iron Man, the
Avengers, Spider-Man, and X-Men are all billion-dollar franchises, and the
company’s master plan—to connect many of its characters in a single cinematic universe—has
turned it into one of pop culture’s most powerful brands.
After evolving from a
fleet of crop-dusting biplanes into one of the nation’s biggest airlines, Delta
was in trouble by the mid-2000s. Squeezed by higher fuel prices and disrupters
like JetBlue and Southwest, it was forced to file for bankruptcy. But after
renegotiating union contracts and expanding its fleet with used planes instead
of costly new ones, among other things, Delta once again took flight. In 2013,
120.4 million passengers boarded Delta planes—more than any other airline.
Sometimes too much
success can mean trouble. In the 2000sStarbucks overexpanded, diluting profits and damaging the brand
(not every corner needs a Starbucks). By late 2008 net income had fallen
dramatically, cutting the stock price in half. A look at how Starbucks
CEO Howard Schultz turned things around:
1. CUT THE LOSSES
Schultz decided to
shut down 900 underperforming stores, which reduced staffing and leasing costs.
That also allowed him to invest more in the Starbucks outlets that had been
working the best.
2. FIX THE EXPERIENCE
In 2008, Schultz
closed all 7,100 U.S. Starbucks stores for three hours to retrain baristas in
the art of pulling espresso. He did away with automatic machines and introduced
a retooled house coffee, Pike Place.
3. BE MORE WELCOMING
Encouraging customers
to take a seat, Schultz introduced free Wi-Fi at all Starbucks locations in
2010. In 2014, stores began upgrades to wireless Powermat charging stations for
mobile devices. No more plug hunting!
BY FAST
COMPANY STAFF
http://www.fastcompany.com/3042431/meme/the-biggest-business-comebacks-of-the-past-20-years
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