The Dead Company Club

“History is merely a list of surprises.”                 –Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

This March, The Wall Street Journal Blog, “Laid Off and Looking” ended. They had followed out-of-work professionals and their struggles to move on. Their readers, a fraternity of survivors, were bummed. “Do not shut this sucker down” was one response. “Pls do not shut this blog down. I need it.” What’s the WSJ missing?

Then a couple of weeks ago, The Vault discontinued their blog, Pink Slipped, which gave job leads and tips for Pink Slippers.  They stated:

“The economic conditions that served as the founding raison d’etre … increasingly seem to be waning.”

I tentatively agreed. The headlines didn’t blare business obituaries like last year. Sure, there are substantial companies like Goldman and Ernst & Young that are facing the big bad wolf, but collapse seems unlikely.

So I was surprised when I started updating The Memorial Garden, our list of dead companies. The number of newly closed companies is mind boggling.

Have corporate failures become second page news? If you’re among the 2010 company bankruptcies, liquidations or flat out busts, what is your story?

Laurie Phillips writes for and about businesses. She is a multi-time member of The Dead Company Club.

cool and creative photo courtesy of flikr.com/bensonkua

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