A&W Root Beer
| Type | Root Beer |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Dr Pepper Snapple Group |
| Origin |  United States |
| Introduced | 1919 |
| Related products | Barq's, Mug Root Beer, Dad's Root Beer |
A&W Root Beer is a root beer franchise in the United States and Canada that was started in 1919 and inspired restaurant chain in 1922. The first A&W root beer drinks were sold for five cents. [1] A&W's international headquarters are located in Malaysia[2].
History
Roy Allen first offered A&W root beer to the public June, 1919.[3][4] Allen sold the root beer at a roadside stand at a parade for returning World War I veterans for one nickel.[4] His first permanent A&W stand was at Lodi, California, with his second one at Sacramento, California [3] where it is thought to be the country's first drive-in with waiters for curb-side service.[4]
Allen had purchased the recipe for A&W from a pharmacist in Arizona. [4] Three years after he started his business, he took on a partner, Frank Wright, who was an employee from Lodi, California. The two combined their initials to form the name of their beverage "A", and "W" which came out to be "A&W Root Beer".[3]
After buying Wright's shares to pursue a franchise sales program, Allen had the name "A&W Root Beer" and the A&W trademark copyrighted[2] Allen began A&W Restaurants, selling A&W root beer and eventually other types of food,[3]although he kept the "W" in the name[5].
Company and Brand Development
In 1950, with over 450 A&W Restaurants in business[5], Roy Allen retired and sold the business to Gene Hurtz, who sold the A&W Root Beer Company to the J. Hungerford Smith Company.[3]
In 1971 A&W Beverages, Inc., began selling A&W Root Beer at supermarkets whereas previously, it could only be found at A&W restaurants,[3] and in March 1995, A&W Root Beer became part of the Dr Pepper/Seven Up, Inc. [3]
Brands
- A&W Cream Soda and Diet Cream Soda were introduced in 1986.[3]
Promotions and Contests
- A&W and Jim Belushi offered a trip to Los Angeles with a VIP pass to "A&W Ultimate All-American Cookout and Concert" at The House of Blues over Ebay[6].
A&W Restaurants
Shortly after Allen had bought out Wright's portion of the business, he began franchising the product. His profits came from a small franchise fee and concentrate sales. There was no set food menu for franchises until 1978. By 1960, they had 2000 stores.
In 1989, A&W made an agreement with Minnesota-based chain Carousel Snack Bars to convert that chain's 200 locations (mostly kiosks in shopping malls) to "A&W Hot Dogs & More".[7][8] Some A&W Hot Dogs & More locations are still in operation today.
In the United States and Southeast Asia, A&W is currently a Yum! Brands, Inc. company. Most A&W locations that have opened in the U.S. in recent years have been co-branded with one of Yum!'s other chains—Long John Silver's, Taco Bell, or Kentucky Fried Chicken.
External links
References
- ^ http://www.drpeppersnapplegroup.com/brands/
- ^ a b http://www.angelfire.com/tn/traderz/AandW.html
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j http://www.rootbeer.com/history/ - A&W root beer's official history
- ^ a b c d http://www.awrestaurants.com/about/default.htm the official A&W restaurant site
- ^ a b http://www.usefultrivia.com/miscellaneous_trivia/soft_drink_trivia_008a.html
- ^ eBay Bidders Can Vie for Trip to A&W Root Beer's 'Ultimate All-American Cookout and Concert' Featuring Jim Belushi and The Sacred Hearts Band; Proceeds From Online Charity Auction to Benefit John Belushi Scholarship Fund. - PR Newswire - HighBeam Research
- ^ http://www.awrootbeer.com/hist_hist3.htm A&W Root Beer - History & Collectables
- ^ http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3190/is_n17_v25/ai_10659563 A&W prexy sets pace for growth in the '90's - A&W Restaurants; George Michel
- "A&W Root Beer - History". Retrieved 2007-12-22.
- "A&W Restaurants, Inc". Retrieved 2007-12-23.