Clicquot Club Company

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This article is about an American soda company. For the Atlantic City nightclub, see Clicquot Club.
Clicquot Club Company
Native name
Clicquot Club Beverages
IndustrySoft drinks
PredecessorLaCroix Fruit Farm
Founded1885 (1885) in Millis, Massachusetts, United States
FounderCharles LaCroix
Defunct1980 (1980)
FatePurchased by Cott in 1965, dissolved in 1980
HeadquartersMillis-Clicquot,
Millis
,
United States
ProductsSparkling cider
Ginger ale

Vineyard Punch

Root beer

Cream soda
Grape soda

The Clicquot Club Company (pronounced "Kleek-O"), also known as Clicquot Club Beverages, was one of the largest national beverage companies. It sold Ginger ale and several varieties of soda. After 80 years of operation, the company was bought by Cott Beverage Corporation in 1965 and eventually dissolved.[1]

History[]

Kleek-O the Eskimo boy, holding a bottle of Clicquot Club Ginger Ale

Founded in 1881 in what is now known as Millis, Massachusetts, Henry Millis (son of Lansing Millis, after whom the town was named in 1885) made a sugr]]. These two were the key ingredients to his ginger ale making the company standout in this field.

A bottle of Clicquot Club Ginger Ale, the soft drink for which the company was best known.

Even though word of his soda spread over southeastern New England in the next few years, the cost of such fine ingredients eventually forced Henry Millis to sell his company in 1901. The new proprietors, Horace A. Kimball and his son, H. Earle Kimball, took advantage of every form of advertising, including the character "Kleek-O the Eskimo Boy" (which became a well-known advertising symbol);[2] an animated sign in Manhattan's Times Square (the largest animated sign in the world from 1924 to 1926); and even a musical variety radio program, The Clicquot Club Eskimos, led by banjo player Harry F. Reser.[1] There were 25 sessions of records under the supervision of Harry Reser and issued under the name "Clicquot Club Eskimos" recorded from December, 1925 through February, 1931.

Such clever marketing expanded the company until the factory in Millis became 1/3 of a mile long and even had its own private train station. The area around this massive factory became known a

References[]

  1. ^ a b The Boston Globe "A fizzled empire: If little-known today, the Clicquot Club Co. in Millis was the toast of soft-drink circles for half of the 20th century" By Bob Clark, September 15, 2011.
  2. ^ Dotz, Warren; Morton, Jim (1996). What a Character! 20th Century American Advertising Icons. Chronicle Books. pp. 10–11. ISBN 0-8118-0936-6.

Resources[]

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