Bankrupt retailers find second lives through brand revival and digital reinvention
By
Daniel Kline
Summary
This article examines the phenomenon of once-bankrupt retail brands being revived by new owners who leverage their nostalgic brand equity. It covers major retailers like Circuit City, Toys R Us, Lord & Taylor, Sharper Image, FAO Schwarz, American Apparel, and The Limited that have closed physical stores, gone through bankruptcy, and re-emerged as digital retailers, product lines, or with new store concepts. The piece explores how brand loyalty and childhood nostalgia create value that investors can capitalize on, the challenges of reviving a dead brand, and the mixed success rates of these resurrection attempts. It includes perspectives from industry analysts on why brand equity persists even after a company's operational demise.
Source
bskyBankrupt retailers find second lives through brand revival and digital reinventionbit.lyKey quotes
· 3 pulledThere are millions of people who had purchased these brands, who grew up with some of these brands. That equity means someone buying the brand out of bankruptcy, or some other crisis, can have instant name recognition for a different venture - be it a label or e-tailer or catalog company.
The brand is not the business. The brand is the name and the logo and the equity that goes with it. The business is the stores, the supply chain, the employees, the real estate. When a retailer fails, the business dies, but the brand can live on.
Reviving a dead brand is not for the faint of heart. You're trying to bring back something that failed once already, and consumers are skeptical. But if you can tap into that nostalgia in the right way, there's real opportunity.
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