Throwback Photos of Today's Most Successful Companies

Dairy Queen, 1950s

Dairy Queen, 1950s

Dairy Queen franchise owners in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts.

PhotoQuest/Archive Photos/Getty Images

Walmart (Originally "Walton's), 1968

Walmart (Originally "Walton's), 1968
(Image via Wikipedia)

Ford, 1913

Ford, 1913

Highland Park, Michigan

(Image via Wikipedia)

McDonald's, 1950s

McDonald's, 1950s

Chicago, Ilinois

By Carol M. Highsmith, Library of Congress Catalog, Public Domain, via Wikimedia

Kroger, 1956

Kroger, 1956

Nashville, Tennessee

Leila Grossman/Michael Ohs Archives/Getty Images

J.C. Penney (Originally "The Golden Rule Store"), 1902

J.C. Penney (Originally "The Golden Rule Store"), 1902

Kemmerer, Wyoming

(Image via Wikipedia)

Microsoft, 1980s

Microsoft, 1980s

Co-founder Bill Gates.

Doug Wilson/Corbis Historical/Getty Images

Nike, 1995

Nike, 1995

Portland, Oregon

Mark Peterson/Corbis Historical/Getty Images

Disneyland, 1955

Disneyland, 1955
Loomis Dean/Contributor/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

Google, 2004

Google, 2004

Co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin in Mountain View, California.

Kim Kulish/Corbis Historical/Getty Images

Starbucks, 1977

Starbucks, 1977
(Image via Wikipedia)

Harley-Davidson, 1911

Harley-Davidson, 1911

Springfield, Ohio

(Image via Wikipedia)

Taco Bell, 1973

Taco Bell, 1973

San Anselmo, California

San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers/Getty Images

Coca-Cola, 1941

Coca-Cola, 1941
(Image via Wikipedia)

Whole Foods, 1980

Whole Foods, 1980
(Image via Whole Foods Market)

Sears, 1970s

Sears, 1970s

Chicago, Illinois

Chicago History Museum/Archive Photos/Getty Images

CVS, 1971

CVS, 1971
By Melville Shoe Corporation, Public Domain, via Wikimedia

Apple, 1984

Apple, 1984
Bettmann/Contributor/Bettmann/Getty Images

Carl's Jr., 1960s

Carl's Jr., 1960s

Anaheim, California

Mike Kalasnik/Carls Jr North Bergen, NJ 4/CC BY-SA 2.0/Flickr

Wendy's, 1969

Wendy's, 1969

Columbus, Ohio

Joe Ross/The First Wendy's 7-5-2006 (3)/CC BY-SA 2.0/Flickr

Barbie, 1965

Barbie, 1965

Barbie's first clothing designer, Charlotte Johnson, posing with Barbie.

By Nelson Tiffany, Los Angeles Times, via Wikimedia

Burger King, 1980

Burger King, 1980

Coventry Street, London

Mirrorpix/Mirrorpix/Getty Images

Amazon, 2024

Amazon, 2024

Amazon's first headquarters in Bellevue, Washington,  during an open house in 2024.

By SounderBruce - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia
Author Jennifer Freehill Last Updated: May 20, 2025

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