Order Watkins Products Online Information about the Watkins Business
1868
J.R. Watkins founds the J.R. Watkins Medical Company in Plainview, Minnesota, at the age of 28. Watkins thus became one of America's very first direct selling companies where representatives sell directly to consumers.
1869
America's first money-back
guarantee and the Trial-Mark™ bottle was introduced. The "trial mark"
showed how much of the product could be tried before returning for a refund.
Watkins red liniment, made from camphor and red pepper extract, was the company's
very first product. It is still one of the most popular products in the Watkins
line today.
1885
J.R. Watkins moves
the company to Winona, Minnesota, a prosperous logging town on the banks of
the Mississippi River.
1895
Watkins enters the
gourmet food market with its introduction of vanilla extract, black pepper and
cinnamon. Insisting on high-quality natural ingredients, Watkins extends the
tradition of offering only the best to its customers.
1901
Publication of first
Watkins Almanac.The Watkins Museum in Winona, Minnesota features a fascinating
collection of these old almanacs, as well as other classic publications from
years past.
1912
New Watkins administration
building is completed at a cost of $1.2 million. Italian tile and marble, Tiffany-style
glass, and other exquisite details highlight the beauty of the new structure.
Visitors can the free standing dome with 24-karat gold leaf inside the rotunda.
Noted architect George Washington Maher was the designer of the new Watkins
administration building.
1913
First international expansion for Watkins begins with opening of a new branch office in Winnipeg, Canada.
1915
J.R. Watkins Medical Company becomes the world's largest direct selling company.
1920
Additions and enhancements
to the product line brings total number of Watkins products to 100. Egyptian
Bouquet Talcum Powder is one of the newer and popular offerings.
1922
Vitamins (in the form of herb tablets) are introduced. Watkins was far ahead of its time in realizing the value and benefits of nutritional supplements. These tablets continued the Watkins tradition of natural products. Today the company offers one of the most complete and popular lines of nutritional supplementation available anywhere.
1928
At the Paris International
Exposition, Watkins receives Gold Medal honors for their vanilla, black pepper,
cinnamon and other ground spices. This award solidified the Watkins reputation
for providing high-quality gourmet ingredients to meet a variety of needs.
1940
Total number of Watkins products reaches 200. Approximately 10,000 Watkins associates are selling the products, primarily through door-to-door and route sales.
1942
Watkins dedicates ninety percent of its production capacity to the WWII Allied
effort. A few of the products included Pure Dried Whole Eggs, Dessert Powder,
Gelatin Desserts, Lemon Juice Powder, Orange Beverage Base Powder, Louse Powder,
and Insecticide Powder for Body Crawling Insects.
1955
Watkins launched its
first major national advertising campaign. Some of the magazines that featured
Watkins ads include Better Homes and Gardens, the Saturday Evening Post, Ebony,
Ladie's Home Journal, and Readers Digest..
1978
The Watkins family transfers ownership of the company to Minnesota entrepreneur Irwin Jacobs and his family.
1990
Introduction of customer direct delivery; where products go straight from the Watkins manufacturing facility to the company's distribution center, and then to the customer's home. This was a significant innovation, and the beginning of a departure from the "old days" of door-to-door selling.
1997
The Watkins product
line is refined and expanded, with significant additions to the health and wellness
line. Mark Jacobs is named President of Watkins.
1999
Watkins product line
expands to over 350 products. There are approximately 45,000 Watkins Associates
in the United States and Canada. A new heart-healthy grape seed oil is introduced.
2003
Door to Door,
the television movie about Watkins Associate Bill Porter, wins six Emmys including
best made for TV movie and best actor for William H. Macy. Bill Porter, who
was born with cerebral palsy, has inspired a countless number of Watkins associates
(and others) with his determination, integrity, and commitment to results.
Today
The colored history of Watkins direct selling adds another chapter with Good Tastings™ by Watkins. Good Tastings events are gourmet samplings and demonstrations where friends and family can come together to taste simple and elegant appetizers which are made primarily with Watkins Products.