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 logo includes a stylized “31” formed from the letters “B” and “R”. The slogan came from the Carson-Roberts advertising agency (which later merged into Ogilvy & Mather) in 1953. The company has introduced more than 1,300 flavors since 1945,[8][9] including the addition of vegan and non-dairy flavors in 2019.[10][11]
History
Baskin-Robbins was founded in 1945 by American brothers-in-law Burt Baskin and Irv Robbins from the merging of their respective ice cream parlors, in Glendale, California.[citation needed] Burt Baskin learned about ice cream while he was in the military during World War II and opened Burton's Ice Cream Shop in California in 1946.[12] Irv Robbins managed an ice cream counter in his father's store as a teenager and in 1945 used $6,000 to open Snowbird Ice Cream in California.[13]
In 1948, they decided to combine their companies and call it Baskin-Robbins. Snowbird Ice Cream offered 21 flavors; when they merged the number of flavors was expanded to 31.[4][14]
Original logo used from 1953 to 1980
By 1948, Baskin and Robbins had opened six stores. The first franchise was executed on May 20, 1948, for the store at 1130 South Adams in Glendale (Store #1). In 1949, the company's production facility opened in Burbank. Baskin and Robbins decided to start selling the stores to the managers. In 1953, Baskin-Robbins hired Carson-Roberts Advertising who recommended the 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 looks was 804 North Glendale Ave. in Glendale in March 1953.
Between 1949 and 1962, the corporate firm was known as Huntington Ice Cream Company. The name succeeded The Baskin-Robbins Partnership and was eventually changed back to Baskin-Robbins, Inc. on November 26, 1962. Baskin-Robbins was owned by its founders until it was acquired in 1967 (just before Burt Baskin's death) by United Fruit. In the 1970s, the chain went international, opening stores in Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and Australia.[15]
A 1967 Baskin-Robbins store in Portland, Oregon, with the 1991–2006 logo on August 8, 2013 (closed in mid-2014), that retained its original look, a design typical of the chain's outlets in the 1960s
In 1972, the company went public when United Brands sold 17% in an IPO. A year later, the British food company J. Lyons and Co. purchased Baskin-Robbins from United Brands and all public stock. J. Lyons then merged with Allied Breweries, becoming Allied-Lyons in 1978. Allied-Lyons then merged with Pedro Domecq S.A. in 1994, becoming Allied Domecq. Baskin-Robbins and Dunkin' Donuts comprise Dunkin' Brands, Inc. Dunkin' Brands was part of Allied Domecq until its purchase in 2006 by a group of private equity firms – Bain Capital, Thomas H. Lee Partners, and The Carlyle Group.[16]
Third Baskin-Robbins logo used in the U.S. from February 2006 to December 15, 2020, still in use internationally
In 2006, the company's "BR" logo was updated such that it doubles as the number "31" to represent the 31 flavors, with the "31" formed by the parts of the letters "BR" which are rendered in pink, in contrast to the rest of the logo which is rendered in blue.
In August 2012, Dunkin' Brands became completely independent of the private equity firms.[17]
Co-branded Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin-Robbins, Thomasville, Georgia
Baskin-Robbins struggled in the early years of the 2000s to retain business, but opened 36 new shops between 2013 and 2015.[18][19] Many new Baskin-Robbins shops are co-branded with Dunkin' Donuts, including California's first co-branded location of the two in San Diego, which opened in March 2014.
In 2014, Baskin-Robbins also began selling its ice cream for the first time in supermarkets across the U.S.[20] In July 2017, Baskin-Robbins started adding their locations to delivery service platform DoorDash to deliver ice cream in 22 cities across the United States.[21]
Map of countries that either have or used to have Baskin-Robbins outletsBaskin Robbins in Thornhill, OntarioBaskin-Robbins ice cream
Baskin-Robbins has more than 8,000 shop locations in: Aruba, Australia, Bahrain, Bhutan, Canada, China, Colombia, Curaçao, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Estonia, Egypt, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Latvia, Malaysia, Morocco, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Tajikistan, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Yemen. International locations feature flavors of ice cream popular in each country, such as Red Bean, Litchi Gold, Blackcurrant and Cantaloupe.
The most popular flavors of Baskin Robbins in Asia are Mint Chocolate Chip and Cookies & Cream.[26]
Baskin-Robbins has previously been present in other countries such as Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Malta, Maldives, Mauritius, Mexico, Netherlands, Panama, Philippines,[27] Portugal, Russia, South Africa and St. Maarten.
Cambodia does not have any locations of Baskin-Robbins but their products are officially available at an Au Bon Pain bakery franchise.[citation needed]
The standalone stores in Bangladesh were closed down, but their products are available at multiple local stores.[citation needed]
In Japan, Taiwan, China and Philippines, Baskin-Robbins is known popularly as "31" or "31 ice cream".[28]
Australia
Baskin-Robbins Australia is a wholly owned and operated subsidiary of Inspire Brands, the parent company of Baskin-Robbins and Dunkin'. In October 2010, Dunkin' Brands terminated its license agreement with Allied Brands Group for Baskin-Robbins in Australia, and now supports its Australian franchisees directly.[29] The Baskin-Robbins Australia Franchise Support & Training Centre is based in Brisbane.[30]
Controversies
In 2019, an ad advertising a new ice cream flavor in South Korea, "Pink Star", featuring child model Ella Gross, sparked a controversy, with some describing the ad as "overly sexualized". The company withdrew the ad and apologized to its customers.[31][32][33][34][35]
^This page, "History | Dunkin' Brands". Archived from the original on April 23, 2013. Retrieved March 20, 2013., at the Dunkin' Brands site, confirms the Baskin-Robbins founding date, the J. Lyons purchase (and date), the Allied Breweries merger (and date), and the Pedro Domecq merger (and date). Quotes: "1946: Baskin-Robbins is founded by Burt Baskins and Irv Robbins."; "1973: London-based J. Lyons & Co., Ltd., purchased Baskin-Robbins."; "1978: J. Lyons is purchased by Allied Breweries, creating Allied Lyons."; "1994: Allied Lyons partners with Pedro Domecq, the leading spirits marketer in Spain and Mexico, to form Allied Domecq."
US$160 million (2019)
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