9 Things You Didn't Know About Tropicana
Over the years, Tropicana has experienced a tremendous amount of success. Still, the founder, Anthony T. Rossi, experienced many rounds of trial and error before he found his niche in the industry.
After countless times of being bought and sold again, experimenting with different types of packaging methods and product production, and almost getting beat by the tough competition; Tropicana still remains as one of the most well-known juice brands in the world. Move over, Minute Maid — Tropicana is here to stay.
Wondering where it all began? These nine facts will tell you everything you need to know about the juice icon.
It All Started with $30
In order to chase his dream of becoming a traveling filmmaker, founder Anthony T. Rossi emigrated from Naples to the United States in 1921. With nothing but $30 in his pocket upon arrival, he quickly discovered the countless opportunities to make money in New York City. The hustle and bustle of the big city awakened his inner entrepreneur, inspiring him to start his own company.
The Founder Sold Tomatoes Before He Sold Oranges
Though Rossi liked New York, he longed to live in a climate similar to his native Sicily. After initially moving to Virginia, he eventually made his way to Bradenton, Florida, where he grew and sold tomatoes.
The Orange Juice Originally Came From Leftover Fruit
After taking a stab at the farming and restaurant business, Rossi switched gears and began selling gift boxes of Florida citrus fruit. After he would pack the fruit into the gift boxes, there would always be fruit leftover. To put them to good use, he would squeeze the smaller, leftover oranges into juice and ship them in glass bottles with the baskets. Once the juice gained popularity, he decided to try his luck in the beverage industry, and he named the juice product Tropicana.
Tropic-Ana Helped It Take Off
In the 1950's, the companies seeing the most success were those who used mascots to market their brand on television. To keep up with his competition, Rossi created "Tropic-Ana." With her iconic pigtails and basket of Tropicana oranges balancing on her head, she allowed the brand to establish itself in the consumer market and become a recognized company nationwide.
It Built Its Own Glass Container Manufacturing Plant
...and it was the first to do so. To keep up with supply and demand, Tropicana built its own glass plant in 1964. Five years later, they did the same with plastic.
It Is the World’s Only Global Citrus Business
By the mid-1970's, Tropicana had expanded to Bermuda, the Bahamas, and several countries in Europe. Though Minute Maid was consistently on its tail, Tropicana remained the top brand for chilled juice all throughout the '70s.
It Was Purchased for $490 Million
In August of 1978, Tropicana was sold to Beatrice Company for $490 million in cash and stock. Think that's a lot? It was later sold to The Seagram Company Ltd. for $1.2 billion in 1988.
It’s Part of PepsiCo Beverages & Foods
In 1998, Seagram sold Tropicana to PepsiCo, Inc. for $3.3 billion. After doing so, it adopted the name Tropicana Products, Inc., which it still holds today. Before that, it was simply Tropicana.
Rossi Was Chairman, CEO, and President Until He Was 77
In 1977, Rossi gave up presidency of the company, allowing vice president Kenneth A. Barnebey to take over. Before doing so, many press articles often discussed Rossi having the "inability to let go" of the company he worked so hard to build.