Mister Softee facts for kids
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Trade name
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Mister Softee |
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| Private | |
| Industry | Ice cream |
| Founded | 1956 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
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| Headquarters |
901 Clements Bridge Road Runnemede, New Jersey
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Key people
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| Products | Ice cream |
Mister Softee is a famous American company that sells ice cream from special trucks. They are well-known in the northeastern United States. The company's main office is in Runnemede, New Jersey. Mister Softee helps people start their own ice cream truck businesses by letting them use the Mister Softee name and trucks.
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The History of Mister Softee Ice Cream
Mister Softee Inc. was started in 1956. Two brothers, William and James Conway, founded the company in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Since 1958, its main office has been in Runnemede, New Jersey.
Mister Softee grew to be one of the biggest companies that lets others sell its soft ice cream. They have about 350 business owners, called franchisees. These owners run 625 trucks in 18 different states. Around 1999, William and James' sons, John P. Conway and Jim Conway Jr., took over the business.
A new Mister Softee store is planned to open in East Islip, New York.
Mister Softee Around the World
Mister Softee ice cream trucks have also been seen in other countries.
Mister Softee in Hong Kong
Mister Softee also has a presence in Hong Kong. There, the ice cream trucks are known as Mobile Softee.
Mister Softee in China
In 2007, a man named Turner Sparks helped bring Mister Softee to Suzhou, China. He was roommates with Alex Conway, who is Jim Conway Jr.'s son. Turner Sparks spoke Mandarin and had been teaching English in China.
He started with just one truck in Suzhou. Five years later, Mister Softee China had ten trucks and 25 employees. They planned to grow even more across eastern China.
Mister Softee China offered classic American ice cream treats. These included shakes, floats, and sundaes. They also added new Chinese flavors. Some of these were green tea ice cream, red bean ice cream, and kiwifruit sundaes. Unlike in America, Mister Softee China also had kiosks in shopping areas. They had trucks in suburban neighborhoods too.
Mister Softee stopped its operations in China in 2016.
Protecting the Mister Softee Name
Mister Softee has worked to protect its brand name and famous jingle. This means making sure other companies do not use their name or music without permission.
For example, one former Mister Softee business owner in New York started a new ice cream company. He called it "Master Softee Inc." and used Mister Softee's jingle. In 2014, Mister Softee sued him. They won the case because he broke his agreement and used their trademark.
Another time, Mister Softee won a lawsuit against a company that was using their jingle without permission.
Jim Conway, a vice president at Mister Softee, explained why they do this. He said they have spent many years building their brand. He added that people who use their trademark illegally hurt Mister Softee. They also hurt the small, family-owned businesses that are part of the Mister Softee family. Taking legal action helps protect everyone involved.
The Famous Mister Softee Jingle
The well-known tune played by Mister Softee trucks sounds like a music-box. It was created by Les Waas, an ad man from Philadelphia. He called the song "Jingle and Chimes." Les Waas wrote almost 1,000 jingles in his career.
The melody is based on an older song from 1905 called "The Whistler and His Dog."
When Michael Bloomberg was the Mayor of New York, he tried to reduce city noise in 2002. This included the jingles from ice cream trucks. In 2005, after people complained, he made a compromise. Ice cream trucks could still play their jingles, but only while they were moving.
Doug Quattlebaum and the Ice Cream Truck
In June 1961, a blues musician named Doug Quattlebaum was discovered in a unique way. He was playing popular songs and blues music through the speaker system of his Mister Softee ice cream van.
A blues historian named Pete Welding heard him play. Welding was known for finding talented musicians in unusual places. He helped Doug Quattlebaum record an album. The album, released in 1963, was called Softee Man Blues. The cover of the album even showed Quattlebaum in his ice cream uniform.
Related Ice Cream Companies
- Good Humor
- Jack and Jill Ice Cream
- Mobile Softee in Hong Kong
