🕰️ Echoes of Commerce: Milestones in May

From Root Beer Stands to Retail Giants, Innovations That Shaped Commerce and Changed the World`

Echoes of Commerce: Milestones in May

What started as “Today in Brand History” evolved into “This Month in Brand History”. Now, this series takes on a broader, more dynamic lens - one that captures the rich, often surprising milestones that shaped commerce as we know it. These aren’t just isolated dates on a calendar; they’re echoes from history -resonant signals that still inform how we work, create, connect, and consume today.

From iconic product launches to seismic shifts in communication and global trade, the events that took place in May reveal how innovation, risk, reinvention - and a bit of luck - can alter the trajectory of commerce. It’s not just about when a brand was born or a retailer opened its doors; it’s about the ripple effects that followed. These echoes give us context, and if we listen closely, they may even help us anticipate what lies ahead. And because history is never dry when it includes blue jeans, brain tonics, and the best damn egg salad sandwich on the planet - we’ve woven in a few fun facts for good measure.

May 1, 1840 – First Postage Stamp Issued

On May 1, 1840, the United Kingdom issued the “Penny Black,” the world’s first adhesive postage stamp​. For the first time, the sender of a letter could prepay postage by affixing a small stamped label, which cost one penny. This simple innovation revolutionized communication: it standardized rates and made mail service much more accessible and reliable, leading to an explosion in postal volume. Ushering in a new way of communication with consumers, the first mail-order catalog, "The Blue Book," was released by Tiffany & Co. just five years later.

Fun fact: The Penny Black featured a profile of a young Queen Victoria but notably did not include the country’s name – a tradition that continues on British stamps to this day​. Before stamps, the cost of delivery was often paid by the recipient (with many letters going refused). The prepaid Penny Black system was so successful in Britain that other nations quickly followed suit, introducing their own stamps and forever changing how we send information​.

May 1, 1851 – The Great Exhibition Opens

On May 1, 1851, the Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations opened in London’s Hyde Park. Housed in the spectacular glass-and-iron Crystal Palace, this first World’s Fair was a grand showcase of innovation and manufacturing from around the globe – from industrial machines and locomotives to textiles and fine art. The exhibition provided a powerful platform for showcasing goods, influencing consumer tastes, and fostering a new era of mass production and consumption. It was spearheaded by Prince Albert (Queen Victoria’s consort) to celebrate technology and promote international trade during Britain’s industrial peak.

Fun fact: The exhibition drew about six million visitors (roughly one-third of Britain’s population at the time) during its run​ – an unprecedented turnout for an event in that era. Profits from the hugely successful fair were used to endow new cultural and educational institutions in London (such as the Science Museum and the Victoria & Albert Museum), and many historians consider the Great Exhibition a milestone in globalization and the mass exchange of ideas.

May 1, 1941 – CheeriOats Cereal Introduced

General Mills launched CheeriOats on May 1, 1941 - an oat-based, ready-to-eat cereal that marked a turning point in breakfast innovation. It was the first cereal made from puffed oats, introducing a new manufacturing technique that would soon be adopted across the industry. Marketed as a health-forward option for American families, it delivered convenience during a time when nutrition and rationing were front of mind due to the looming war.

Fun fact: Owing to a trademark dispute with Quaker Oats, General Mills changed the product’s name to Cheerios in 1945. The name stuck - and the cereal has been a breakfast staple across generations. Today, over 500 million boxes of Cheerios are sold annually, including variations that have crossed into heart-health advocacy and nostalgia marketing.

May 1, 1962 – Target’s First Store Opens

On May 1, 1962, the very first Target store opened its doors in Roseville, Minnesota. Conceptualized as a more fashionable alternative to discount chains, Target offered consumers a combination of department-store flair and low prices in a one-story, 75-department format. The opening drew massive crowds, and within months, more locations followed across the Midwest.

Fun fact: That same year, the brand picked up a cheeky nickname: “Tar-zhay.” What began as a joking attempt to add faux-French elegance to discount shopping became a brand asset embraced by shoppers and even marketers - proof that brand affection isn’t always built by design.

May 2, 1670 – Hudson’s Bay Company Chartered

On May 2, 1670, King Charles II granted a royal charter to the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC), giving it monopoly trading rights over a vast swath of North America known as Rupert’s Land. Originally a fur trading empire, HBC evolved into a national department store chain that helped define Canadian retail for generations, with flagship stores anchoring downtowns and its iconic striped blankets becoming a cultural staple.

Fun fact: HBC once governed one-twelfth of the Earth’s land surface, a territory called “Rupert’s Land” - spanning from the Atlantic to the Pacific.  HBC remained Canada’s largest corporation well into the 1920s and is the oldest continuously operating company in North America...

Sad Footnote: But even legacies can fade - after more than 350 years, HBC is now in the process of closing its historic locations, a sobering reminder that no brand, however iconic, is immune to change.

May 3, 1978 – The First Unsolicited Marketing Email (“Spam”)

On May 3, 1978, a marketer named Gary Thuerk hit “send” on a single message addressed to nearly 400 users of ARPANET (the early internet) – thereby sending the world’s first spam email​. Thuerk worked for Digital Equipment Corp. and his mass email advertised an open house for new DEC computers in California. It was the first known instance of unsolicited bulk email. The reaction was mixed: while a few recipients were interested, many others were annoyed at this breach of digital etiquette, foreshadowing the love-hate relationship we have with marketing emails today.

Fun fact: In an unexpected win for the sender, Thuerk’s 1978 email blast resulted in about $12 million in sales for DEC​ – arguably making it one of the most successful single emails in history. He also earned a stern reprimand from ARPANET authorities, who told him not to do it again​. Of course, the genie was out of the bottle: by the 2000s, spam would comprise the majority of global email traffic (and spark an arms race of spam filters and anti-spam laws).

Fun fact, part two (Because I can): The term "SPAM" for unsolicited digital messages comes from a Monty Python sketch and yes - the original Monty Python sketch absolutely referred to the canned meat.

In the sketch, set in a British café, nearly every item on the menu includes SPAM (the Hormel-brand canned meat), whether the customers want it or not. When a woman tries to order something without it, the waitress keeps repeating dishes like “egg and SPAM, SPAM and bacon, SPAM egg sausage and SPAM…”

Meanwhile, a chorus of Vikings in the corner starts loudly chanting:

"SPAM, SPAM, SPAM, SPAM, lovely SPAM, wonderful SPAM!"

The gag was that SPAM was so omnipresent it couldn’t be avoided, just like the digital junk messages that would later flood early email and forums. So yes, the term “spam” as we use it today is directly rooted in the canned meat product, but filtered through the lens of absurdist British comedy.

And ironically, Hormel embraced the reference over time, even though it had nothing to do with the messages themselves.

May 4, 1904 – Rolls Meets Royce

At the Midland Hotel in Manchester on May 4, 1904, engineer Henry Royce met automobile dealer Charles Rolls for the first time - a pivotal encounter that led to the founding of Rolls-Royce. Royce had recently built a small, reliable 10-horsepower car that caught Rolls’ attention for its engineering precision and smooth performance. Within months, Rolls agreed to sell all the cars Royce could produce, and they formalized an agreement to brand them under the now-legendary name: Rolls-Royce.

Fun fact: Their introduction was arranged by mutual friend Henry Edmunds, often referred to as “the dash in Rolls-Royce” for connecting the two men. What began as a handshake agreement evolved into a global standard for refined travel - first on the road, and eventually in the air through Rolls-Royce’s legendary aero engine business.

May 5, 1921 – Chanel No. 5 Launches.

On May 5, 1921, Coco Chanel debuted Chanel No. 5 in her Paris boutique—a date intentionally chosen for its symbolic value, as Chanel believed the number five brought good fortune. Created by perfumer Ernest Beaux, the aldehyde-heavy formula was a radical departure from the floral, single-note fragrances that dominated the market. The perfume wasn’t just a product—it was a statement. By assigning it a number rather than a romantic name, and bottling it in a clean, minimalist flacon, Chanel disrupted both the visual and olfactory norms of the luxury fragrance industry. No. 5 became the first scent to be heavily marketed through mass media and celebrity endorsement, later immortalized by Marilyn Monroe, who famously claimed she wore nothing else to bed.

Fun fact: According to legend, Beaux accidentally added too much aldehyde to one of the trial versions, giving the scent its distinct sparkle and staying power. Chanel loved the result and chose that exact blend, forever linking a laboratory mishap to the most iconic fragrance in the world. Take risks folks, make mistakes - sometimes they sparkle!

May 6, 1998 – Apple Unveils the iMac

On May 6, 1998, Steve Jobs strode on stage in Cupertino to introduce the brightly colored Apple iMac G3, the first major product of his return to Apple​. The iMac, with its translucent Bondi Blue shell, all-in-one design, and built-in modem, was aimed at making it easy for consumers to get on the internet. It broke with convention by eliminating the floppy disk drive (one of the first PCs to do so) in favor of new USB ports. The striking look and user-friendly setup helped the iMac become an instant hit, signaling Apple’s comeback in the late 1990s.

Fun fact: The iMac’s playful aesthetic – at a time when most computers were beige boxes – literally changed the face of consumer tech. Apple couldn’t make iMacs fast enough to meet demand, and within a year, competitors were scrambling to release translucent, candy-colored gadgets of their own. The legacy of that original iMac lives on: it reinvigorated Apple’s brand, led to other category-defining products (iPod, iPhone, etc.), and proved that design innovation can be as game-changing as technical innovation​ in the realm of commerce.

May 7, 1946 – Sony Founded in Tokyo

Akio Morita and Masaru Ibuka established the company that would become Sony on May 7, 1946, originally naming it Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo (Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Corp.)​. In post-war Japan, resources were scarce – the startup began in a bombed-out department store and initially built whatever it could to generate cash, including a simple electric rice cooker and a heated cushion​. 

Fun fact: Because they worried about product failures, the founders sold their first electric cushions under a fictitious brand name to avoid tarnishing the new company’s reputation. Sony, of course, soon shifted to electronics and by the 1950s launched Japan’s first transistor radio and tape recorder, on its way to becoming a tech giant.

May 8, 1886 – Coca-Cola Served for the First Time

On May 8, 1886, Atlanta pharmacist Dr. John S. Pemberton sold the very first glass of “Coca-Cola” at Jacobs’ Pharmacy in downtown Atlanta​. Pemberton had concocted a caramel-colored syrup intended as a “brain tonic” and temperance drink; the soda fountain mixed it with carbonated water and customers found it “Delicious and Refreshing.” In its first year, this new beverage was not an overnight sensation – Jacobs’ Pharmacy averaged only about nine Coca-Colas a day sold in that initial year​.

Fun fact: The name “Coca-Cola” and its flowing cursive logo were actually created by Pemberton’s bookkeeper, Frank M. Robinson, who thought “the two C’s would look well in advertising.”​ Robinson’s naming intuition proved spot-on – today that scripted Coca-Cola logo is recognized in virtually every country. And yes, the original formula did contain a small amount of coca leaf extract – the source of cocaine – until it was removed in the early 1900s. Have a Coke and a Smile?

May 9, 1950 – The Schuman Plan for European Unity

On May 9, 1950, French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman announced a bold proposal to bind Europe’s economies together – an idea soon known as the Schuman Declaration​. He invited France’s recent foe, Germany (and other nations) to pool their coal and steel production under a single authority, as a way to make future war between them “not merely unthinkable, but materially impossible.” This plan led to the formation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the first step toward European economic integration and a forerunner of the European Union.

Fun fact: Because of its role in promoting lasting peace through trade, May 9th is celebrated as “Europe Day” in the EU​. The ECSC launched in 1951 with six member countries, and its success paved the way for deeper cooperation (expanding into the European Economic Community and eventually the EU). It all started with coal and steel in 1950 – a milestone showing how commerce can be harnessed to foster unity and reconciliation after war.

Yeah, I know you are thinking, "he could have cut this one out" - and I could have, but I liked it. Next time, write your own damn blog!!

May 10, 1869 – First U.S. Transcontinental Railroad Completed

On May 10, 1869, the “Golden Spike” was driven at Promontory Summit, Utah, joining the tracks of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific and completing America’s first transcontinental railroad​. For the first time, trains could travel from the Atlantic to the Pacific, transforming the United States: a trip that once took months by wagon or ship could now be done in under a week by rail. This engineering triumph opened vast new markets, allowing goods, people, and information to move cross-country with unprecedented speed. Oh, and one could say that there is an indirect correlation between the transcontinental railroad being completed and blue jeans being patented four years later (see below).

Fun fact: Telegraph lines were hooked to the final spike and hammer, so when the last spike was gently tapped in, the circuit closed and telegraphed the message “DONE” across the nation​. Cities from New York to San Francisco erupted in celebration – cannons fired, bells rang – all in real time. It was one of the first live national media events, uniting the country in applause for a moment of progress.

May 15, 1940 – Nylon Stockings Go on Sale

On May 15, 1940, nylon stockings went on sale to the public for the first time in the United States, and millions of American women flocked to stores to buy them. DuPont’s invention of nylon offered a synthetic replacement for silk that was stronger and didn’t run as easily, and its debut was nothing short of a sensation. In New York City, Macy’s and Gimbels sold out their stock of nylons within hours, and nationally, around 4 million pairs were snapped up in just four days after the product launch.

Fun fact: About 64 million pairs of nylon stockings were sold in the first year alone (at ~$1.35 a pair, about $21 in today’s money)​. The wartime years soon interrupted the nylon craze – by 1942, all nylon was requisitioned for parachutes and tents, causing a “nylon famine.” When stockings finally went back on sale after World War II, there were even “nylon riots” in some stores, as eager customers fought to get their hands on a pair of the coveted hosiery. Oof.

May 15, 1940 – First McDonald’s Opens

On May 15, 1940, brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald opened the very first McDonald’s restaurant at 1398 North E Street in San Bernardino, California​. Far from today’s golden arches, it was a drive-in barbecue stand called “McDonald’s Bar-B-Q,” complete with carhops serving meals to people in their cars. The menu featured barbecue ribs, ham, and baked beans, and the business did well serving motorists in car-crazy Southern California.

Fun fact: In 1948, the McDonald brothers decided to overhaul their concept – they closed down for renovations and re-opened as a streamlined hamburger stand with a novel assembly-line kitchen. This “Speedee Service System” minimized the menu to just 9 items (focused on 15-cent hamburgers and cheeseburgers) and eliminated the need for carhops​. That innovation made service ultra-fast and inexpensive, essentially inventing the modern fast-food model, setting the stage for McDonald’s to later franchise the concept and become one of the world’s largest restaurant chains.

Is that a fun fact? Well, it depends on how much you believe the movie...

May 15, 1974 – 7-Eleven Comes to Japan.

The first 7-Eleven convenience store in Japan opened its doors on May 15, 1974, in Tokyo’s Toyosu district. Though the brand was born in the U.S., this moment marked the beginning of a retail phenomenon in Japan that would eventually redefine convenience culture across the globe. Operated by Seven & i Holdings, the Japanese 7-Eleven model elevated the standard convenience store by focusing on freshness, cleanliness, and customer-centric service, evolving it into a one-stop daily life hub.

Fun fact: The first item ever sold at that Tokyo location? A pair of sunglasses. But the store quickly found its rhythm, becoming famous for onigiri rice balls, ready-made bentos, and perhaps most importantly - the best damn egg salad sandwich on the planet.

May 15, 1997 – Amazon.com Goes Public

On May 15, 1997, Amazon.com – then a young online bookstore – had its initial public offering on the NASDAQ, priced at $18 per share​. The IPO raised about $54 million, giving Jeff Bezos’s three-year-old company a market valuation of roughly $438 million​. Modest as that sounds now, at the time it was one of the internet’s most anticipated IPOs, and Amazon impressed Wall Street with its rapid growth and e-commerce potential despite still being unprofitable in those early days.

Fun fact: Amazon’s stock jumped 31% on its first day, closing at $23.50​ – a strong start. If you had bought $1,000 of Amazon shares on that day, they’d be worth close to $2M today. In fact, Amazon’s IPO valuation of under half a billion dollars now looks tiny; twenty-five years later, Amazon’s market cap was about 1,000 times larger​, as the company expanded from selling books to selling practically everything (and computing power, too). It’s a vivid example of how the digital commerce revolution took investors (and the world) by storm.

And if you are trying to double-check my math - NERD - it depends if you purchased it at its initial offering of $18.00, the opening at $29.75, or the close at $23.50 - and the number would be somewhere around $2.0M, give or take.

May 17, 1964 – Tim Hortons Starts Brewing

On May 17, 1964, Canadian hockey legend Tim Horton opened the first Tim Hortons coffee-and-doughnut shop in Hamilton, Ontario. The menu was simple - fresh doughnuts and coffee - but the brand’s promise of quality, consistency, and community resonated deeply. It quickly expanded into a national staple and cultural symbol in Canada, with the “double-double” coffee and chocolate-glazed doughnut achieving near-iconic status.

Fun fact: The original shop sold coffee for just 10 cents and a dozen doughnuts for 69 cents. That exact location still exists today, complete with a bronze statue of Tim Horton himself, standing as a reminder that some of the strongest brands start with humble beginnings and great coffee.

May 18, 2012 – Facebook’s Record-Breaking IPO

On May 18, 2012, Facebook Inc. held its long-awaited initial public offering, raising $16 billion and becoming the largest tech IPO in U.S. history up to that time. The social media giant’s offering valued the eight-year-old company at a stunning $104 billion (with over 900 million users worldwide) on its first day of trading. Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s hoodie-wearing CEO, remotely rang the NASDAQ opening bell from Facebook’s Menlo Park campus, as the company’s stock began trading under the ticker symbol FB.

Fun fact: Despite all the hype, Facebook’s stock barely rose on IPO day – it closed at $38.23, just 0.6% above the IPO price of $38​. Many investors were initially disappointed, considering it a flop in the short term. However, the flat first-day performance didn’t foreshadow the future: Facebook (now Meta) grew into one of the most valuable companies in the world in the ensuing decade. And Zuckerberg, only 28 at the time of the IPO, saw his personal net worth swell to an estimated $19 billion that day​ – not a bad milestone for a project that began in a Harvard dorm room.

May 20, 1498 – Sea Route to India Opened

On May 20, 1498, Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama reached Calicut, India, marking the first direct European sea route to Asia​. This voyage linked European markets directly with the spice riches of India and beyond, breaking the monopoly of overland caravans and Arab middlemen. It was a turning point in global trade, as goods like pepper and cinnamon could now flow to Europe by ship around Africa.

Fun fact: The spice cargo da Gama brought back to Portugal sold for an astounding 60 times the cost of his expedition​. That immense profit cemented Portugal’s interest in further voyages and kicked off an age of European competition for maritime trade routes.

AGAIN, MY BLOG - I love trade route history!

May 20, 1873 – Blue Jeans Patented

On May 20, 1873, Levi Strauss, a dry goods wholesaler in San Francisco, and Jacob Davis, a tailor from Reno, Nevada, were granted a U.S. patent for a new kind of workwear: riveted denim “waist overalls.” Their breakthrough was deceptively simple - reinforcing stress points like pocket corners with metal rivets - but it solved a real problem for laborers in the American West whose pants couldn’t hold up to the rigors of mining, railroad work, and ranch life. The patent came at a defining moment in American history. Just four years earlier, the transcontinental railroad had been completed, opening the West to commerce, migration, and opportunity. Levi’s rugged trousers became essential gear for men drawn west by the Gold Rush, the promise of land, or jobs building the infrastructure of a growing nation. Durable, affordable, and built to last, they weren’t a fashion statement - they were a tool.

Fun fact: The official patent title was an “Improvement in Fastening Pocket-Openings,” and the word “jeans” didn’t enter mainstream usage until nearly a century later. In 1873, they were simply called “waist overalls” - a humble name for what would become one of the most iconic and enduring garments in the world.

May 20, 1927 – Marriott Begins as a Root Beer Stand

On May 20, 1927, J. Willard Marriott and his wife Alice opened a tiny nine-stool A&W root beer stand in Washington, D.C., serving frosty mugs and hot food to summer crowds. It was on that very same day that Charles Lindbergh took off on his solo flight to Paris – and while Lindbergh made headlines, the Marriotts were quietly planting the seeds of a business empire. Their little stand (which they dubbed “Hot Shoppes”) proved so popular that it grew into a chain of restaurants and, eventually, the Marriott hotel company.

Fun fact: Marriott’s expansion into hotels didn’t happen until 30 years later – the company opened its first hotel in 1957 after decades in the foodservice business (the room rate was $9 per night + $1 per person). That original root beer stand, meanwhile, thrived by quenching thirsts in the D.C. heat, teaching Marriott the value of customer service. J. Willard Marriott’s guiding principle, “Take care of your employees and they’ll take care of your customers,” helped transform that one refreshment stand into a worldwide hospitality brand with thousands of properties today.

May 28, 1937 – Volkswagen Founded in Germany

The government of Nazi Germany – under Adolf Hitler – established Volkswagen as a state-owned company to build a “People’s Car”​. Known initially as Gesellschaft zur Vorbereitung des Deutschen Volkswagens mbH (soon shortened to “Volkswagenwerk”), the enterprise was set up to mass-produce an affordable automobile for average German families. Engineer Ferdinand Porsche was commissioned to design the car that would become the Volkswagen Beetle, intended to be cheap, simple to repair, and reliable for the everyman.

Fun fact: The Beetle far outlasted the regime that birthed it – it became one of the best-selling cars of all time worldwide. In 1972, the Beetle surpassed Ford’s Model T production record with over 15 million units, and ultimately, more than 21 million Beetles were produced before the last original Beetle rolled off the line in Mexico in 2003​. Not bad for a 1930s design – the little rounded “Bug” mobilized postwar Europe and remains an iconic shape in automotive history.

There You Have It Folks…

May’s milestones offer more than a stroll through history - they’re reminders that progress doesn’t always announce itself with fanfare. Sometimes, it shows up in a new kind of cereal, a redesigned computer, or a better way to fasten a pocket. These stories - some famous, others nearly forgotten - represent turning points where commerce moved forward because someone challenged convention or simply saw a need others overlooked.

The echoes of these moments still shape how we think, buy, and build. But they also ask a bigger question: What will tomorrow’s milestones sound like? Which of today’s experiments, pivots, or side projects will spark the next era of change? We don’t know yet. But history suggests they’re already in motion. And if we’re listening closely, we might just hear the future calling.

"You're still here? It's over! Go home!" - Ferris Bueller