Baskin-Robbins
Baskin-RobbinsBaskin-Robbins is the world's largest chain of ice cream specialty shop restaurants. Based in Canton, Massachusetts, it was founded in 1945 by Burt Baskin and Irv Robbins in Glendale, California.
The company is known for its "31 flavors" slogan, with the idea that a customer could have a different flavor every day of any month. The slogan came from the Carson-Roberts advertising agency (which later merged into Ogilvy & Mather) in 1953. Baskin and Robbins believed that people should be able to sample flavors until they found one they wanted to buy, hence their famous small pink spoons. The company has introduced more than 1,000 flavors since 1945.
Baskin-Robbins was founded in 1945 by brothers-in-law Burt Baskin and Irv Robbins from the merging of their respective ice cream parlors, in Glendale, California. It claims to be the world's largest chain of ice cream specialty stores, with 7,300 locations, including nearly 2,500 shops in the United States and over 4,800 located internationally as of December 28, 2013. Baskin-Robbins sells ice cream in nearly 50 countries. The company has been headquartered in Canton, Massachusetts since 2004 after moving from Randolph, Massachusetts.
The Baskin-Robbins ice cream parlors started as separate ventures of Burt Baskin and Irv Robbins, who owned Burton's Ice Cream Shop (opened in 1945) and Snowbird Ice Cream (opened in 1946), respectively. Snowbird Ice Cream offered 21 flavors, a novel concept at that time. When the separate companies merged in 1953, the number of flavors was expanded to 31 flavors.
By 1948, Burt and Irv had opened six stores. The first franchise covering the sale of ice cream was executed May 20, 1948 for the store at 1130 South Adams in Glendale (Store #1). In 1949, the company’s production facility opened in Burbank. Burt and Irv made the decision to sell the stores to the managers. In 1953, Baskin-Robbins hired Carson-Roberts Advertising who recommended adoption of the number 31 as well as the pink (cherry) and brown (chocolate) polka dots and typeface that were reminiscent of the circus. The first store that adopted the new 31 look was 804 North Glendale Ave. in Glendale, California in March 1953. Between 1949 and 1962, the corporate firm was Huntington Ice Cream Company. The name succeeded The Baskin-Robbins Partnership and was eventually changed back to Baskin-Robbins, Inc. on November 26, 1962. In the 1970s, the chain went international, opening stores in Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea and Australia. Baskin-Robbins also was the first to introduce ice cream cakes to the public. Baskin-Robbins often still incorporates 31 in its promotions despite offering more flavors. For example, in Malaysia this includes giving 31% off their hand-packed ice cream on the 31st of a month, which invariably causes queues at their outlets.
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