Bob Cook: The Man Who Tried to Save the Apple Lisa

Enter Bob Cook, a dedicated Apple reseller and founder of Sun Remarketing. Specializing in recovering unsold hardware, Cook had already purchased thousands of the Apple III, another failed Apple model. By negotiating agreements with Apple, Cook could buy these discarded units at a low cost, repair them, and resell them.
Seeing an opportunity with the Lisa, Cook acquired up to 7,000 units. Apple even allowed him to make modifications to the defective models to improve their performance. Cook’s company invested a significant amount—$200,000—into research and development to create a revamped version called the “Lisa Professional.” It seemed like a win-win: Cook would breathe new life into these discarded computers, and Apple would rid itself of the unsold inventory.

But just when it seemed like the project was gaining momentum, Apple suddenly changed its course.