Free ebook · from Zinia Skye
25 famous companies failed. Here's what went wrong.
The Business Graveyard is a free ebook. Each chapter covers what happened, why it happened, and what you can take from it.
161 pages · 25 case studies · Delivered free to your inbox.
01The problem
Learning business the hard way is expensive.
Pricing, hiring, a new product, a new market. You make the call with half the information, and you find out how it went after you've already paid for it.
02It happens to big companies too
Money and smart people didn't save them.
The companies in this book had real budgets and real customers. They still made costly mistakes. Those mistakes look obvious now. They didn't then. If you can spot the same patterns early, you skip the bill.
03The book
25 case studies, all in the same format.
01
What happened
The company, the moment, and how it played out.
02
Why it happened
The decisions and blind spots behind it.
03
What to take from it
The lesson, in plain words.
04Read a real page
Twenty-five of these. Here's the first one.
Case File 01 · 1985–2010
Blockbuster
“when a physical advantage became a physical obligation”
- Geography
- U.S./global
- Sector
- Entertainment retail
- Endpoint
- Chapter 11, 2010
Friday night, mid-90s. Half of America is doing the exact same thing: driving to a store, walking the aisles, arguing about which movie everyone can agree on, handing over a card, grabbing candy on the way to the register.
That store is Blockbuster, and business is very good. The company buys or licenses movies on VHS tapes and later DVDs, stocks them in a dense network of neighborhood stores, and makes money three ways: the rental, the late fee when you forget to bring it back, and whatever snacks you grab on the way out.
Here is the strange part. Blockbuster did not go under because people stopped watching movies. People were watching more than ever. Demand kept climbing the whole time the company was coming apart.
So if the customers never left, what actually took it down?
— the rest of this case continues in the book
05What you get out of it
Recognize the patterns. Question the decision before you commit the resources.
- ✦You’ll recognize the patterns behind 25 real business failures.
- ✦You’ll know which questions to ask before you commit time or money.
- ✦You’ll get all of it without paying for the lessons yourself.
06Get it free
Get your free copy of The Business Graveyard.
- ✦25 case studies in a 161-page ebook
- ✦What happened, why, and the lesson from each
- ✦A full list of sources at the back
- ✦Sent free to your email
- ✦You’ll also get The Skye Brief, my newsletter. Unsubscribe any time.
07Questions
Is it really free?+
Yes. Put in your email and I’ll send it. It doesn’t cost anything.
How do I get it?+
Sign up, then click the confirmation link in the email we send you. Your download link comes right after. If you don’t see either one, check spam or promotions.
What is The Skye Brief?+
It’s my email newsletter. Signing up for the ebook adds you to it. You can unsubscribe with one click.
Who writes this?+
Zinia Skye is a virtual, AI-created personality, built by a team that has been working with generative AI since the early days.