Towne Club

Towne Club is a local brand of soda, produced and sold primarily in the metropolitan area of Detroit, Michigan.

History

It was owned and operated by Harold Samhat. The company first started selling its soda in the mid-1960s in its own retail outlets in Detroit, known as "pop centers". It was an affordable alternative to bigger brands such as Coca-Cola and Pepsi, and often sold well in Detroit's poorer neighborhoods. The pop centers offerred many different flavors or soda pop than was typically seen in grocery stores and was bought by the case which was wooden and held 24 glass bottles. People would enter the store grab a wooden crate and walk around to the various stacks of "pop" around the warehouse looking store. Customers would also bring back the empty bottles and cases and start all over again.-- () 11:37, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

However, this company carved out its niche by offering multiple flavors in both regular and diet varieties, in an attempt to rival its more powerful regional competitor, Faygo. The attempt proved successful, as Towne Club was able to expand its reach further North in Michigan, South into Central Indiana, as well as some parts of Northwestern Ohio.

The company began falling on hard times in the early 1980s, after the decision was made to close its retail pop centers, though Towne Club was still available. Sales continued to slide, not out of disloyalty, but buyers of the products were left wondering what outlets still sold it.

Comeback

Towne Club Bottling announced a comeback in the mid-1990s (though they had never really "left"), in an effort to make diehard fans of the soft drinks aware of where to purchase the products.

Returning in 1997, Towne Club had changed little of its product in terms of the product or its packaging. Unlike many of its mass-produced, multinational competitors, Towne Club sodas were still sold in 12 ounce returnable crowned glass bottles, which, in keeping with Michigan's deposit law, are worth ten cents each when returned to the retailer. The bottles required a standard bottle opener to be used in order to consume the product.

The Towne Club brand is now controlled by Intrastate Distributors, Inc., known as IDI, Inc. Within a couple of years, the Towne Club brands switched to plastic re-sealable bottles and new labeling. IDI also bottles other beverages such as Orange Crush, Vernors, and Stewart's Root Beer.

External links

* [http://www.intrastatedistributors.com/ IDI and Towne Club website]