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The Great Fail — Business
The Great Fail

The Great Fail is a true crime inspired, business podcast that examines the greatest success stories of the most prominent and prolific companies, brands, and people and what led to their demise. If you love true crime and stories of massive failures, you’ve come to the right place! Here we take a forensic look at stories that will irk you, shock you, and have you picking your jaw up off the floor, all while learning the oftentimes avoidable, mistakes that have ended the lives of companies and left boardrooms looking like crime scenes.

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Latest Episodes:

Episode 10: Adapt or Die: The Fall of Tower Records May 19, 2020

Show notes

For over 4 decades, Tower Records was a pioneer in the music industry and the bedrock of record store culture. It was run by rebels and outsiders, where founder Russ Solomon was revered and idolized. Tower would become the mecca for music fans creating a generation that lived by their diehard slogan, “No Music, No Life”. For decades, it seemed like the sun would never set on the iconic yellow and red letters that illuminated so many urban cityscapes. But that light would eventually burn out...

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Episode 9: A Fatal Flop: The U.S. COVID-19 Testing Debacle Apr 29, 2020

Show notes

On January 10, 2020, Chinese scientists posted the genome of a strange new virus that was beginning to spread worldwide. Within a week, virologists from Berlin quickly developed the first diagnostic test to detect this novel coronavirus and was published by the World Health Organization as the standard method to quickly test people around the world. By February, these test kits were shipped to almost 60 countries. For some reason, the United States was not one of them.

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Episode 8: Gawker’s Demise: Sex, Pride & Celebrity Porn Tapes Apr 15, 2020

Show notes

For over 13 years, Gawker was one of the most popular sources for the latest on gossip, news, and entertainment. When it wasn’t breaking news and celebrity exposès, it was breaking its viewership records, seeing over 62 million unique visitors on its site each month. But, a sex tape and a Silicon Valley billionaire would start a bloodbath that would ultimately bring down Gawker’s multi-million dollar media empire. Find out on how Gawker found itself posting its own obituary on Episode 8.

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Episode 7: How Juicero Squeezed Itself Out Apr 01, 2020

Show notes

Juicero’s $700 juicer took Silicon Valley by storm in 2016. The brainchild of Doug Evans, a raw food enthusiast, was one of the most sought after products, already boasting $120 million in funding. Kobe Bryant was one of its investors, Oprah promoted it on one of her lavish giveaways and it even won over healthy living fanatics like Gwyneth Paltrow and Dr. Oz. Find out how this high-flying juicer got squeezed out of the limelight only a year and a half after its unveiling on Episode 7 of The Great Fail.

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Episode 6: Special COVID-19 Episode: Whistleblower from Wuhan Mar 18, 2020

Show notes

We are dedicating this episode to Dr. Li Wenliang, the doctor who was credited as being one of the first to try and warn the public about the outbreak of COVID-19 in the early days. He was quickly reprimanded by the Chinese officials, accused of spreading rumors, and forced to sign a public statement of apology. The Great Fail that prevented Dr. Li’s warnings became a global crisis that led to the coronavirus becoming a pandemic today. Here is this week’s story on the Whistleblower from Wuhan.

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Minisode #1: Funny Fan Flops Mar 11, 2020

Show notes

This week’s minisode includes a failed prophylactics business, fake catering and grasshopper protein powders.

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Episode 5: Crazy Eddie: The Fall of an Electronics Empire Mar 05, 2020

Show notes

Before Best Buy, Target and Fry’s Electronics, there was Crazy Eddie, which created the blueprint for consumer electronic retailers. With their deep discounts and iconic Crazy Eddie ads, they were one of the top performers on Wall Street from 1984 to 1987. But beneath all the success, were internal rivalries, deep jealousy, plots of deceit and betrayal, and a huge family secret that would ultimately unravel this multi-million dollar enterprise.

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Episode 4: We Didn't Work: Failure of WeWork's IPO Feb 27, 2020

Show notes

WeWork was one of the most highly anticipated IPOs in 2019. It received funding from the biggest investment banks and investment funds. Linked to celebrities like Ashton Kutcher, Hugh Jackman, and Mark Zuckerberg, the charismatic CEO Adam Neumann was on a trajectory to creating a movement for coworking space rentals across the globe. What would follow would be the crumbling of the WeWork brand, the failure of its IPO, the disgraceful exodus of WeWork employees and the ousting of its leader.

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Episode 3: Bre-X: Fool’s Gold Feb 19, 2020

Show notes

By 1995, Calgary’s Bre-X became a $6 billion dollar company when it declared that it had discovered the world's largest gold mine within the jungles of Indonesia. What followed years later would entail all the elements of a Hollywood story: lies, betrayal, the collapse of an empire, and a badly decomposed body.

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Episode 2: Walking on Broken Google Glass Feb 12, 2020

Show notes

On its debut, it was heralded as one of the best inventions of 2013. Google launched Project Glass as its first wearable that would rock the world. Glass quickly became the must-have product for celebrities and CEOs, and was on a fast track to becoming a culturally defining device that would cross over to mainstream success. So how did it end up on the DOA list just two years after its launch?

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