All the Stores You Loved in the ’90s That No Longer Exist

Honestly, I just feel lucky to have lived through an era where a candle store named Wicks ‘N’ Sticks was an actual thing and not the setting of an SNL skit.

Apparently, there are still a few of these ol’ chestnuts left, but for the most part, people appear to have moved on from…getting shaved in a mall.

RadioShack used to be in every neighborhood in America and it was the place to get those clear plastic landline phones. Then it filed for bankruptcy in 2017 and things (read: the few remaining stores) have never been the same.

Have a vague memory of being dragged here by my mother, but pretty sure I’ve managed to repress it.

Like, where else were we supposed to get babydoll tees, cheap college hoodies, and attend B-list celebrity meet and greets?

Wet Seal clientele included everything from kids in middle America who wanted to dress like they were from a ’90s teen TV show set in Southern California to college girls looking for a quick ‘fit for that Saturday night function. The range!

This store closing was a HUGE blow to nerdy little brothers everywhere.

Not to be confused with Eileen Fisher, where your mom bought her linen pants. And who still sells beauty products at the local TJ Maxx!

Otherwise known as the place where you’d jump on mattresses while staff glared at you. (FYI, Sleepy’s was acquired by Mattress Firm in 2015.)

This girl’s face = how I feel about Discovery Channel Store closing.

Where one went to buy not just a laptop…but also INTERNET.

If the name isn’t clear enough, this is where Cool Kids shopped when Hot Topic was too crowded.

Aww, B. Dalton was so fun to browse around in! But with the rise of internet shopping, mall bookstores just didn’t stand a chance. Which brings us to…

…another absolute favorite of our collective mall-trolling childhoods that simply couldn’t survive Amazon. We’ll miss you, bud. Speaking of…

Hands up if you and your friends just, like, hung around at Borders doing nothing when you were teenagers? Same. Sadly, now your hangout spot is gone forever because of bankruptcy—probably thanks to a company I won’t bother @ing again (it rhymes with shmamazon).

Again, I honestly barely remember this store, but nevertheless, it persisted. Until, of course, it didn’t.

Otherwise known as the place your dad would drag you to after school to buy extension cords when you just wanted to go home and watch Hey Arnold! and eat Lunchables, ugh.