The story
Early history
Beecham began as the family business of Thomas Beecham (1820–1907). (Beecham would become the grandfather of music conductor Thomas Beecham, 1879–1961). As a boy, Beecham worked as a shepherd, selling herbal remedies as a sideline.
He later became a travelling salesman or peddler full time. His first product was Beecham's Pills, a laxative, in 1842. Subsequent success enabled him to open a shop in Wigan in 1847. Beecham opened its first factory in 1859, in St Helens, Lancashire, for the rapid production of medicines. In August 1859, Beechams created a slogan for Beecham's Pills: "Beechams Pills: Worth a guinea a box", which is considered to be the world's first advertising slogan. First appearing in the St Helens Intelligencer, the Beechams adverts would appear in newspapers all over the world, helping the company become a global brand. The phrase was first said to be uttered by a satisfied lady purchaser from St Helens, the founder's home town. Under the founder's son, Sir Joseph Beecham, 1st Baronet (1848–1916), the business expanded, but remained a patent medicine company and engaged in little research.
Later history
In 1986, the Beecham Group sold its numerous soft drink brands including Tango, Top Deck, Corona, and Quosh, as well as the UK franchises for Pepsi and 7 Up, to Britvic. The same year, Beecham acquired Norcliff Thayer from Revlon.
As the turn of the century approached, there were more significant mergers. In 1989, The Beecham Group plc and SmithKline Beckman merged to form SmithKline Beecham plc. In 2000, SmithKline Beecham and GlaxoWellcome merged to form GlaxoSmithKline.
A history of the company, Beechams, 1848–2000: From Pills to Pharmaceuticals, written by Thomas Anthony Buchanan Corley, was published in 2011.
From Wikipedia’s article on Beecham Group, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4