John Walker and Sons
Whisky distillers of Kilmarnock and producers of Johnnie Walker whisky
1820 John Walker, an Ayrshire farmer's son, started the business.
Prior to 1860 it was illegal to sell blended whisky. During that time John Walker sold a number of whiskies — notably his own Walker's Kilmarnock.
1852 The entire business was washed away by a cloud burst but John Walker restarted it
1865 John's son Alexander (1837-1889) produced their first blend, Walker's Old Highland.
1870 Alexander Walker introduced the iconic square bottle. This meant fewer broken bottles and more bottles fitting the same space. The other identifying characteristic of the bottle is the label, which is applied at an angle of 24 degrees. The angled label means the text on the label could be made larger and more visible.
The business used advertising shrewdly and made contacts abroad in days when such methods were novel.
Under John Walker, whisky sales had represented 8 percent of the firm's income; by the time his son, Alexander, was ready to pass on the company to his own sons, that figure had increased to between 90 and 95 percent.
1886 a private limited company was formed with John Walker's son and grandsons on the Board.
1893 Acquired the Cardow Distillery
From 1906 to 1909 John's grandsons George and Alexander II expanded the line and introduced the colour names.
1908 James Stevenson was the Managing Director. There was a re-branding of sorts. The whisky was renamed from Walker's Kilmarnock Whiskies to Johnnie Walker Whisky. In addition, the slogan, "Born 1820 - Still going Strong!" was created, along with the Striding Man logo, a figure used in their advertisements to this day, created by illustrator Tom Browne, in honour of the founder, and given the same name.
Alexander Walker developed the Red Label brand which was to become very successful.
1914 The company made several special high-grade whiskies: ‘’White Label’’ (six years old), Red Label (ten years old), and Black Label (twelve years old).
Johnnie Walker White Label was dropped during World War I.
1923 A public limited company was formed with the title John Walker and Sons Ltd. [1]
Sir James Stevenson, chairman of the Committee for the British Empire Exhibition, was managing director[2].
1925 The Distillers Company had acquired the greater part of the ordinary capital of the company[3]
1925 Second annual general meeting of shareholders was held at the registered office 12, Mark-lane, London, E.C.4, with Sir Alexander Walker (presumably chairman)[4]
1932 Alexander Walker added Johnnie Walker Swing to the product line, taking the name from the unusual shape of the bottle, which allowed it to rock back and forth.
1940 Sir Alexander Walker retired
1980 The company was part of Distillers Co
1986 Distillers was acquired by Guinness in 1986, and Guinness merged with Grand Metropolitan to form Diageo in 1997.
See Rob Walker as heir of the business