The Man Who Made Chewing-Gum Famous

 

William Wrigley was a very good salesman. His father had a soap factory, and as a boy William sold soap for him in the streets of Philadelphia. In 1891, when he was twenty-nine years old, he went to Chicago because he wanted to have his own business. He built a small soap factory and began to sell soap there. He wanted to make more money, so his big idea was to give little presents to people who bought soap for him. First he gave them packets of baking powder. Soon he found out that baking powder was easier to sell than soap, so he produced baking powder and sold it in cans. In 1892 he had another great idea. He bought a lot of chewing-gum and gave away two packets of it with each can of baking powder that was sold. This was a fantastic success. The next year he started a new business. Again he built a new factory - this time it was to make chewing-gum! His company was one of the first to use advertising and soon "Wrigley's" became America's favourite chewing-gum. William Wrigley was a famous American who made his way to the top. When he first arrived in Chicago he only had 32 dollars in his pocket. By the time he died in 1932 he was a millionaire.