- Mister Softee
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For the Hong Kong-based ice cream vendor, see Mister Softee (Hong Kong).
Mister Softee 
Type Private company Industry Ice cream Founded 1956 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Headquarters Runnemede, New Jersey, United States Key people William Conway, James Conway Products Ice cream Website mistersoftee.com Mister Softee is a United States-based ice cream truck franchisor popular in the Northeast. It was founded by William and James Conway (Oct. 30, 1927 - May 28, 2006) [1] in 1956 in Philadelphia. It is one of the largest franchisors of soft ice cream in the United States. It has about 350 franchisees operating 600 trucks in 15 states. The company is headquartered in Runnemede, New Jersey. It is still run by the Conway family; James Conway, Jr. is now President.
Contents
Jingle
The jingle played by Mister Softee trucks is instrumental and based on The Whistler and his Dog in 1960 by Les Waas.[2] It is written in E-flat major with 6/8 time. In New York City, the trucks can only play the jingle while moving, to reduce noise.[3]
A copy of the sheet music and all the words can be found on the Mister Softee webpage.
Mister Softee in China
In 2007 Mister Softee established its first ice cream truck and ice cream shop in Mainland China located in Suzhou, Jiangsu. Mister Softee China is operated by Alex Conway, grandson of James Conway, and Turner Sparks. In 2008 Mister Softee China plans to begin expanding its core business and franchising throughout China's eastern region.
Mister Softee China has created a menu that combines its classic American products of shakes, floats and sundaes with new Chinese products such as green tea ice cream, red bean ice cream, kiwi sundaes and milk tea floats.
While its American counterpart operates almost exclusively with trucks, Mister Softee China has kiosks in downtown shopping areas and trucks throughout China's ever expanding suburban neighborhoods and business districts.
Mister Softee Mascott and Official Truck at an event in Tampa, Florida. The trucks operate from a depot and some vehicles are located in stationary locations including public beach areas along the west coast of Florida.
See also
References
- ^ Fox, Margalit (2006-05-31). "James Conway Sr., 78, a Founder of Mister Softee, Dies". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/31/nyregion/31conway.html. Retrieved 2006-05-31.
- ^ "Les Waas". http://www.broadcastpioneers.com/waas.html. Retrieved 2007-10-11.
- ^ Hu, Winnie (December 14, 2005). "That Jingle Of Mr. Softee's? It's the Sound Of Compromise". The New York Times. "The Bloomberg administration will allow the ice cream trucks to continue playing the sprightly ditty while trolling for young customers. But under a compromise with the City Council, the jingle must be halted when the trucks are not moving."
External links
Categories:- Ice cream brands
- Fast-food franchises
- Family businesses
- Companies based in Camden County, New Jersey
- Companies established in 1956
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