Think comebacks are the preserve of sports stars and celebrities? Think again. The most impressive revivals of recent years have come courtesy of a handful of big-name brands that went from boom to bust and back to boom again.
From Apple to Marvel, read on to discover the brands that went to the brink and remarkably bounced back.
All dollar amounts in US dollars
In the late 2000s, Old Spice was looking decidedly dated and seriously uncool. The classic Procter & Gamble brand was being shunned by younger people and losing its market share to upstarts like Unilever's Axe (known as Lynx in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand).
Alarmed by decreasing sales and negative feedback, Procter & Gamble set itself the task of making Old Spice cool, relevant, and desirable for young men. No mean feat.
The conglomerate got the ball rolling by bringing in top ad agency Wieden+Kennedy to shake things up. In 2008, the agency rebranded the flagging Glacial Falls deodorant as Swagger, creating a witty interactive ad campaign to market it.
The result? Sales of the deodorant soared.
In 2010, Wieden+Kennedy was hired by Procter & Gamble yet again and came up with the "Smell like a Man" campaign, another resounding success that boosted sales of the Old Spice bodywash range. Since then, Procter & Gamble has commissioned a series of surreal viral marketing campaigns that have further cemented the brand's appeal among millennials.
No longer a failing brand, Old Spice has regained its market share, and then some. According to the most recent data from Statista, for example, 23% of American deodorant users favoured Old Spice in 2022, while brand awareness hit 77% in the UK in the same year.
Smartphone cameras almost spelled the end for Polaroid as a brand. The original instant photography company, founded in 1938, went bankrupt in 2001.
It was resurrected that same year but declared bankruptcy again in 2008 – and went through a whopping six CEOs in an effort to turn its fortunes around.
When the last Polaroid factory closed in 2008, a group of Dutch instant photography enthusiasts bought the production facility from the company and began producing instant film, calling their endeavour the Impossible Project. A new incarnation of Polaroid was created in 2010.
Staying true to its heritage while embracing the latest tech, the company roped in Lady Gaga as creative director and licensed a series of digital products including action cameras and iPhone-compatible portable printers. Things were looking up...
In 2012, the Impossible Project teamed up with the new Polaroid to launch Polaroid Originals, a range of heritage-inspired cameras and film that harked back to the glory days of the brand. It came at a time when millennials were embracing instant photography, and sales surged as a result.
In 2018, Polaroid marked its 80th anniversary with the launch of the OneStep 2. The analogue instant camera with 21st-century tweaks has been selling like hotcakes since its release, and Polaroid is finally back on top. Analysis from Verified Market Reports suggests the business could have a market size of $5.64 billion (£4.4bn) by 2030. Not bad for a brand that was close to death just a few years ago.
The 2000s was a nightmare decade for General Motors. By 2005, the firm, which dates back to 1908, was losing billions of dollars a year and reported record losses of $38.7 billion in 2007. That's the equivalent of over $58 billion (£45bn) in 2024. To make matters worse, the financial crisis of 2008 pretty much finished off the company, with GM being dragged down by underperforming marques such as Pontiac, Hummer and Saturn.
At rock bottom, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2009 and laid off thousands of workers. Concerned about the loss of even more American jobs and billions of dollars in tax revenue should the company go under, the US Government came to the rescue...
The Obama Administration provided $66.7 billion in bailout money to save GM, the equivalent of almost $100 billion (£78bn) today.
The reorganised company ditched its underperforming marques to focus on bestsellers such as Chevrolet and Buick, sold Saab to Dutch automaker Spyker, and went public to raise more cash.
Within a year, GM had returned to profitability. Since then, the firm has posted record profits despite several scandals, including the massive recall of faulty ignition switches in 2014.
Though the COVID-19 pandemic threw the entire auto industry into disarray, GM has managed to bounce back yet again, reporting revenues of $171.8 billion (£134bn) last year.
Marvel was in dire straits in the 1990s. Broke and drowning in debt, the comic book company had released just one movie with Universal Pictures, 1986's Howard the Duck, which was a total flop. Meanwhile, potential money-spinners such as Spider-Man were stuck in development.
The comic book crash of 1993 plunged the firm into even more debt. In December 1996, Marvel filed for bankruptcy and merged with toy company ToyBiz. A series of failed ventures followed, including an ill-fated themed restaurant named Marvel Mania.
Marvel responded by licensing its characters to the major movie studios. New Line Cinema snapped up the rights for Blade, Fox secured X-Men, and Sony opted for Spider-Man. However, Marvel made a pittance from these deals, including a paltry $25,000 for the first Blade movie, the equivalent of just under $50,000 (£39k) in 2024 money.
Let down by Hollywood, Marvel made the risky decision to go it alone. In 2005, the board arranged $525 million ($845m/£660m today) in funding from Merrill Lynch, using the rights to its characters as collateral, and Marvel Studios was born.
Marvel's first in-house movie, 2008's Iron Man, was a box office success, grossing $585 million ($854m/£665m today), and the company was acquired by Disney in 2009 for $4 billion ($5.8bn/£4.5bn today).
Since then, Marvel has released more than 40 films, including the box office smashes Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War. Both Captain Marvel and Avengers: End Game broke box office records in 2019, while its latest release, Deadpool & Wolverine, has grossed over $1.3 billion (£1bn) worldwide.
Danish toy giant Lego was up against an almost insurmountable brick wall during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Sales had slumped by 40% and the company was nearly $1 billion in debt, the equivalent of around $2 billion (£1.6bn) in today's money. Losing market share to rivals like Hasbro and Mattel, the firm wasn't profitable and its over-complicated kits were selling at a loss.
Lego had responded to the downturn with a failed attempt at diversifying – think theme parks that cost a fortune to build but provided little revenue, a money pit video games company, and a litany of doomed ventures that included a tacky jewellery range aimed at girls.
In 2004, new CEO Jørgen Vig Knudstorp made it his mission to rebuild the brand, brick by brick. The dynamic executive took Lego back to basics, slashing the number of bricks by half to 6,500, and selling off the Legoland theme parks, video games company, and just about everything that wasn't 100% integral to the core of the business.
The new boss even hired child psychologists to work with younger enthusiasts to develop new toys and brought in adult Lego fans (known as AFOLs) as consultants. This pared-down, customer-centred approach resulted in popular new Lego lines such as Ninjago and Lego Architecture.
Sales began to flourish. Lego's profits tripled in the late 2000s and, buoyed on by the awesomely successful Lego Movie franchise, turnover increased by an impressive 50% from 2013 to 2016 to hit $5.1 billion ($6.7bn/£5.2bn today), making Lego the world's largest toy manufacturer.
The brand has since gone from strength to strength. In 2023, the brand was valued at $13 billion (£10bn) and it remains the most valuable toy brand on the planet.
Back in 1996, Apple was rotten to the core and teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. Poorly managed, the tech company had a severe cash shortage, an overabundance of substandard, lacklustre products, and an operating system that had seen better days.
That same year, unsung hero Gil Amelio was appointed CEO. The new boss cut costs, developed a killer OS and brought back Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, who had been fired by the Apple board in 1985. Jobs took over as CEO in 1997.
Jobs secured a $150 million ($294m/£229m today) investment from arch-rival Microsoft, which returned the company to liquidity. He went high-end, slimmed down the product line and hired industrial designer Jony Ive, who developed the iconic minimal Apple look.
Suddenly, everyone wanted to own an Apple product.
With Steve Jobs at the helm, Apple cemented its reputation as a beacon of innovation, introducing game-changers such as iTunes, the iPod, and the iPhone and garnering legions of fans. Needless to say, the company's revenues skyrocketed. By 2011, the year of Jobs' untimely death, Apple – which had become the world's most valuable firm – was turning over an eye-watering $108.2 billion, the equivalent of over $150 billion (£117bn) in 2024.
In August 2020, the publicly-traded company became the first in the US to hit a market value of $2 trillion (£1.56tn). Today, Apple is valued at over $3 trillion (£2.3tn).
Shocked to see Converse on the list? Not many people know that the popular shoe brand filed for bankruptcy in 2001. Converse was worn by all major basketball players in the 1970s and 1980s, influencing teens and kids everywhere. Then came competition from rival brands and huge price increases, which saw the shoe fade from popularity.
It all went downhill in the 1990s when new rivals from brands including Adidas, Puma, Reebok, and Nike were introduced to the shoe market and worn by up-and-coming popular sports stars. Converse, it would seem, had lost its footing.
By 2000, the once-popular brand had annual revenues of just $205 million ($374m/£291m today) and debts of over $200 million ($365m/£284m today). The following year, the company filed for bankruptcy. It would take another two years before a solution was found – and that solution, surprisingly, was Nike.
Nike paid $309 million for the brand in 2003, the equivalent of around $528 million (£411m) in 2024 money, and a whole new marketing strategy was created. While in the past, Converse was marketed towards those who played sports, other brands such as Adidas and Reebok had found success by marketing their shoes for everyone. Deciding to follow suit, Converse adopted a new brand strategy, and things started to look up.
Converse turned things around by creating new and exciting designs, successful global campaigns, and huge celebrity collaborations, including one with Snoop Dogg.
Back from the brink and debts paid off, Converse is sharp-shooting again, achieving annual revenues of over $2 billion (£1.6bn) every year since 2021.
Delta Air Lines is one of America’s oldest airlines but it's probably best known for going bankrupt in 2005. Rising fuel prices and cheaper airlines hit Delta where it hurt and between 2001 and 2005 the airline lost $12.3 billion, the equivalent of almost $20 billion (£15.7bn) today.
Things were set to get even worse. The airline began its restructuring plan in 2004 in a bid to avoid bankruptcy. The plan failed, and its debt was revealed to be an eye-watering $28.27 billion ($47bn/£37bn today). Delta had no choice but to file for bankruptcy in 2005, cutting 26% of its flights and laying off staff members.
Delta implemented a new restructuring plan during its 19-month bankruptcy period. This included reducing non-union workers' salaries by a 9% minimum (14% for pilots), laying off between 7,000 and 9,000 employees, rejecting US Airways Group's proposed takeover and merger, and cutting costs wherever it could.
The plan was approved by a judge and Delta emerged from bankruptcy in 2007 before merging with Northwest Airlines in 2008, but keeping its name.
Despite the recession in 2008, which saw the airline lose $8.9 billion ($13bn/£10bn today), Delta returned to its former glory and made a profit of $5.1 billion ($6.4bn/£5bn today) in 2018. Compared to the $71 million it made in 2007, this is proof that with a change of direction, it's possible for a company to take flight again.
Fast-forward to 2024, and Delta is reportedly the world's most valuable airline brand with a valuation of $10.8 billion (£8.4bn).
Levi Strauss and Co. is living proof that business is risky. Founded in 1853, the popular clothing brand retreated from the public stock market in 1985 after closing around 60 manufacturing outlets, mainly due to poor sales and increased competition.
The company was also accused of turning a blind eye to sweatshop practices at some of its factories on the island of Saipan, a case which it ultimately won.
By 2004, Levi’s was in debt to the tune of $2.6 billion, the equivalent of over $4 billion (£3.1bn) today.
But despite all of this, Levi’s managed to turn things around. Through signing a business deal with Walmart from 2002 until 2006, focusing more on male products, and cutting down on marketing costs, Levi’s achieved sales of over $4 billion ($6bn/£4.7bn today) by 2007.
By 2016, the company had a successful deal with the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers and a new CEO. Three years later, Levi's was back on the stock market, and today, the once-struggling brand has a market cap of $7.25 billion (£5.6bn).
Married couple Donald and Doris Fisher (pictured) founded clothing brand The Gap in 1969, after Donald failed to find a pair of Levi's jeans that fit. The first store opened on Ocean Avenue in San Francisco and sold men's Levi's jeans alongside records and tapes.
The Fishers opened a second location the following year, and by 1973, they had 25 stores. From there, the business went from strength to strength, expanding internationally and acquiring fellow clothing brands Old Navy, Banana Republic, and Athleta.
It seemed impossible that this stalwart of the high street – which had partnered with celebrities including Madonna and Missy Elliot – could fail. But by the 2000s, The Gap was becoming decidedly uncool; in fact, its value declined by 5% every year from 2008, according to MarketingWeek in 2021.
No doubt compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic, the business was forced to close all its UK locations and around 200 of its US stores as sales plummeted.
But is The Gap regaining its street cred? According to its latest earnings reports, the business has made a staggering comeback since the appointment of Richard Dickson (pictured) as CEO. A former Mattel employee credited with revitalising the Barbie brand, Dickson has steered the company towards a 3% year-on-year increase in revenue, driven by a 3% increase in in-store sales and a 5% increase in online sales.
The Gap is now predicted to see growth of 23.69% by next year, so watch this space...
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