Soft-drink logos on store signs

[lepidopteran]

Ever notice how many mom-and-pop stores have signs out front bearing the logo of a brand of soda pop?

Usually, the sign is a backlit, plexiglass logo of a well-known brand of soda, while underneath, in smaller black-and-white lettering, is the actual name of the store.  Most signs seem to be for Coke or Pepsi, with the second most common being 7up or RC.  Once in a while you might find an obscure or discontinued brand, like Teem (a former lemon-lime product made by Pepsi -- an ancestor of Sierra Mist you might say).  Stores with these signs tend to be found the most in either smaller towns, or older parts of cities.

I used to wonder what significance a brand of soda had with many of these stores.  If the business was, say, a pizza place -- sure, I understand, the sign was reminding you to order a Coke with the pie.  But what it was a clothing store?  I understand now that the whole thing was a deal where business people got a free or reduced-cost sign in exchange for the advertising.  Not sure if they still do this, though I've seen some relatively recent Pepsi signs displayed in this manner.

Also, it's not just soft-drink logos that do this.  Some bars have a sign with a beer logo built in; Pabst Blue Ribbon and Old Milwaukee seem to be the most common.  And in areas within a certain radius of Harrisburg, you have signs reading Hershey's Ice Cream on all manner of stores (some of these are in the form of a placard inside the store window, though).  Finally, some repair shops have a sign with a brand of the appliance they specialize in, like Zenith if their specialty is TVs.

[Roadrunner75]

There used to be a Dr. Pepper hanging exterior sign for a small food store around the corner from my house in my hometown in the late 70s/maybe early 80s.  I would love to have that sign today.  Some other local brand signs in the area:  "Richman's" ice cream signs for stores around South Jersey; "A-Treat" soda company signs in the Allentown, PA area.

[formulanone]

What's more odd to me is a Coke/Pepsi logo for something that doesn't even specialize in foodstuffs, such as a laundromat or an auto parts store. I guess you borrow their advertising branding and expected goodwill of the name to hawk your wares. Always seemed a little duplicitous to me, but that's advertising for you.

[1995hoo]

What's more odd to me is a Coke/Pepsi logo for something that doesn't even specialize in foodstuffs, such as a laundromat or an auto parts store. I guess you borrow their advertising branding and expected goodwill of the name to hawk your wares. Always seemed a little duplicitous to me, but that's advertising for you.

What I find oddest is if a place has one logo but then sells only the other. When I was in college, the scoreboard in Scott Stadium had a Pepsi logo but the concession stands only sold Coke products.

[formulanone]

What I find oddest is if a place has one logo but then sells only the other. When I was in college, the scoreboard in Scott Stadium had a Pepsi logo but the concession stands only sold Coke products.

Doc's All-American in Delray Beach is like that; they had a neon Pepsi sign at the same location for over fifty years, but had been serving Coke for about half that time.

[US71]

I did a small Renaissance Festival a few years ago that was "co-sponsored" by Coke. There were all sorts of advertising banners with the Coke logo, and Coke was the primary soft drink served.

[6a]

What's more odd to me is a Coke/Pepsi logo for something that doesn't even specialize in foodstuffs, such as a laundromat or an auto parts store. I guess you borrow their advertising branding and expected goodwill of the name to hawk your wares. Always seemed a little duplicitous to me, but that's advertising for you.

Usually in places like that there are (or were) a soda vending machine tucked away somewhere that is owned and operated by that particular soda company.  In my side of the vending business we usually pay a commission on sales as a sort of rent for that space. The advertising will usually be on a clock or menu board or the like provided to the store in lieu of an actual commission. We do the same thing with some customers, instead providing free caterings or a Christmas party, etc.

[SP Cook]

My grandparents were owners of a "mom and pop" store.  The deliverymen for the various brands worked on commission back then, and freebie signs were a part of that. 

IIRC, about the mid-70s the companies all got together and decided to stop. 

[doorknob60]

Not a store, but



Good luck finding Coke anywhere on campus.

[Roadrunner75]

Not a store, but
Good luck finding Coke anywhere on campus.

Rutgers did that when I was there.  Only Coke products on campus once they signed the deal.  A lot of people were upset.

As for the store signs, I have two pretty cool fluorescent lit clock signs that you would typically see above a deli counter - one Dr. Pepper and one Coke.

[6a]

Good luck finding Coke anywhere on campus.

We handle the vending inside Wendy's corporate HQ, they're a Coke company. Problem is, they have free fountains inside for the employees.  We have machines to keep full that 1. Must be Coke products, and 2. Isn't something being given away 50 feet across the room.  Good times...

[Roadrunner75]

Good luck finding Coke anywhere on campus.

We handle the vending inside Wendy's corporate HQ, they're a Coke company. Problem is, they have free fountains inside for the employees.  We have machines to keep full that 1. Must be Coke products, and 2. Isn't something being given away 50 feet across the room.  Good times...

Nice.  How do I convince my company to set up a Dr. Pepper fountain in my office?

[jeffandnicole]

There used to be a Dr. Pepper hanging exterior sign for a small food store around the corner from my house in my hometown in the late 70s/maybe early 80s.  I would love to have that sign today.  Some other local brand signs in the area:  "Richman's" ice cream signs for stores around South Jersey; "A-Treat" soda company signs in the Allentown, PA area.

And you would see those signs on shops that were just plopped on some land along a main road, not really near anything. Today, zoning and communities would be upset at the locations of some of those businesses.

At work, we had a Pepsi machine that was stocked with Pepsi products, except regular Pepsi.  Instead, it sold regular Coke. We think, but couldn't prove, a certain new hire that must've known someone with PepsiCo must've said something, because suddenly they switched out the Coke for Pepsi.

[corco]

Not a store, but



Good luck finding Coke anywhere on campus.

Those signs both look to be in Idaho. The bottler in Idaho has or had a schools program charity where they give scholarships and will put up school signs free of charge, provided they have the Pepsi logo. When I was in high school in McCall, we got one in about 2005.

[mhh]

What I find oddest is if a place has one logo but then sells only the other. When I was in college, the scoreboard in Scott Stadium had a Pepsi logo but the concession stands only sold Coke products.

Several years ago I attended the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl football game at Ford Field in Detroit. The Little Caesars logo was painted on the 50-yard line, but the concession stands sold only Hungry Howie's Pizza. I was told that Little Caesars sponsored the game but Hungry Howie's had year-round concession rights.

[6a]

At work, we had a Pepsi machine that was stocked with Pepsi products, except regular Pepsi.  Instead, it sold regular Coke. We think, but couldn't prove, a certain new hire that must've known someone with PepsiCo must've said something, because suddenly they switched out the Coke for Pepsi.

Depending on where you work, and if the machine is easily accessible to the public / visitors, Pepsi themselves might have audited it and raised a stink. We do that kind of thing all the time and every so often Coke or Pepsi will call us and raise hell.  The problem in our case is those machines are loaned to us by Coke/Pepsi, so they obviously want their product in them.  The fun begins when they call us about a machine we own, then we tell them to kindly self fornicate.

[mcdonaat]

We have a barber shop on Shreveport Hwy (old alignment of US 71) that has a Diet Rite sign.

http://goo.gl/maps/HFQW5

There's also an older, closed down gas station that has "Take the Pepsi Challenge!" sign out front. Hard to see, but... http://goo.gl/maps/gf94x

[briantroutman]

What's more odd to me is a Coke/Pepsi logo for something that doesn't even specialize in foodstuffs, such as a laundromat or an auto parts store...

In at least a few cases, I know of businesses that just retained and converted a soft-drink sponsored sign from a previous owner or tenant. For example, this discount tobacco store used to be food-oriented convenience store, but they kept the '70s-'80s-vintage Pepsi sign and simply changed the lettering. I realize that this doesn't explain all of the odd cases, though.

But the practice of having soft-drink sponsored signs for small businesses has always struck me as odd–I can remember being four or five years old and thinking then it was strange. The soft drink logo seems to suggest an endorsement, like an authorized dealer, and certainly The Coca-Cola Company isn't doing a thorough audit of every third-rate mom and pop corner store that hangs up a Coke sign.

Looking back at old pictures, it appears that the practice evolved out of an era when companies would paint their logos on barns or the sides of buildings just to try to stay in people's minds. And so to the soft drink company, the local business name is incidental–just a reason to get the business owner to hang up the sign. The real value is getting the Coca-Cola logo in one more place.

[andrewkbrown]

Here's one at a laundromat in Wilmington, Ohio.
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Wilmington,+OH&hl=en&ll=39.436785,-83.828382&spn=0.002362,0.005284&sll=38.963575,-84.081074&sspn=0.004788,0.014656&oq=wilmin&t=h&hnear=Wilmington,+Clinton+County,+Ohio&z=18&layer=c&cbll=39.436965,-83.829389&panoid=UjOdgEkHC0wm_1jS3K0plg&cbp=12,114.16,,0,1.52

I recall the old Fayetteville Fire Department firehouse in Fayetteville, Ohio had a similar soft drink logo sign (I think 1970's Mountain Dew logo) on the front of the building until replaced by a new station over 10 years ago. I always thought this the most unusual, having only seen these particular signs on restaurants, and other businesses.

[Brandon]

Sunkist, Jim's Food Mart, Houghton, MI: https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=47.119351,-88.554611&spn=0.002095,0.005284&t=h&z=18&layer=c&cbll=47.119464,-88.554598&panoid=Sb-LsrBtuy0KPlbfHH0Zyg&cbp=12,275.66,,0,-0.18

[jeffandnicole]

At work, we had a Pepsi machine that was stocked with Pepsi products, except regular Pepsi.  Instead, it sold regular Coke. We think, but couldn't prove, a certain new hire that must've known someone with PepsiCo must've said something, because suddenly they switched out the Coke for Pepsi.

Depending on where you work, and if the machine is easily accessible to the public / visitors, Pepsi themselves might have audited it and raised a stink. We do that kind of thing all the time and every so often Coke or Pepsi will call us and raise hell.  The problem in our case is those machines are loaned to us by Coke/Pepsi, so they obviously want their product in them.  The fun begins when they call us about a machine we own, then we tell them to kindly self fornicate.

We are a private office.  The only people from the outside would be clients visiting people.  Could one of them have said something?  Maybe...although they probably shouldn't have been in our break room in the first place! :-)  The machine itself (along with the generic snack machine) is filled by a non-profit group who keeps the proceeds, I believe. 

[lepidopteran]

Here's an example of a Hershey's Ice Cream sign I found on Flickr:
HERSHEY'S Ice Cream by Eugene Gannon, on Flickr

Of course, Hershey's Ice Cream in itself is kind of an eighth wonder of brand names.  You would think that ice cream and chocolate would go together like... chocolate ice cream, right?  Yet despite being located only about a dozen miles apart, and both being around since 1894, Hershey's Ice Cream and Hershey Foods (now just The Hershey Company) are not connected!  The Hershey Creamery insists that its founder is not related to Milton Snavely Hershey.  Go figure!

[1995hoo]

The Roy Rogers near our house carries Hershey's Ice Cream. I believe the Creamery and the chocolate company have engaged in various litigation over the years that they ultimately resolved when the Creamery agreed to post a disclaimer saying they're not affiliated with the chocolate company. This is an example of where different people having the same last name can lead to odd results: Both companies were founded by people with the last name "Hershey."

[bugo]

Are there any remaining signs using the "new" Coke logo?

[lepidopteran]

I've never seen one with the New Coke logo, which IIRC had a slightly thicker font and and some elements of silver (and later, blue) in addition to the usual red and white.  And of course, initially there was that diagonal "New" banner.

But I think Coca-Cola ceased their sign program sometime in the '70s, and the New Coke debacle was in 1985.  However, Pepsi seems to have installed new signs well into the '80s, maybe beyond.  For example, the Pepsi product Slice was introduced in the '80s, and they had some signs:

OH Continental - Franky's Restaurant by scottamus, on Flickr

For the record, the 7up product Like Cola was introduced in 1982.  These are quite rare.
Like Cola? (2) by found_drama, on Flickr