Success stories. The history of Mars: how the company was run by three generations of the Mars family Owner of the company Mars

Franklin was born on September 24, 1883 in Newport, Minnesota, to a rather poor family. As a child, Franklin was diagnosed with a terrible disease - polio, the boy could not move without crutches, so he did not attend school. However, it is not known how Franklin's life would have turned out if not for his illness, but so far he had to help his mother in the kitchen, who made sweets at home and then sold them. It was this fascinating process that Franklin watched - and sweets became a part of his life. Already as a child, Franklin decided that confectionery would be the occupation of his life, and in 1902, when he was 19 years old, he opened his own trade in sweets. It was from that moment that he entered the industry that made him famous.

Doing business

In the beginning, Franklin was very unhappy. This man started his business from scratch three times. He was bankrupt three times. But still, he did not lose hope. Frank showed character, gradually rose in the service, and as a result earned quite decent money. He did not live well, but had his own house and married a girl named Ethel, who would become his main business partner.

At the age of 28, Frank leaves his job and decides to start his own business. Together with his wife, they start selling sweets, opening their own confectionery shop right in their house. All trade went through the kitchen window of the Mars family. Sales began to grow rapidly and the couple founded a company called Mar-O-Bar. It happened in 1911. Frank's dream of his own business, which would allow him to forget about hired work once and for all, began to come true.

Over time, small production grew into the first factory located in the nearby suburban area of ​​Chicago. The staff is 125 people. In 1920, Frank Mars made the decision to move to Minneapolis, where he came up with his first hit, the Milky Way bar. During the great economic depression in America, when many factories, factories were closed, production was suspended, Franklin sold his bar for 5 cents so that every child could buy it. In 1925, the new bar was recognized as the leader in the chocolate market. Sales are growing steadily, and the company develops further, opening up new markets for the sale of its products. While others were going broke, Franklin grew richer every day.

Gradually, the Mars product line is replenished with new products, including Mars Almond (a bar with almonds), Musketeers and the legendary Snickers, which is still quite a popular bar among consumers today. In the new location, business flourished, and in 1924, Mar-O-Bar sales reached $ 700,000. In 1926, Frank Mars renamed the company Mars Candies (hereinafter - Mars Incorporated), and in 1928 built a new factory in the suburbs of Chicago.

Father and son

In 1904, Franklin Mars and his wife, a school teacher and business partner, Ethel Kissek, had a son, Forrest. An interesting fact is that it was Frank's son who pushed him to create the currently existing bars. One day he went with his son Forrest to the store. Forrest asked his father to buy him some chocolate. At that time, chocolate was only sold by weight. For people, this created an inconvenience, especially on hot summer days - even if you carefully eat chocolate that quickly melted in the sun, it could very easily get dirty with it.

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It was at that moment that Frank thought, why not start selling small pieces of chocolate wrapped in foil? The idea seemed promising to him. After talking with his wife, he came to the conclusion that it was worth trying. As a result, a chocolate bar called Milky Way was born, which became a sales hit for the young Mars enterprise in a matter of days.

It should be noted that the relationship between father and son was by no means always cloudless - probably, this was facilitated by Frank's divorce from Ethel, which happened when Forrest was only 6 years old.

After graduating from Yale University in 1928, Forrest soon left America to pursue his own business in the UK. Further in 1932, Forrest in the city of Slow buys a building to create a factory. And a little later, he hires several employees and production begins. Oddly enough, yet another legendary bar is born at this factory - Mars. In 1930, Forrest Mars, together with William Murray, creates the M&M company and begins to produce the world famous M & M's sweets.

Forrest continues to expand its product line with the acquisition of Uncle Ben's. In those days, Uncle Ben’s was the leader among instant rice producers. Owning several brands, the younger Mars is visiting America more and more often.

Over time, the son decides to expand the company's influence by increasing the product line in other types of products. From his " light hand»The company begins to produce animal feed, today we know them under the Pedigree and Whiskas trademarks.

But such great success of his son, Frank could not rejoice - in 1934 he dies of acute heart and kidney failure. By that time, his business had turned into large company with a turnover of about $ 30 million.

In 1964, two companies merged - father and son. A new company called M & M / Mars appeared, which already at that time was striking in its scale of production.

Today Mars Inc. is the largest private company in the world, owned by members of the same family. According to Forrest's decision, the company was to be a family property, and this opinion is supported by today's generation of the Mars family. Currently at the head of Mars Inc. is the third generation, the grandchildren of Frank Mars: Jacqueline, Forrest Jr. and John. Mars Inc. today there are 98 factories and 219 offices in 65 countries, the corporation employs about 39 thousand employees.

Passion for racehorses

Towards the end of his life, Frank Mars, in addition to his "chocolate business", was also interested in breeding racehorses. In the late 1920s, in Pulaski, Tennessee, he bought up local farms and built a large estate in their place, calling it Milky Way Farms. On an area of ​​2,300 m², about 30 horse sheds, a racing track, an exhibition area for animals were built. He did not live to see the day when his horses began to win prizes at the most prestigious races in America. So, in 1940, a horse from his farm named Gallahadion won one of the main races in the United States - the Kentucky Derby.

Milky Way Farms was recently sold. The present owner completely renovates the farm, bringing its condition to its original appearance. In addition, the estate will include golf courses, polo games and many other amenities.

In his later years, Mars often lived on the Milky Way Farms grounds and was buried there after his death in 1934. A few years later, Franklin Mars' second wife, Ethel Healy, moved her husband's body to Lakewood Cemetery, near Minneapolis. A private mausoleum was built there, in which Frank Mars rests.

Franklin Clarence Mars (Franklin Clarence Mars; 1883 - 1934) is an American entrepreneur. Founder of Mars Incorporated, a confectionery company known for its chocolates and candy bars.

Mars was born on September 24, 1883 in Hancock, Minnesota, USA. His family was poor and Mars was never able to receive an education due to a disease that befell him in early childhood, polio, as a result of which he could not move independently. While his peers were in school, he spent all his time at home, or more precisely, in the kitchen, where his mother prepared all kinds of sweets for further sale. Soon the whole process of cooking was thoroughly studied by young Franklin and, importantly, he liked it all. It was at this time that he firmly decided that he would make candy and make a living from it. When he was 19 years old, in 1902, Mars began making candy and selling with his own hands. This is how the birth of the largest corporation for the production of all kinds of sweets began today. In the same year, Mars married school teacher Ethel Kissak. In 1904, Franklin and Ethel had a son, Forrest Mars. They later divorced and Mars remarried to Ethel Veronica Healy in 1910.

Franklin Mars failed three times in business and started over again without losing hope. Working as a wage laborer, he was fairly successful in his career and began to earn good money, allowing himself to buy his own house. His wife Ethel became his most important business partner. Yet Mars left the hired job to start his own business in 1911. He and his wife began making sweets and selling them directly from the kitchen window of his house on the first floor, facing the street. It should be noted that the popularity of the sweets of the Mars couple was very high.

In 1920, the Mars couple moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota, where the Mar-O-Bar Co. was founded. and started the production of chocolate bars. His son Forrest gave him the idea for a new bar that came to life under the name Milky Way. During the Great Depression of 1929-1933. when Franklin sold Milky Way bars for 5 cents a piece due to massive production cuts and widespread surplus, which helped to keep his business up and running. The bar became such an innovative idea in the confectionery business that it had widespread popularity, which only grew over time. By this time, Mars already had its own factory in the suburbs of Chicago, thanks to which it could, for the time being, meet the ever-increasing demand for products.

Over time, new products of the company began to appear - the Mars Almond bar, Musketeers, as well as the now world-famous Snickers chocolate bar, which appeared in 1930. By this time, Franklin Mars' company was already called Mars Incorporated. New factories were built, the line of products that were used in great demand, and the company's annual turnover after 1924 was already more than $ 700 thousand.

In the late 1920s, Franklin Mars became seriously interested in horse racing and bought several farms in Pulaski, Tennessee, and also built his own Milky Way Farms ranch - a farm in the Milky Way. Mars hired 935 workers from Giles County to build the farm. The total area of ​​the ranch was 25,000 ft 2 (2,300 m 2), which housed 30 horse sheds, a racing ring, and an exhibition pavilion for horses. This Mars business, as a confectionery business, has also become quite successful. Sadly, Mars never lived to see the day one of his farm horses, Gallahedion, won the Kentucky Derby in 1940.

Franklin Mars died on April 8, 1934 of heart and kidney failure at his Milky Way Farms, where he was buried by his wife Ethel, and a few years later the body was moved to the city of Minneapolis in the private crypt of the Mars family at Lakewood Cemetery.

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Franklin Clarence Mars(eng. Franklin clarence mars) (September 24, Newport, Minnesota - April 8, Chester Springs, Pennsylvania) - American entrepreneur, business tycoon, founder of a chocolate candy company - Mars Incorporated.

Biography

early years

Father and son

Forrest continues to expand its product line by acquiring the company Uncle Ben's... In those days Uncle Ben's held a leading position among the producers of instant rice. Owning several brands, the younger Mars is visiting America more and more often.

Over time, the son decides to expand the company's influence by increasing the product line in other types of products. With his "light hand" the company begins to produce animal feed, today we know them under the trademarks Pedigree and Whiskas.

But such great success of his son, Frank could not rejoice - in 1934 he dies of acute heart and kidney failure. By that time, his business had grown into a large company with a turnover of about $ 30 million.

Newly manor Milky way farms was sold. The present owner completely renovates the farm, bringing its condition to its original appearance. In addition, the estate will include golf courses, polo games and many other amenities.

In the last years of his life, Mars often lived in the territory Milky way farms and was buried there after his death in 1934. A few years later, Franklin Mars' second wife, Ethel Healy, moved her husband's body to Lakewood Cemetery, near Minneapolis. A private mausoleum was built there, in which Frank Mars rests.

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Mars Excerpt by Franklin Clarence

Prince Andrey ordered to stop and asked the soldier in what case they were wounded. "The day before yesterday on the Danube," answered the soldier. Prince Andrew took out a purse and gave the soldier three gold pieces.
“At all,” he added, addressing the officer who had approached. - Get well, guys, - he turned to the soldiers, - there is still a lot to do.
- What, Mr. Adjutant, what news? - asked the officer, apparently wanting to talk.
- Good! Forward, - he shouted to the driver and galloped on.
It was already quite dark when Prince Andrew drove into Brunn and saw himself surrounded by high houses, lights of shops, windows of houses and lanterns, beautiful carriages rustling along the pavement and all that atmosphere of a big lively city, which is always so attractive for a military man after a camp. Prince Andrew, in spite of the fast ride and a sleepless night, approaching the palace, felt even more lively than the day before. Only the eyes glittered with a feverish brilliance, and thoughts changed with extraordinary rapidity and clarity. All the details of the battle were vividly presented to him again, no longer vaguely, but definitely, in a condensed presentation, which he made in his imagination to Emperor Franz. The random questions that could be put to him and the answers that he would make to them vividly presented itself to him; he thought that he would be presented to the emperor at once. But at the large entrance of the palace, an official ran out to him and, recognizing him as a courier, escorted him to another entrance.
- From the corridor to the right; there, Euer Hochgeboren, [Your Highness] you will find the aide-de-camp on duty, ”the official told him. - He leads to the Minister of War.
The aide-de-camp on duty, who met Prince Andrew, asked him to wait and went to the Minister of War. Five minutes later, the adjutant's wing returned and, bending down especially politely and letting Prince Andrei pass ahead of him, led him through the corridor to the office where the Minister of War was studying. The adjutant wing, with his exquisite courtesy, seemed to want to shield himself from the attempts at familiarity of the Russian adjutant. The joyful feeling of Prince Andrey weakened considerably when he approached the door of the office of the Minister of War. He felt insulted, and the feeling of insult turned at the same instant, unnoticed by him, into a feeling of contempt, based on nothing. The resourceful mind at the same instant suggested to him the point of view from which he had the right to despise both the adjutant and the minister of war. "It must be very easy for them to gain victories without sniffing gunpowder!" he thought. His eyes narrowed contemptuously; he especially slowly entered the office of the Minister of War. This feeling intensified even more when he saw the Minister of War sitting over large table and the first two minutes of not paying attention to the newcomer. The Minister of War lowered his bald head with gray temples between two wax candles and read, marking with a pencil, papers. He finished reading without raising his head, while the door opened and footsteps were heard.
“Take this and pass it on,” said the Minister of War to his adjutant, handing over the papers and not paying attention to the courier yet.
Prince Andrey felt that either of all the affairs that occupied the Minister of War, the actions of the Kutuzov army could interest him least of all, or it was necessary to let the Russian courier feel it. But I don't care at all, he thought. The Minister of War moved the rest of the papers, aligned the edges with the edges, and lifted his head. He had an intelligent and characteristic head. But at the same moment as he turned to Prince Andrey, the clever and firm expression of the Minister of War, apparently habitually and deliberately changed: a stupid, feigned, not hiding his pretense, the smile of a man who received one after another many petitioners stopped on his face ...
- From General Field Marshal Kutuzov? - he asked. “Good news, I hope?” Was there a collision with Mortier? Victory? It's time!
He took the dispatch, which was in his name, and began to read it with a sad expression.
- Oh my god! Oh my God! Schmitt! He said in German. - What a misfortune, what a misfortune!
Having run through the dispatch, he put it on the table and looked at Prince Andrey, apparently thinking something.
- Oh, what a misfortune! The matter, you say, is decisive? Mortier is not taken, however. (He thought.) I am very glad that you have brought good news, although the death of Schmitt is a dear price for the victory. His Majesty may wish to see you, but not today. Thank you, take a rest. Be on the way out tomorrow after the parade. However, I'll let you know.
The stupid smile, which had disappeared during the conversation, reappeared on the face of the Minister of War.
- Goodbye, thank you very much. The Emperor will probably wish to see you, ”he repeated, and bowed his head.
When Prince Andrei left the palace, he felt that all the interest and happiness brought to him by the victory had now been left to him and transferred to the indifferent hands of the minister of war and the courteous adjutant. His whole mentality changed instantly: the battle seemed to him a long-standing, distant memory.

Prince Andrey stayed in Brunne with his acquaintance, the Russian diplomat Bilibin.
“Ah, my dear prince, there is no more pleasant guest,” said Bilibin, going out to meet Prince Andrey. - Franz, the prince's things in my bedroom! - he turned to the servant who saw Bolkonsky off. - What, the herald of victory? Wonderful. And I am sitting sick, as you can see.
Prince Andrey, having washed and dressed, went into the luxurious office of the diplomat and sat down to the prepared dinner. Bilibin calmly sat down by the fireplace.
Prince Andrew, not only after his journey, but also after the entire campaign, during which he was deprived of all the comforts of purity and grace of life, experienced a pleasant feeling of relaxation among those luxurious living conditions to which he was accustomed from childhood. In addition, after the Austrian reception, he was pleased to speak, at least not in Russian (they spoke French), but with a Russian man who, he assumed, shared a general Russian disgust (now felt especially vividly) for the Austrians.
Bilibin was a man of about thirty-five, single, of the same company with Prince Andrey. They had known each other back in Petersburg, but they got to know each other even better on the last visit of Prince Andrey to Vienna with Kutuzov. As Prince Andrey was a young man promising to go far in the military field, so, and even more, promised Bilibin in the diplomatic one. He was still a young man, but already a middle-aged diplomat, since he began serving at the age of sixteen, was in Paris, in Copenhagen and now occupied a rather significant position in Vienna. Both the chancellor and our envoy in Vienna knew him and treasured him. He was not one of the many diplomats who must have only negative dignities, not do well-known things and speak French in order to be very good diplomats; he was one of those diplomats who love and know how to work, and, despite his laziness, he sometimes spent nights at his desk. He worked equally well, whatever the essence of the job. He was not interested in the question "why?", But the question "how?" What the diplomatic affair consisted of, he didn't care; but to draw up skillfully, neatly and gracefully a circular, memorandum or report - in this he found great pleasure. Bilibin's merits were valued, in addition to written works, also for his art of addressing and speaking in higher spheres.
Bilibin loved conversation as much as he loved work, only when the conversation could be gracefully witty. In society, he constantly waited for an opportunity to say something wonderful and entered into a conversation only under these conditions. Bilibin's conversation was constantly peppered with originally witty, complete phrases of common interest.
These phrases were made in Bilibin's internal laboratory, as if on purpose, of a portable nature, so that insignificant secular people could conveniently memorize them and transfer them from living rooms to living rooms. Indeed, les mots de Bilibine se colportaient dans les salons de Vienne, [Bilibin's reviews spread throughout the Viennese drawing rooms] and often influenced so-called important matters.
His thin, emaciated, yellowish face was all covered with large wrinkles, which always seemed as cleanly and diligently washed as fingertips after a bath. The movements of these wrinkles were the main play of his physiognomy. Now his forehead wrinkled in wide folds, his eyebrows rose up, then his eyebrows went down, and large wrinkles formed on his cheeks. Deeply set, small eyes always looked straight and cheerfully.

The site reviewer has studied more than a century of history of the Mars Corporation, which has created several world famous brands of sweets and pet food.

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Mars, Snickers, M&M "s, Milky Way, Skittles are just a small list of sweets produced by Mars Corporation. They also produce treats for animals: Chappie, KiteKat, Whiskas and Pedigree. Control over one of the world leaders in the production of sweets remains belongs to the Mars family, from which the history of the company began.

Franklin Mars. Milky Way and early successes

The Mars story began with the humble candy seller Franklin Mars. He was born in 1883 in the town of Hancock. As a child, Franklin contracted polio, stopped going to school and spent time at home watching his mother make sweets.

At the age of 19, Mars started working as a hawker selling sweets, and even thought about his own business. In 1902, Franklin Mars married Ethel Kissak. In 1910, the couple divorced, and Ethel and her son moved to another city. There is a version that the marriage fell apart due to Franklin's unsuccessful attempt to open his own business.

Franklin Mars' first official business was started in 1911: together with his new wife, also named Ethel, he created small business for the production and sale of sweets. The company was officially registered and named Mar-o-Bar.

Due to the fact that Franklin's first and second wives were namesakes, there is confusion over exactly when the company began. The year 1911 is considered the most logical option, but it is possible that Franklin tried to open a business earlier. There is also a version that the company was called differently - Mars Candy.

The home kitchen of Mars became the workshop of the company and at the same time point of sale and the window of their house is a kind of counter. They willingly bought sweets. Most sources emphasize that Mars went broke three times before it succeeded, but the reasons for the failure are unknown.

A breakthrough awaited the company in the early 1920s. Mars moved to Minneapolis and opened the Mar-o-Bar company. Mar-o-Bar was created in 1922, and Milky Way chocolates were introduced in 1923. There is a legend about how Franklin Mars came to this idea. One day, while walking with his son Forrest, he bought him some chocolate. Back then, chocolate bars were sold only by weight and literally melted in the hands of customers. During a walk, Mars drew attention to this and soon came up with the idea of ​​making chocolate in a foil wrapper.

According to another version of events, it was not about the foil - just once Forrest Mars drank a chocolate cocktail and asked his father to make a bar from this drink. He registered the Milky Way trademark, and in 1923 the eponymous bar appeared on sale, which conquered customers. The official Mars website says that the creation of the Milky Way was preceded by three years of research.

Much of the success of the Milky Way was made possible by non-trivial advertising, with many researchers claiming that Forrest invented it. Milky Way was introduced as a bar that doesn't sink. The ad portrayed a fat man who escaped the shipwreck and did not drown thanks to several Milky Way eaten.

The Snickers lineup was developed in 1923, but production would not begin until seven years later. The bar was named after Franklin's favorite horse Mars.

In 1924, the company, which two years ago suffered losses of $ 6 thousand, reached a turnover of $ 700 thousand. Milky Way has become one of the most popular sweets in the United States, which has increased production capacity. It was decided to build a new Mars plant in the suburbs of Chicago. In 1926, the company at Mars Candies. In the wake of Franklin's popularity, Mars increased production and introduced new types of products even during the Great Depression.

In 1928, Forrest Mars joined his father's company. It is said that the role model for Mars Jr. was John Davison Rockefeller. At the same time, he believed that it was possible and necessary to earn more than Rockefeller, and from a young age he strove for this. In the future, this ambitious man would make Mars a huge corporation, but in the late 1920s he remained in Franklin's shadow, and a conflict was brewing between them.

Many people say that the main reason for the misunderstanding between father and son is different views on the development of the company. Franklin seemed to just want to live comfortably, but Forrest hoped to go to international market... In addition, Mars Jr. often challenged his father's decisions and believed that he was leading irrationally. The situation grew more and more tense, and it all ended with Forrest's move to the UK.

According to the most popular version, one of the quarrels ended with Forrest delivering an ultimatum: either he gets a third of his father's company, or he leaves. Franklin told his son to leave, but did not leave him with nothing, giving him the right to produce Milky Way in Europe and $ 50 thousand.

Forrest Mars activity. Mars and M&M "s bars and Uncle Ben" s rice

After leaving the United States, Mars continued to study confectionery business and allegedly even used family recipes to create unique products. He soon set up his own small production facility in Slow. At first, only a few people worked here, and Forrest bought chocolate from other manufacturers. This approach was maintained until the turnover of the company increased. Her first famous product was the Mars bar.

An original marketing campaign was launched to promote the new product. Times were difficult, people were reluctant to spend on chocolate, and Forrest Mars decided that it was not the sweetness that was to be sold, but its good. Mars was touted as an energizing product made from healthy and nutritious ingredients, and the bar became one of the bestsellers in the European market.

There is another version, according to which Forrest Mars became interested in instant rice, even when he moved to the UK. It was there that he read about Erich Hatzenlaub and the rice steaming method named after him. Thanks to the discovery of the scientist, nutrients were preserved in rice, it was stored for a long time and quickly cooked.

Hatzenlaub created the Rice Conversation company, and then Forrest Mars approached him, admiring the scientist's achievements. Mars funded Hatzenlaub's move to the United States, and in Houston they created Mars and Huzenlaub together. Later, Mars invested in new company Converted Rice, which started producing and selling instant rice. It was headed by Hatzenlaub and broker Gordon Harwell.

Original idea attracted the attention of the government and Converted Rice received a large order. After the war, new varieties of rice appeared in the product line, and the brand became extremely popular in the American market. In 1952 Converted Rice became the market leader in instant rice. In 1959, Forrest Mars will become the sole owner of the company and it will officially change its name to Uncle Ben's.

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Mars is one of the most mysterious in the American business Olympus. Although its revenues are in the billions of dollars, and its product portfolio contains more than 10 famous brands, around each of which a separate business could be built, the company continues to be private to this day. The key roles in today's Mars are still played by members of the famous family who are the grandchildren of the founder of the company.

The status of a private company, or perhaps its location near the headquarters of the CIA, led to the fact that Mars has always been closed company... Its founders never aspired to personal fame, and to show off on the cover of Forbes (however, this does not prevent them from entering the 100 richest people in the United States according to famous magazine). This closeness gave rise to a lot of rumors circulating around the company. It has been claimed by many that Forrest Mars' CEO makes a daily walk through which he tastes all Mars products, including animal feed! Be that as it may, it is worth opening the veil of secrecy over Mars by telling about this company.

Foundation of the company

The history of Mars dates back to the 19th century. In 1883, the future founder of the chocolate giant Franklin Clarence (Frank) Mars was born. Frank's parents were poor enough that he had to grow up early, going to work. At the age of 19, he was already selling sweets with might and main. It was from that moment that he entered the industry that defined his entire life. Gradually, Frank rose through the ranks, and as a result earned quite decent money. No, he certainly did not live richly, but he had his own house and married a girl named Ethel, who would become his main business partner.

At the age of 28, Frank leaves his job and decides to start his own business. Together with his wife, they start selling sweets, opening their own confectionery shop right in their home. All trade went through the kitchen window of the Mars family. Sales began to grow rapidly and the couple founded a company called Mar-O-Bar. It happened in 1911. Frank's dream of his own business, which would allow him to forget about hired work once and for all, began to come true.

In general, at that time the main assortment of the Mars confectionery family was a variety of sweets of very different fillings. The idea that changed Frank's whole life came to him quite by accident. One day he went with his son to the store. Forrest (that was the name of little Mars) asked his father to buy him some chocolate. At that time, chocolate was only sold by weight. It was, to put it mildly, not very convenient. Customers quickly got dirty with it. It was at that moment that Frank thought, why not start selling small pieces of chocolate wrapped in foil? The idea seemed promising to him. After talking with his wife, he came to the conclusion that it was worth a try. Have tried it. The Milky Way bar became a hit in a matter of days. By 1925 Milky Way will be the recognized market leader. Sales will begin to grow annually, and the company will open more and more new markets for itself.

In the 1920s, Mars will have its own factory in the suburbs of Chicago. The staff of the company will begin to grow. All this will result in the emergence of new products, including the legendary Snickers chocolate bar, which is still one of the flagships. product line Mars.

Meanwhile, Forrest Mars is graduating from Yale University. Having received an excellent education, he was about to enter the world of business. Here there are certain differences regarding what happened. The fact is that historians have no consensus regarding this time. It is known that Forrest went to England, where he took up his own business not affiliated with Mars. According to one of the versions, it was his father who suggested that he try his hand and create his own business from scratch. But there is another version, according to which the relationship between father and son has seriously deteriorated, and as a result, Forrest left the United States to start his own business. Be that as it may, but Forrest started with his father's money (not counting the fact that Mars Jr.'s company received the exclusive right to produce Milky Way chocolate outside America). And this suggests that the father and son maintained some kind of connection, even if the second theory is correct.

In 1932, Forrest Mars acquires premises for a factory in Slow. After hiring several employees, he begins production. It is at this factory that another legendary bar will be born, which is in no way inferior in fame to Snickers - Forrest will call it Mars. It should be noted that the first steps in the production of chocolate bars were not easy for Forrest. He even had to give up the idea of ​​developing his own chocolate at first. Instead, he partnered with the Cadbury company.

Unlike his father, Forrest was not obsessed with only confectionery... The idea of ​​differentiation was not at all alien to him. It is not surprising that it was with his light hand that animal feeds such as Whiskas and Pedigree appeared in the company's assortment. But the main discovery of Forrest will appear a little later - they will be the now popular M&M sweets. It is a pity that Mars Sr. will no longer see this success of his son, since he will leave this world in 1934. He will die of heart failure.

"Melts in the mouth, not in the hands"

If Forrest's father came up with the famous Milky Way chocolate, then his son owns the equally famous M&M candies. The idea came to Forrest when he came to Spain to solve some of the problems associated with his business. There he saw the candies that became the prototype of M&M. The problem with most chocolates at the time was that they melted quickly in their hands. Especially on hot summer days.

This problem was solved by Forrest Mars with a special protective shell that covered all M&M candies. Thus, there was a sweetness that consumers dreamed of for a long time, tired of the chocolate melting in their hands. Needless to say, M&M becomes a staple of Forrest Mars' company overnight. At the same time, his success was so great that Mars Jr. decided to change the name of the company to M&M Ltd.

The next major step for Mars was the purchase of Uncle Ben's. This was another important diversification move. At the time, Uncle Ben's was one of the leaders in the instant rice market. With such a strong assortment of goods, Forrest began to visit America more and more often. And in 1964 he merged his company with his father's brainchild. The M & M / Mars company appeared, which already then amazed with its power and quantity successful brands in the product portfolio. However, there was no question of any entry to the stock exchange. Forrest believed that the company should remain the property of the family. At least until his death, it was pointless to talk about the sale of at least some part of the company.

Of course, all business magazines of the time wrote about Forrest's return to Mars. It was truly a momentous event for the whole of America. It's a shame that Forrest took such a step so late. The thing is that in the early 30s, my father really wanted young Mars to return to the company, but he refused. This was very upsetting for Frank, since when he was dying he was still in some disagreement with his son. However, in the end, Forrest returned and took the company a new course to new heights.

A revolution in management

Forrest Mars never advertised his wealth. He didn’t like it when they talked too much about him. He didn't like showing off on the covers of business magazines. He was absorbed in work, but was not at all interested in the attendant fame. The Mars device of that time was very much like the modern Apple. It was difficult to get any information about the company. Nevertheless, it is known about some revolutionary moves that Mars has taken in relation to its employees.

First, Mars had very tight control over product quality. Of course, until it was delivered as well as the Japanese, but the quality was monitored at Mars. At the same time, Forrest always got personal when certain problems appeared. He openly criticized those or other employees. However, this does not mean that he did not value employees. Not at all! He perfectly understood that the fate of his company depended on them, and tried to arrange the best conditions for them.

Second important point was that Mars abandoned personal accounts and any partitions separating employees from each other. This was done on purpose so that employees can feel like a team. In addition, this move allowed everyone to convey information much faster to another person, including the leader. Today, the organization of labor in this way is very popular (one office of the company "Sup", which owns LiveJournal, is worth something).

Finally, it should be noted that the company has its own employee training center. This happened in the middle of the 20th century, and it was a truly revolutionary innovation. Overall, this is just a small part of what Forrest Mars has done for the company. Today Mars belongs to the third generation of the family. To be more precise, her fate is decided by Frank's grandchildren - Jacqueline, Forrest Jr. and John. At the same time, they moved away from direct management of the company. The Director General Mars is hired manager Paul Michaels.

What is surprising is that Mars is still private company... Perhaps the largest privately owned company in the world. Judge for yourself, the company's revenue for 2007 was $ 25 billion. According to the data for the same year, the company employed 48 thousand people. Mars owns world-renowned brands in three industries: confectionery, animal food, rice (looking ahead, I will note that there is another one, about which a little below). I think you all know brands like Milky Way, M&M, Twix, Skittles, Snickers, Whiskas, Chappy, Pedigree, Incle Ben’s, Dove Chocolate, Bounty, Royal Canin and many others that are simply pointless to list.

Finally, Mars was the first to introduce beverage dispensers that were capable of accepting paper money. This is another area of ​​the company's activities that few people know about. However, this does not prevent the slot machines from bringing substantial profits to the Mars piggy bank.

Mars today

Today, the brand is trying to keep up with modern trends, and makes every effort to use high tech in their promotion, and at the same time to present their products more useful for health (yes, Mars is rejecting many harmful ingredients). In terms of technology, Mars was the first to start selling real goods through social network Facebook. The bottom line was that any Facebook member could give his friend or girlfriend a Mars chocolate. To do this, you just had to pay for the chocolate and indicate the recipient. Tom was sent a special code to his mobile phone, showing which in special partner stores Mars and Facebook, he could receive a chocolate bar.

Another popular social network called MySpace did not pass by the company. It launched the official Mars radio station, which was supposed to attract the attention of young people. At the same time, it is interesting that the company has relied on start-up groups that can quickly promote themselves with the help of this station.

Well, if we talk about sports, then Mars has changed the content of most of its products. So, the bar of the same name has become less high-calorie, and has lost various artificial flavors. In addition, in the UK, the brand constantly organizes promotions in order to attract the British to the problem. healthy way life.

Mars is a private, non-public, family-owned company. Ownership shares are distributed among the grandchildren of Frank Mars (estimates of the state - according to Forbes magazine, 2006):

John Mars, Chairman of the Board - $ 10.5 billion valuation
Mars, Forrest Edward Jr. - Estimated net worth $ 10.0 billion
Jacqueline Mars - net worth $ 10.4 billion
According to Forbes, members of the Mars family are ranked 27th, 28th and 46th on the planet's list of billionaires. The closeness of the company from the press does not allow us to accurately represent the degree of involvement of members of the Mars family in business management.