> Starbucks, founded 1971, fifty years old next year. Caterpillar Inc., founded 1925. Ford, 1903. 3M, 1902. Kroger, 1883. Campbell Soup, 1869. Pfizer, 1849. Proctor & Gamble, 1837. Colgate-Palmolive, 1806.

Choosing a handful of successful winners in comparison to "most firms only last about 10 years" is a selection bias.

All of the original members of the DOW Jones industrial average have declared bankruptcy or been absorbed into other companies -- except General Electric! Oh wait, they were just removed from the index