Perrier, a sparkling planetary success.
 

According to Perrier history, during the Punic Wars that pitted Rome against Carthage, Hannibal* stopped near a spring of refreshing carbonated water after crossing Spain on elephant back. It was only at the end of the nineteenth century that Louis Perrier, a doctor from Nîmes**, bought the "Bouillens" spring and began to operate it. In financial difficulty, he sold it in 1903 to an Englishman, St John Harmsworth.


St John immediately renamed the spring after its former owner and began to distribute Perrier throughout the British Empire. The famous Perrier bottle was inspired by the Indian clubs that he used for his physical therapy (St John was a paraplegic). In 1947, the spring was sold to Gustave Leven, a young Parisian stockbroker. Within four years, France had become Perrier's main market.

 

The company went on to buy Contrexéville in 1954, then launched a line of soft drinks and bought out a number of regional springs before going international. Popular slogans such as "Perrier, c'est fou!" contributed to its growth. From 1976 on, Perrier had its greatest success in the United States, where the brand accounted for 80% of all imported water!

The 1990 benzene crisis put a temporary halt to Perrier's expansion, although it has since become the world's leading carbonated mineral water. In a 1992 takeover bid, Perrier was brought into the Nestlé Group.

*Hannibal: General of the Carthaginian army.
** Nîmes: a city located in Southern France