Defunct Brands in the 1990s

Brands here are grouped by their most relevant year in the 1990s (we prefer the year a brand ended; if unknown, we use the start year).

17 brands in this decade

• Almost Home Cookies (Nabisco) (early 1980s–mid-1990s) • Discontinued sometime in the 1990s after the soft cookie segment cooled and Nabisco paid $52.9 million to settle a patent infringement suit brought by Procter and Gamble. The exact year of discontinuation is not documented in available sources. Food/Snacks
• Carnation Breakfast Bars (1975–1997) • Original line discontinued in 1997. Carnational Breakfast Essentials introduced in 2014 and discontinued in 2020 Food & Beverage
• Cisco Fortified Wine (1980–1991) • Reformulated from 20% alcohol content to 13.9% after public health in 1991 Alcoholic Beverages
• Eastern Air Lines (1926–1991) • Ceased original operations after years of financial strain, labor conflict, deregulation-era pressure, and the fallout from Texas Air ownership. The Eastern name has since been revived by later, separate operators. Aviation
• Hostess TMNT Turtle Pies (1991–1991) • Limited-time tie-in discontinued after short 1991 run Food/Snacks
• Kinney Shoes (1894–1998) • Closed, even as athletic speciality banners like Foot Locker continued under the corporate successor Retail
• McDonald's Szechuan Sauce (1998–1998) • Limited-time promotional condiment for Disney’s Mulan that was sporadically reissued in 2017–2018 and again in 2022 as short-run promos. Food/Condiments
• Pan Am (1927–1991) • Filed Chapter 11 in 1991 and ceased operations on Dec 4, 1991 amid losses, asset sales, and a failed reorganization. Aviation
• Snapple Whipper Snapple (1998–1999) • Whipper Snapple launched in spring 1998 and sold well enough to win trade awards in its first year. New flavors were added in 1999. The line was phased out in the early 2000s as the market for shelf-stable smoothies cooled off. Beverages/Non-alcoholic
• SoBe (South Beach Beverage Co.) (1995–Present (limited US availability)) • PepsiCo bought SoBe in 2000. Over the following two decades most of its flavors were quietly discontinued. The brand technically still exists under PepsiCo but has very limited availability in the US. Beverages/Soft Drinks
• Star Wars Episode I Pepsi Collection (1999–1999) • The promotion ran only during the summer of 1999 to coincide with The Phantom Menace. When the campaign ended, the cans stopped being made. Full sets and unopened cases became collector items. Beverage/Promotions
• Talkboy (1992–late 1990s) • Tiger Electronics stopped making Talkboys in the late 1990s as cassette tapes went out of use and digital gadgets took over. Tiger Electronics was bought by Hasbro in 1998. Toys/Games
• Woolworth (US) (1879–1997) • The last American Woolworth stores closed in July 1997. The company changed its name to Venator Group and later became Foot Locker, Inc., which still runs shoe stores today. Retail
• Yamaha RX100 (1985–1996) • Yamaha stopped making the RX100 in 1996 because new pollution rules in India meant the engine design could no longer be sold legally. The bike became a collector's item over the years. In 2024, Yamaha brought the RX100 name back with a brand new motorcycle that has a different kind of engine. Motorcycles/Automotive
• Zandar (G.I. Joe action figure) (1986–1990s (feature retired)) • The color-change feature was dropped in the 1990s because the plastic wore out too easily. Zandar is still part of the G.I. Joe toy line today, but the newer versions look different from the original 1986 figure. Toys/Games
• Zarana (G.I. Joe action figure) (1986–1990s (feature retired)) • The color-change feature was dropped in the 1990s because the plastic wore out too easily. Zarana is still part of the G.I. Joe toy line today, but the newer versions look different from the original 1986 figure. Toys/Games
• Zartan (G.I. Joe action figure) (1984–1990s (feature retired)) • The color-change feature stopped being made in the 1990s because the plastic did not hold up well over time. Zartan is still sold as a G.I. Joe toy today, but the newer ones look different from the original 1984 version. Toys/Games