Trademarked

A History of Well-Known Brands from Aertex to Wright's Coal Tar

In the first 30 years of trade registration—between 1876 and 1906—more than 250,000 marks were registered in Britain. In this book, David Newton—formerly Head of Patents Information at the British Library—has selected 220 of the most interesting and curious of those early brands. Shell originated with one Marcus Samuel selling antiques and curios, including sea shells, in Smithfield in 1833; it was only when his son visited the Caspian Sea and saw an opportunity to export oil from Russia that trade in the better known product began. An advertising campaign for Listerine mouthwash, originally a disinfectant for surgical procedures, coined the phrase “always a bridesmaid, never a bride.” From Carlsberg beer to Triumph cars, from Lea and Perrin sauces to Beecham's pills, we learn the history of these brands, the companies which registered them, and how the brands have developed over the years.