# Product Flops and Bankrupt Corporations: Business Lessons from the Failure Museum

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/harvard-business-review-7777387/product-flops-and-bankrupt-corporations-business-lessons-from-the-failure-museum
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/harvard-business-review-7777387/product-flops-and-bankrupt-corporations-business-lessons-from-the-failure-museum.md
Podcast: [Harvard Business Review](https://stenobird.com/podcast/harvard-business-review-7777387)
Published: 2026-06-17T12:30:00+00:00
Episode link: https://traffic.megaphone.fm/VG6263578922.mp3?updated=1778607559
Audio file: https://traffic.megaphone.fm/VG6263578922.mp3?updated=1778607559
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/harvard-business-review-7777387/episodes/product-flops-and-bankrupt-corporations-business-lessons-from-the-failure-museum
Duration seconds: 492

## Resource

Product Flops and Collapsed Corporations: Business Lessons from the Failure Museum 28 Oct 2024 --- What can failures like Harley-Davidson Cologne or Cheetos Lip Balm teach us about success? Sean Jacobsohn, partner at Norwest Venture Partners and founder of the Failure Museum, takes us on a tour of notable product failures, sharing insights into why they failed and the lessons we can learn from them. Discover the six forces of failure and learn how companies can avoid making the same mistakes. Visit the Failure Museum: https://failure.museum/ 00:00 Harley-Davidson Cologne, Cheetos Lip Balm, and Coors Sparkling Water, oh my! 01:25 The six forces of failure 01:42 Product market fit: Webvan 02:20 Team: Theranos 02:53 Customer success: Google Glass 03:44 Financial management: ESPN mobile phone 04:22 Timing: WeWork 05:15 Competition: Blockbuster Books, tools, and more: store.hbr.org Follow us: https://hbr.org/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/harvard-business-review/ https://www.facebook.com/HBR/ https://twitter.com/HarvardBiz https://www.instagram.com/harvard_business_review Sign up for Newsletters: https://hbr.org/email-newsletters #HarvardBusinessReview #Business #Failure #Success #Harvard #HarvardBusinessSchool Copyright © 2024 Harvard Business School Publishing. All rights reserved. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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