Defunct Brands of the 2010s

The 2010s were especially hard on legacy brands. E-commerce pressure, streaming, mobile-first habits, and major retail bankruptcies reshaped which brands survived.

This archive groups brands by the decade when they vanished, were discontinued, or otherwise became defunct. It provides a broader view of how industries, shopping habits, and consumer tastes changed over time.

32 brands Retail: 5Software/Internet: 3Food/CPG: 2
  • Retail bankruptcies and mall decline
  • Streaming and digital disruption
  • Legacy brands losing to platform-driven competition

Common categories in the 2010s

Retail (5)Software/Internet (3)Food/CPG (2)Mobile devices (2)Consumer Products/Beauty (2)

Browse vanished brands from the 2010s

  • American Apparel

    1989–2017 Retail

    Vertically integrated basics label famed for "Made in USA" production and provocative marketing; the original company went through two…

  • AOL Instant Messenger

    1997–2017 Software/Internet

    AOL’s pioneering instant-messaging service (Buddy List, away messages) launched in 1997 and shut down in 2017.

  • Apple Newtons

    late 1980s–2010s (discontinued) Food/CPG

    A Nabisco/Newtons line extension that swapped fig for apple-cinnamon filling inside the familiar soft cake cookie. Apple Newtons had d…

  • Best Buy Mobile

    2007–2018 Retail

    Standalone mall stores closed in 2018; mobile departments continued inside full-line Best Buy stores.

  • BlackBerry legacy OS phones

    1999–2016 Mobile devices

    QWERTY-keyboard smartphones built on BlackBerry OS/BB10 defined secure mobile email in the 2000s; hardware was wound down by 2016, wit…

  • Blockbuster Video

    1985–2014 Retail/Entertainment

    Once the dominant video-rental chain, Blockbuster collapsed amid debt, streaming disruption, and Redbox competition; corporate stores…

  • Bonne Bell

    1927–2015 Consumer Products/Beauty

    American cosmetics company best known for Lip Smacker flavored lip balms that became a cultural phenomenon among teenage girls from th…

  • Borders

    1971–2011 Retail

    Ann Arbor–born bookseller that popularized the big-box bookstore; filed for bankruptcy in 2011 and liquidated after falling behind e-c…

  • Fish with Attitude

    2012–2014 Games/Mobile Apps

    Free-to-play mobile aquarium game by Crowdstar where players collected fish with different moods and personalities. Fish with Attitude…

  • Four Loko (Original Caffeinated Formula)

    2005–2010 Alcoholic Beverages

    Caffeinated alcoholic energy drink containing 12% alcohol, caffeine, taurine, and guarana in a 23.5 oz can. Became infamous for emerge…

  • Freshen-Up (gum)

    1975–2019 Confectionery/Gum

    Introduced in 1975 by American Chicle (later Adams/Cadbury Adams), Freshen-Up was a liquid-center chewing gum sold in Peppermint, Spea…

  • Hollywood Video

    1988–2010 Retail/Video Rental

    **Hollywood Video** grew into the No. 2 U.S. video-rental chain through the 1990s, competing head-to-head with Blockbuster on big-box…

  • Hubba Bubba Bubble Jug

    1990–2012 Confectionery/Candy

    Hubba Bubba’s powdered-to-chew gum sold in a tiny plastic jug. The candy-like crystals transformed into bubble gum when a person chewe…

  • Jane Cosmetics

    1995–2012 Consumer Products/Beauty

    Affordable cosmetics brand launched in 1995 targeting teenage girls with trendy, accessible makeup sold at drugstores. Became the firs…

  • Jolt Cola

    1985–2010 Beverages/Soft Drinks

    High-caffeine cola launched in 1985 with "All the sugar and twice the caffeine" — the drink that invented the energy drink category be…

  • Kodak Theatre of Dreams (Kodak cameras note brand exists)

    1888–2012 Consumer electronics

    Kodak filed for bankruptcy in 2012; many consumer lines discontinued; company restructured.

  • LEGO Universe

    2010–2012 Video games

    LEGO Universe was a family-friendly MMO developed by NetDevil and published by LEGO that ran from October 2010 to January 2012. It att…

  • Mt. Gox

    2010–2014 Finance/Cryptocurrency

    Lost 850,000 bitcoin in 2014 hack, still in bankruptcy

  • Orkut

    2004–2014 Software/Internet

    **Orkut** was Google’s first major social network, launched in **2004** and wildly popular in **Brazil** and **India**. It centered on…

  • Palm

    1992–2011 Mobile devices

    Palm was a pioneering handheld computing company known for the PalmPilot, Treo, and Palm Pre. Founded in 1992, it became one of the de…

  • Pebble

    2012–2016 Wearables

    Pebble was a smartwatch company founded in 2012 that became famous for a Kickstarter campaign that raised over $10 million, making it…

  • Pet Society

    2008–2013 Games/Social Media

    Pet Society was a virtual pet game on Facebook made by Playfish, a London-based studio. It launched in August 2008 and became one of t…

  • Restaurant City

    2009–2012 Video games and consoles

    Restaurant City was a social restaurant simulation game created by Playfish for Facebook. It entered public beta on April 28, 2009 and…

  • Ritz Camera

    1918–2012 Retail/Photography

    Ritz Camera was a camera and photo store chain founded in 1918 by David Ritz. For most of its history the business was built on sellin…

  • Sears (Canada)

    1952–2018 Retail

    Sears Canada began in 1952 as a joint venture between the Canadian retailer Simpsons and the American company Sears, Roebuck. For deca…

  • Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash

    2006–2016 Beverages/Non-alcoholic

    Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash was a holiday version of Sierra Mist that PepsiCo released each fall starting around 2006. It was bright…

  • Theranos

    2003–2018 Healthcare/Diagnostics

    Blood-testing startup that promised hundreds of tests from a finger-prick; unraveled after accuracy and regulatory failures led to shu…

  • Toys "R" Us

    1948–2018 Retail

    Toys R Us was a chain of large toy stores that started in 1948 in Washington D.C. The stores were famous for their huge selection of t…

  • Wet Seal

    1962–2017 Retail/Apparel

    Wet Seal was a clothing store chain for teenage girls and young women. It started in California in 1962 as a small surf shop and grew…

  • Yahoo! Messenger

    1998–2018 Software/Internet

    Yahoo! Messenger was a free chat program that millions of people used between 1998 and 2018. You could send messages to friends, see w…

  • Yogos

    2005–2010 Food/CPG

    Yogos were a kids' snack made by Kellogg's in the mid-2000s. They were small chewy fruit pieces with a sweet yogurt-flavored coating o…

  • Zune

    2006–2012 Consumer electronics/MP3 Players

    Zune was Microsoft's digital media brand spanning portable players, desktop software, an online marketplace, and the Zune Pass subscri…

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Frequently Asked Questions

How are brands assigned to the 2010s?

Brands are grouped primarily by the year they ended, disappeared, or were discontinued. Some were founded earlier, but are listed under the 2010s if that is when they became defunct.

What types of brands are included?

The 2010s archive includes retail brands, consumer products, food and drink names, technology brands, media properties, and other vanished brands from the decade.