10. Johnson & Johnson’s Tylenol
This happened in 1982.
This recall is popularly called “the recall that started them all.”
About 7 people had died in Chicago after taking Extra-Strength Tylenol, which was laced with cyanide. This was a clear case of product tampering.
The company had to shell out over $100 million in pulling 31 million bottles of Tylenol from the market. Interestingly, Tylenol was the company’s best-selling product!
However, Johnson & Johnson’s saved the image of its Tylenol brand through swift action and the right decisions at the right time.
After effect:
The company recovered from the recall nightmare in just two months. It also set the standard for other companies with regard to how they are supposed to tackle such unfortunate happenings.
Even today, the above companies, their investors, and the consumers who used the defective products remember the recalls that were so unfortunate for the companies especially that they have gone down in history as the most shocking ones.
