Faygo facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Faygo Beverages, Inc.

Formerly	Feigenson Brothers Bottling Works
Type	Subsidiary
Industry	Beverages
Founded	November 1907; 117 years ago (1907-11) in Detroit, Michigan
Founders	Ben and Perry Feigenson
Headquarters	Detroit, Michigan , US
Products	Soft drinks Energy drinks
Parent	National Beverage Corporation

Faygo Beverages, Inc. is a company that makes soft drinks. Its main office is in Detroit, Michigan. You can find Faygo drinks, also called Faygo Pop, in the Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, and Central Southern parts of the United States. They are also sold in southern and western Canada. Faygo Beverages, Inc. is part of the National Beverage Corporation. The company started in Detroit, Michigan, in 1907. Back then, it was called Feigenson Brothers Bottling Works.

The Cotton candy flavored Faygo soda.

The Story of Faygo

The original logo used around 1940

Faygo began in Detroit, Michigan, in November 1907. It was started by two brothers, Ben and Perry Feigenson, who were bakers from Russia. They named their company Feigenson Brothers Bottle Works.

How Faygo Flavors Began

The first Faygo flavors were fruit punch, strawberry, and grape. These flavors were inspired by the frosting recipes the Feigenson brothers used for their cakes in Russia. When they first started, the brothers delivered their drinks using a horse-drawn wagon. They even lived above their bottling factory.

Growing the Business

Over the next ten years, the company grew a lot. The Feigenson brothers were able to buy houses and hire their first employee. They also got a second wagon and horse for deliveries. More flavors were added, like Sassafras Soda and Lithiated Lemon. Their success also allowed them to build a new factory in Detroit.

A New Name and More Growth

In 1921, as the company got bigger, the brothers decided "Feigenson Brothers" was too long. They changed the name to Faygo. In 1922, they bought their first delivery truck. The next year, they started delivering drinks right to people's homes.

New flavors came out in the 1920s, including a vanilla soda and a seltzer water. They also made "Ace Hi" and Rock and Rye. In 1935, the company opened its current bottling plant in Detroit.

New Owners and Fun Ads

The Feigenson brothers ran the company until the mid-1940s. Then, they passed it on to their sons. In 1956, Faygo started making fun radio and television ads. These ads featured a pretend cowboy called the Faygo Kid. He was shown in cartoons for Faygo Old-Fashioned Root Beer commercials.

Even Jim Henson's company, Muppets, Inc., made some ads for Faygo strawberry soda. These ads starred the Muppet characters Wilkins and Wontkins.

Expanding Beyond Michigan

For a while, Faygo drinks could only be sold in Michigan because they didn't last long on shelves. But in the late 1950s, company scientists found a way to fix this. They put in a special filter system to clean the water used in the factory. This made the drinks last longer.

In the 1960s, Faygo became even more popular. The company started advertising during Detroit Tigers baseball games. These ads reached people outside of Michigan. Because they couldn't stop the ads, Faygo began shipping drinks to more places. This helped sales grow a lot, from $6 million in 1966 to $20.4 million in 1971. In the 1970s, ads showed everyday people on a Boblo Boat singing the "Faygo Boat Song."

New Product Lines

In the 1960s, Faygo also brought out a low-calorie version of their drinks called Ohana. This line quickly became a big part of the company's sales. In 1961, they launched the Royal Line, which was a more special, premium product. The original strawberry flavor from 1907 was renamed Redpop in the late 1960s.

Changes and New Ownership

In 1978, Michigan passed a law about returning drink containers. Faygo thought people would want returnable cans instead of glass bottles. But this was not what people wanted. It was hard for the company to switch back to bottles, which affected their profits for several years.

The Feigenson family decided to sell the company. TreeSweet Products Corp. bought Faygo in 1986 for $105 million. A year later, in 1987, TreeSweet sold Faygo to National Beverage Corp. In the 1980s, Faygo also started making flavored sparkling water.

In 1996, Faygo added a new line of non-fizzy drinks, again called Ohana. These included punches, iced tea, and lemonade. In 2007, Faygo celebrated its 100th birthday. They launched a new flavor and held contests for label designs. A fourth-grade teacher from Ohio won with her design for Centennial Soda. In March 2014, the company introduced Faygo Gold, a ginger ale. This drink is a rival to Vernors, another famous ginger ale from Detroit.

Faygo's Current Products

As of 2025, Faygo offers 57 different drink options.