Jones Soda
Jones Soda Co. is a US beverage company based in Seattle, Washington. They bottle and distribute soft drinks, non-carbonated beverages and energy drinks.
Peter van Stolk founded the Urban Juice and Soda Company Ltd. in 1987, intending to compete in the alternative products segment of the beverage industry. Until 1995, the company was a distributor of other beverage lines such as Arizona Iced Tea and Thomas Kemper sodas in western Canada.
The company developed the Jones Soda line during 1995, and launched the first six flavors in January 1996: Orange, Cherry, Lemon Lime, Strawberry Lime, Raspberry and Grape.
The Urban Juice and Soda Company changed its name to Jones Soda Co. on August 1, 2000.
Jones Soda is known for their unusual flavors. For example, in November 2003, Jones introduced a Turkey and Gravy seasonal flavor in honor of Thanksgiving. Demand was so overwhelming that Jones sold out within two hours, the bottles (both full and empty) fetching in excess of $10 a piece on local auction sites such as E-Bay. The company has future plans to have rare holiday flavors, each end of the year period.
Other unusual flavors have included Chocolate Fudge, released in honor of Valentine's Day; FuFu Berry; Pineapple Upside Down; Berry White (a pun on singer Barry White); Fu Cran Fu; Bada Bing!; and Purple Carrot. Jones also distributes their versions of more familiar soft drink flavors such as Vanilla Cola, Root Beer, Cream Soda and Fruit Punch.
Flavors come and go from the company fairly often, providing an ever-rotating collection of tastes. Recently the company discontinued their "slim" (e.g. diet) sodas and instead introduced three sugar-free flavors. It is ironic as, when the company first began, a clear marketed difference from other more "mainstream" sodas was the lower sugar content the company's blends originally had. However, taste and time can change many things.
To help break into the soft drink marketplace, Jones pursued what they call an "alternative distribution strategy" to attract consumer attention, selling soda in venues such as clothing and music stores, tattoo and piercing parlors, and sporting equipment shops. Eventually Jones Soda was available nationwide in larger chain stores such as 7-Eleven, Safeway and Barnes & Noble. Recent business distribution deals have further expanded the company, placing some 'basic' flavors in stores such as Meijer's, World Market and Panera.
Jones Soda continually changes the photographs on their labels. They encourage customers to submit photos for consideration, and even allow people to order bottles with customized labels. Currently on their website they have a database of several thousand submitted pictures, as well as an archived collection of internal company notes, detailing which pictures appeared when, on what flavors (for collectors of the images). Customers can also submit fortunes to be printed underneath the bottle cap.