Companies you can't see ever going under.

[PollyPepper]

Yesterday DH and I got a McDonald's. What an absolute treat.

And I started wondering if McDonald's will ever go bust.

It seems so unlikely, though of course it is possible as with any other business.

Mcdonalsa are in 120 countries around the world and serve 68 million customers each day!!

I honestly think it could be exposed that they use human meat and people would still go there.

I suppose Amazon as well?

All it takes though is a better and bigger competitor to take them down, but at this stage I just don't see it ever happening.

AIBU?

Coca Cola will never die

Ohh yes coca cola is a good one.
I think the closest they got was when they changed the recipe a while back, huge uproar and they swiftly put it back.
They have survived some very big controversies (weren't they the owners of Dasani water?) and still lived to tell the tale.

I don't think ASDA would go bust either.

WH Smiths!! I'm not conspiracy nut but they must have good dirt on someone because by all accounts they should have died a death decades ago. I know they have a good airport and train station presence and they are common in hospitals but I simply don't comprehend how they are still operating on the high street.

When the apocalypse comes I predict all that will be left is a McDonald's hamburger, roaches and bloody WH Smiths.

You might be right but then attitudes do shift over time. It's not inconceivable to imagine that the majority of people are vegan in 150 years time and McDonalds didn't keep up with the pace of change.

Maybe everyone will be going to hoverboard thru Greggs for vegan sausage rolls?

McDonalds aren’t daft. They would adapt to a changing market if necessary. They already sell different products to cater for local preferences in different countries.

It’s hard to imagine Amazon going, also Ikea, Tesco and Primark.

@PegPeople WHSmiths definitely has some dirt on someone.

Whsmith and Woolworths were my favourite shops as a child. I still miss Woolworths a bit although other shops have filled most of the gap, however WHSmith is flipping awful, and I’d be pleased to see it go.

Will M&S ever go? I don’t really know who shops there, but someone must do

W H Smith only really keeps going because of its hold on the airports I believe and so it is struggling.

[quote PollyPepper]@PegPeople WHSmiths definitely has some dirt on someone.[/quote]
I'm glad to see some support for my theories. I'm honestly awestruck they are still around.

The dirt must be bloody good though as all the stores I walk past look cluttered, dark and unchanged since the 90s. So they certainly don't seem to see any need to keep up with other big names.

I'd be devastated if WH Smith went under.

I love this shop, and no shopping trip is complete without going into our closest store.

I'd be lost without it.

@zukiecat

I'd be devastated if WH Smith went under.

I love this shop, and no shopping trip is complete without going into our closest store.

I'd be lost without it.

Really? I'm genuinely curious as to why it's such an integral shop for you.

I seriously cannot think of anything they sell that's not cheaper elsewhere or stocked in another retailer except for possibly some speciality magazines.

@PegPeople

WH Smiths!! I'm not conspiracy nut but they must have good dirt on someone because by all accounts they should have died a death decades ago. I know they have a good airport and train station presence and they are common in hospitals but I simply don't comprehend how they are still operating on the high street.

When the apocalypse comes I predict all that will be left is a McDonald's hamburger, roaches and bloody WH Smiths.

I agree. I'm also mystified by the continued survival of The Body Shop. My local branch is always empty.

I can also foresee M&S going along with most high street retailers to be honest. Shopping habits are changing so rapidly I can't imagine many bricks and mortar shops will be around in their current format in 20 odd years and think the few that remain will just be 'show rooms' for people who want to see items in the flesh but all transactions will be online.

I agree McDonalds will never die!

I remember ages ago a poster on here describing WH Smith as like a cockroach in a nuclear winter. It still makes me chuckle.

I can't see Apple going anywhere anytime soon.
Tesco and Asda I would say are pretty safe. Sainsbury's possibly less so.

Boots - now Debenhams have gone, HoF and John Lewis have scaled back where else will I go for a decent beauty hall!

Ohhhh yes Apple, of course.

I guess anything is possible though.

30 years ago the Internet was a glint in most of ours eyes, yet has swiped out those on the high street that can't keep up (blockbusters etc)

Greggs! I don't think they will ever cease trading

Disney

Dynorod.

@ColinSupporter

Dynorod.

Really? They're owned by Centrica...aka owners of British Gas.

Although they're a franchise model like McDonalds so could be immune to what else is happening across the wider company.

I don't think any company is fireproof anymore, it'll be interesting to see how different the landscape will be in 10 years time. My daughter is still agog that Netflix used to send DVDs in the post and that Nokia once ruled the mobile phone market (although to be fair those old Nokia phones are probably still capable of doing the job, they were actually indestructible!)

Yes I think a company like McDonald's or Coca Cola could easily be left behind in a rapid market shift against sugar, meat, processed foods in general, if the market changed and they didn't react in time. Even though McDonald's have been serving salads and coffee for ages, that's not what you associate them with is it? It's still burgers and ice cream. And even though they have updated their decor, it's definitely not considered upmarket. Perhaps there will always be a place for cheap predictable food and they will find a way to adapt but I could easily see shifts happening that meant they did not.

Think about Kodak back in the 90s - you never would have imagined that they would be gone, would you? But they didn't keep up with the change to digital photography, and therefore they became obsolete. Once film became a niche product, their brand recognition counted for nothing.

Amazon has already hugely changed their business model. They barely make any of their money from internet sales any more but more from web and image hosting. So the site could indeed go.

Also people are moving away from platforms like Amazon the more they become flooded with cheap imported goods. I find it hard to trust products I'm not already familiar with on there now, and they aren't always (or even often) the cheapest any more if you're sticking to brands you trust.

“Really? They're owned by Centrica...aka owners of British Gas.“

It was semi in jest. I think it’ll remain an industry with a good market (along with most building/trades) but I don’t know much about the company itself.

WH Smiths!! I'm not conspiracy nut but they must have good dirt on someone
Either that or its baffling business model based entirely on selling half price bars of galaxy is so wrong it's actually genius

Amazon