Retro from the get-go: reactionary reflections on marketing's yestermania

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to raise the issue of contemporary retromania with marketing historians. Design/methodology/approach – This is a reflective essay combining personal experiences with empirical exemplars. Findings – It is found that retromarketing is a subject requiring scholarly scrutiny. The commodification of the past is increasingly prevalent and marketing historians are ideally placed to lead the discussion. Research limitations/implications – As yestermania is unlikely to evaporate anytime soon, it provides rich, socially and managerially relevant pickings for marketing historians. Originality/value – Aside from the scurrilous suggestion that historians should get out of the dusty archives, it argues that originality is overrated.