Choc-Ola facts for kids
| Type | Chocolate beverage |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | BIC, LLC |
| Introduced | 1944 |
| Website | www.choc-ola.com |
Choc-Ola is a tasty American chocolate drink. It was first made in the 1940s by Harry Normington, Sr., who was from Pennsylvania. Harry started his own company, Choc-Ola Bottlers Inc., in 1944 in Indianapolis, Indiana, to sell his special drink.
Contents
How Choc-Ola Started
Harry Normington used to own ice cream shops. But he had to close them because of money problems. He then found a job at a dairy company in Vincennes, Indiana. While working there, he started planning a new business. He wanted to bottle and sell a small chocolate drink. This drink would later become Choc-Ola!
By 1944, Harry found a good building in nearby Indianapolis. He moved his family there and officially started Choc-Ola Bottlers, Inc. Harry bought a delivery truck and worked with bigger companies like 7 Up to get Choc-Ola sold. Soon, the drink was available all over Indiana and in parts of Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, and Michigan.
Choc-Ola Gets New Owners
Choc-Ola became very popular in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. In 1977, when it was doing really well, Harry sold his company to Moxie Industries. This company kept making Choc-Ola in Indianapolis.
However, there were some problems with the quality of the chocolate and new government rules about food. Because of these issues, Moxie decided to close the Indianapolis factory in 1982. They moved the packaging to another company in Georgia. Choc-Ola continued to be packaged there until at least 1985.
Yoo-Hoo Buys Choc-Ola
In 1985, Moxie sold Choc-Ola to The Chocolate Group. This company also owned Yoo-hoo, which was a big competitor of Choc-Ola. After buying Choc-Ola, The Chocolate Group slowly stopped making and selling it. It's thought that production mostly stopped by the late 1980s.
Mott's Takes Over Choc-Ola
In 2003, Yoo-Hoo Industries sold several drink brands to Mott's. Choc-Ola was one of the brands Mott's bought. But Mott's didn't renew the Choc-Ola trademark in 2009. They said they didn't plan to do anything else with the drink.
The Comeback of Choc-Ola
In early 2010, something exciting happened! Dan Iaria, who owns a 1950s-style diner called Rock-Cola '50s Cafe in Indianapolis, got the trademark for Choc-Ola. He started selling the drink again at his cafe.
On March 21, 2011, it was announced that Choc-Ola would be made and sold by Prairie Farms. It first became available in Martin's Super Markets, a chain of 21 stores.
By late 2011, Prairie Farms Dairy started making Choc-Ola at their factory in Indiana. In early December 2011, big stores like Walmart, K-mart, and Safeway began selling Choc-Ola. Many smaller stores in central Indiana also started selling it.
Prairie Farms plans to sell Choc-Ola in 18 states. They want to offer it in single-serving bottles and half-gallon jugs, mainly in grocery and convenience stores.
In May 2012, Choc-Ola made a deal with Dairy Farmers of America. They started packaging Choc-Ola in 12 oz cans that could sit on a shelf without needing to be refrigerated. This was a big improvement because the half-gallon jugs made by Prairie Farms only stayed fresh for 22 days and needed to be kept cold. At this time, Choc-Ola stopped its partnership with Prairie Farms for the refrigerated half-gallons.
In November 2013, Choc-Ola became available to buy online from their company website.
In September 2014, Choc-Ola changed its packaging. Instead of 24-packs wrapped in clear plastic, they started selling 12-packs with colorful wrapping. This made the product lighter and easier to ship and sell in smaller stores.
Around the same time, Choc-Ola partnered with Walgreens to sell the drink in central Indiana. There were plans to expand to southern Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, and Ohio if the first sales went well.
Choc-Ola's Marketing
Television Ads
In the 1970s, Choc-Ola became very popular. Local TV ads in Indiana helped a lot. Choc-Ola wanted to reach kids and young adults. So, they advertised during popular kids' shows like Cowboy Bob's Corral and Nightmare Theater.
Pete Rose's Drink
| Type | chocolate beverage |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Choc-Ola Bottlers |
| Introduced | 1978 |
| Discontinued | 1979 |
In 1978, Pete Rose, a very famous baseball player, wanted to work with Choc-Ola. He loved chocolate drinks, and Choc-Ola was one of his favorites. Rose and Choc-Ola launched a new chocolate drink called "Pete." They thought it would be a huge hit because Pete Rose was so popular. However, Pete Rose's contract said he couldn't advertise the Cincinnati Reds without permission, even wearing his team cap. This made it hard for the "Pete" drink to succeed, and it was quickly stopped.
Cow Mascot
At some point, the Choc-Ola factory in Indianapolis had a fun mascot. It was a giant white and black spotted cow! The cow stood on a tall white pole in the main parking lot.
Important Dates for Choc-Ola
- 1943: Harry Normington starts Choc-Ola Bottlers, Inc.
- 1944: Choc-Ola begins its first year of production.
- 1977: Moxie Industries, Inc. buys Choc-Ola.
- 1978: The "Pete" chocolate drink is introduced.
- 1985: The Chocolate Group, Inc. buys Choc-Ola.
- 1989: The Choc-Ola trademark is renewed by The Chocolate Group, Inc.
- 1993: The Chocolate Group changes its name to Yoo-Hoo Industries, Inc.
- 2003: Mott's, LLP buys Yoo-Hoo Industries.
- 2009: The Choc-Ola trademark expires.
- 2010: BIC, LLC of Indianapolis, IN gets the Choc-Ola trademark.
- 2011: Choc-Ola becomes available in all Martin's Super Markets stores.
- 2012: In May, Choc-Ola starts being produced in 12 oz shelf-stable cans.
- 2013: Online sales of 24-packs of Choc-Ola begin.
Images for kids
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A Choc-Ola crate.
