| The history of Dairy Queen is an impressive and | | | | were 1446 branches of DQ across America. After |
| inspiring one. Beginning with the imagination of a father | | | | another 5 years, that number had nearly doubled. It's |
| and son in Green River, Illinois, Dairy Queen exploded in | | | | hard to know exactly why the chain's popularity |
| popularity at a rate of growth unheard of either before | | | | expanded so quickly in those years. Perhaps it was |
| or since. Indeed, it seems that America and the world | | | | the desire of a war-exhausted nation to seek out |
| were ready for the product that DQ brought to the | | | | simple pleasures and family-friendly recreation in the |
| public, and that people everywhere had been craving | | | | post-war years, and Dairy Queen become a potent |
| this type of treat for a long time. | | | | symbol of that carefree lifestyle. The franchise system |
| The signature treat of Dairy Queen is of course its | | | | also allowed them to expand into parts of small-town |
| soft serve frozen dairy treats. The original frozen | | | | America on a scale that other chains could not, turning |
| treats were simple soft serve "ice cream" cones and | | | | DQ into a potent symbol of the typical small-town |
| were first sold during a trial run at a friend's ice cream | | | | American lifestyle. |
| shop in 1938. The price was 10 cents for "all you can | | | | In 1998 Dairy Queen was acquired by Warren Buffet's |
| eat", and the massive success of their sales that day | | | | conglomerate holding company Berthshire Hathaway. It |
| convinced them that they had developed a special | | | | continues to expand internationally, currently boasting |
| product. They then opened their first store in 1940, and | | | | over 5600 branches worldwide in 19 countries. Around |
| almost immediately began using a franchise system of | | | | 4600 of those branches are located within the USA. |
| expansion. | | | | With its status as the creators of soft serve and as a |
| When the United States went to war in 1941 there | | | | symbol of American life which is idealized by the world, |
| were 10 DQ branches. When the war ended the | | | | DQ's expansion around the globe was simply a matter |
| number quickly shot up to 100 branches in 1947, and | | | | of time. Dairy Queen is a true American success |
| then its exponential growth exploded. By 1950 there | | | | story. |