Historic R.H. Macy & Co. storefront contrasted with the modern Macy’s red star logo, illustrating the evolution of the department store’s name.
Was Macy’s Always Called Macy’s? The Hidden History of an American Icon
Macy’s began as a modest 1850s shop called R.H. Macy & Co.—and nearly changed names several times. Here’s how the brand survived 175 years of upheaval. Read more...
Bags of coffee labeled as Kona being tested in a laboratory for trace-element authenticity, highlighting the global Kona coffee fraud investigation.
The Kona Coffee Scam: A Deep Investigation Into One of Coffee’s Biggest Frauds
Kona coffee is one of the world’s rarest beans—so why did the market sell far more than Hawaii could produce? A forensic dive into a global coffee scandal. Read more...
The Fashion Brand with Unreadable Labels — and the Founder Who Vanished
The Fashion Brand with Unreadable Labels — and the Founder Who Vanished
A 2016 fashion label went viral by selling garments tagged with a language no one could read. The brand collapsed when the mysterious founder disappeared. Read more...
Empty abandoned battery research lab after company vanished — 100-year cell mystery
The Battery Maker That Promised 100-Year Cells—Then Vanished Overnight
A mysterious company promised rechargeable cells that could last a century. Then came the patent withdrawals, the empty lab, and the founders who slipped out of sight. Read more...
Indestructible vintage toy parts made from anomalous polymer material, representing Starline’s mysterious “extraterrestrial” plastics.
The Toy Company with “Extraterrestrial Plastics”: Inside Starline’s Vanishing Act
Starline Toys produced incredibly durable plastics with no identifiable source, then suddenly disappeared. Their material remains untraceable. Read more...
Packaging in a vivid trademark-style yellow color beside trademark paperwork, echoing the attempt to patent the color yellow.
The Fruit Company That Tried to Patent Yellow: A Near-Precedent in Color Ownership
Golden Sun Produce once tried to claim legal ownership of a signature shade of yellow. The case almost set a precedent before regulators intervened. Read more...
Vintage SolarTone-style radio on a mid-century table, representing the rise and unexplained disappearance of the brand.
How SolarTone Radios Rose, and Vanished: The Household Brand That Left No Trail
SolarTone radios filled mid-century homes, then vanished without a bankruptcy trail. Historians still puzzle over how a national brand left so little evidence. Read more...
Closed Tower Records store with iconic yellow-and-red signage, symbolizing the company’s collapse.
How Tower Records Fell: Inside the Collapse of a Music Retail Icon
Tower Records grew into a global music empire before collapsing under heavy debt and rapid digital disruption. Its fall marked the end of a physical-music era. Read more...
Closed American Apparel store with empty interior, symbolizing the company’s retail collapse.
Inside the American Apparel Collapse: How a Retail Giant Fell Apart
American Apparel’s fall was a mix of leadership scandal, unsustainable costs, and changing retail trends. Its collapse reshaped how the industry views “ethical” fast fashion. Read more...
Sharper Image store interior with futuristic gadgets on display, contrasted with a closed empty store representing the retailer’s bankruptcy.
Sharper Image Bankruptcy: How a Gadget Empire Collapsed
Sharper Image once dominated futuristic gadget retail, but one failed product — and shifting consumer habits — pushed the company into a rapid 2008 bankruptcy. Read more...
Interior of a CompUSA store during its peak, contrasted with a closed and empty location representing the chain’s disappearance.
CompUSA’s Disappearance: How the Tech Superstore Collapsed
CompUSA defined early computer shopping but failed to adapt as online retail and big-box competitors surged. Its disappearance was gradual but inevitable. Read more...
Vintage Borders bookstore interior contrasted with a closed, empty location representing the company’s rise and fall.
Borders Books: How the Retail Giant Fell
Borders revolutionized the bookstore experience before losing ground to Amazon, e-books, and market shifts. Its 2011 collapse remains a defining retail lesson. Read more...