Cover Story
(April 2007)Cover Story
(April 2007)One Family's century of ingenuity, innovation, and determination benefits the coin-op industry.
One
hundred years ago, people had never heard the word computer. They didn't have
cell phones or even regular phones for that matter! A trip to the grocery store
did not usually involve an automobile and the vision of traveling the world in a
day was the stuff of vivid imaginations.
Also,
nearly one hundred years ago, Northwestern Corp. began. On Aug. 12, 2009, to be
exact, Northwestern Corp. will celebrate 100 years in business as the premier
manufacturer of bulk vending equipment.
Northwestern's
Tristin Bolen told us, "My great-grandfather jump started Northwestern on a
journey that would eventually touch millions of children's lives. After all, how
cool is it when you are four or five years old and you get to put money (that
feels like your own) into a magical prize machine? With the turn of the handle
some sort of creative goodie that you could snack on, add to your collection, or
play with on the way home is dispensed right into your hand."
Rewind
98 years to the beginning of the Northwestern story, which strangely enough
began in a Marion, Ind., saloon! Emerson A. Bolen spent his early 20s as an
adventurous traveling salesman, selling fireless cookers and blackboards in
South America and Africa. While in Africa, he also volunteered as a teacher in a
mission school. Although he loved the challenge he couldn't stay. Emerson's
sweetheart was waiting for him back in Indiana, so after three years he returned
home to get hitched.
Opportunity
recognized
Now,
being a gentleman of the time, Emerson enjoyed stopping off at the local saloon
for a nickel beer. It was during one of these visits that he had an epiphany. In
those days it was customary for saloon keepers to have their bar tops stocked
with free kitchen matches for the clientele to use to light their cigars at
will. Unfortunately for the keepers, many of their patrons would leave with a
handful of these courtesy matches for further puffing pleasure at other
locations. Obviously, this behavior took a bite out of the bottom line. After
listening to the complaints of a particular saloon keeper friend, Emerson saw
potential.
He
imagined a small bar top device that would hold about 100 matches in a locked
compartment. A lever would extend out and when it was depressed a single
solitary match would raise up through a slot in the machine's top. When the
customer grasped the matchstick and pulled, the match head would rub against an
abrasive strip and ignite. The customer could then enjoy the hospitality of the
saloon without being able to take advantage of the saloon keeper's generosity!
This
clever apparatus became known as the Yankee Clipper, named for a cigar cutter
that Emerson conveniently built into the device's actuating lever. He wasted no
time in boarding a train bound for Chicago, Ill., intent on finding somebody who
could manufacture his invention. There he met with the Coleman Hardware Co. and
it was suggested that Emerson take his model and drawings down to Coleman's
foundry located in Morris, Ill., 65 miles southwest of Chicago. After a number
of cast iron samples were in his possession, Emerson was eager to see what kind
of sales reception the Yankee Clipper would have. It turned out he was in the
right place to test the mechanism.
Company
formed
The
small river town of Morris had a total of 23 saloons, the perfect place to put
the Yankee Clipper to the test. A few days later 21 of the 23 saloons had
purchased Emerson's invention! The machine literally sold itself and by this
time the Yankee had caught the attention of local investors. Tristin said,
"So it was on Aug. 12, 1909, that my great-grandfather, along with Earl D.
Fuller and Frank H. Hayes, formed the Northwestern Novelty Co. with $3,000
capital."
He
added, "The Northwestern Novelty Co. sold about 100,000 Yankee Clippers in
the first nine months; the unit retailed for $2. Not bad at all for 1909!
Unfortunately,
a year later in 1910 the safety match became quite popular and the free kitchen
matches were history. Undaunted, Emerson found a way to get a piece of the
safety match business with his matchbox vending machine. The vendor accepted one
penny for a box of matches and was the first in a long line of coin-activated
machines the company would produce. The matchbox vending machine was priced at
$2.70 and Northwestern sold half a million of them before it was discontinued.
Again, not too shabby!
Emerson,
who had no formal training in engineering or design, began developing his own
versions of other vending machines, including a stamp vender and the all
important gumball vender. In 1922 Emerson saw an opportunity with a machine that
automatically produced chocolate-coated ice cream bars. A model of the machine
was perfected, but the company needed investment to bring the new machine to
market. That year, Northwestern Novelty Co. became The Northwestern Corp. and
issued stock to 80 local investors. The ice cream bar machine did very well, but
industry changes made it more feasible for the company to refocus its efforts on
the vending machine business.
A
new business model
In
1927 Emerson called on his son, Waldo Bolen, to join the business just as he was
finishing up at Marquette University. After Waldo joined the company it changed
its business model to begin designing and building machines for the new
professional vending operators, instead of individual retailers. Waldo was
quoted in a 1959 interview: "When The Great Depression came along you had
no chance to sell a vending machine to a retailer, who couldn't even pay his
utility bill. So we decided to build our machines for operators."
Northwestern's
introduction of the Penny Merchandiser in 1931 was a quantum leap for bulk
vending since it was designed to sell many different products in addition to
gumballs. This new versatility allowed operators to try different products in a
given location without having to change out machines and parts. Northwestern was
doing everything it could to expand the bulk vending industry's horizon.
This
trend of innovation continued with other notable vending machines, such as the
Model 33, which was offered in a variety of colors complementing its art deco
styling, and the Deluxe, which in 1936 offered the first real defense against
slugs. The Triselector, also from 1936, sported one coin mechanism and three
different merchandise compartments so customers could select their choice of
what they wanted. In 1949 the Model 49 had a far out design concept that allowed
operators a much faster service routine. Impressive advancements, but
Northwestern was just getting warmed up.
It
should be noted that while all of this innovation was going on, The Northwestern
Corp. was also involved in wartime ammunition production for the U.S. military,
first during World War II (WWII) and again during the Korean War. On Feb. 1,
1944, Northwestern was presented with the prestigious Army and Navy
"E" Award for excellence in production. Northwestern's WWII ordinance
included 2.5 million 37 MM steel cartridge cases, four million rifle grenades,
and 250,000 75MM brass cartridge cases; during the Korean War Northwestern
produced M5 cases for the 105 MM Howitzer shell and 20 MM brass cartridge cases.
In
1957 Waldo's eldest son, W.E. "Pat" Bolen Jr., joined the company
after graduating from the University of Arizona. Soon after Pat joined the
company the Golden 59 was introduced to mark Northwestern's 50th anniversary.
One year later the Model 60 arrived as an improved version of the 59. The Model
60, and later the Super 60 came to be known as the superior workhorses of the
bulk vending industry.
Survival
and Innovation
Not
long after the Model 60, Northwestern was dealt a crippling blow: A devastating
fire destroyed the entire factory in only a few short hours. All that survived
was a warehouse containing stock machines. Tristin tells of his grandfather's
resolve, "My grandfather was grief stricken at first, but was determined to
carry on, a feeling I'm sure is all too familiar for the Play Meter family after
Hurricane Katrina. A rebirth at the site began. The surviving warehouse was
converted into a functional production facility within a few months.
Waldo
Bolen Sr. sadly did not get to see the full recovery of Northwestern; he passed
away in October 1960. Pat stepped into the presidency and the company
flourished, developing several new interactive vending ideas, like the
Apollo-shaped Moon Rocket and the talking vender, Mouthy Marvin.
In
1979 Pat's brother, Richard K. Bolen (Tristin's dad), took the reigns at
Northwestern. "My father had worked for the company on and off for many
years as an engineer, quietly designing new machines and making existing venders
better. Now he was about to hit a home run with his latest creation!"
Tristin explained.
The
Model 80 took the National Bulk Vendors Association (NBVA) convention by storm
the year it was introduced. It promptly became the large-capacity vender that
every serious operator wanted. Eventually many different versions of this
ingenious machine were being produced. The 80 Series started out at a modest
height of 19 inches, but today you can order them all the way up to 50 inches
tall!
The
Northwestern Corp. rounded out the 20th Century with a handful of new classics,
including the upscale Triple Play in 1990, easily the most elegant tri-vender
ever produced. In 1995 the Pro Bowl with a capacity of 5,000 gumballs was
Northwestern's entry into the giant gumball machine craze. "My personal
favorites, however, are the Kiosk and the High Rise, set-ups that pushed the
envelope of where and what bulk vending could be, especially in the newest wave
of shopping malls," Tristin noted.
So
the story goes that the world's largest bulk vending operator began his business
with a single Northwestern machine. "I like that story, but I like a
product that sells itself even more...with innovation and creative energy,"
Tristin elaborated.
He
concluded, "These days things are crazier than ever at Northwestern, now
that yours truly is on board. I can't say whether my great-grandfather, my
grandfather, or my uncle would have believed this family vending machine
business would be around for almost 100 years, but I do know they would be proud
to see it."
"Mon, can I have a nickle?"
Beside a new Model 60 this little customer
smiles for the camera.
It looks like he has his nickel clutched in his fist!
An original Yankee clipper, which was produced in 1909;
100,000 were sold before the safety match box
was introduced and came into favor.
Northwestern's Triselector (circa 1936)
added to many a saloon's decor!
Northwestern equipment being readied to ship.
Is that John Wayne on the left?
Waldo Bolen (r) is given a demonstration
of the new Model 60, which would have
an enormous effect on the bulk vending industry
The REAL Northwesterns:
the Super 60 and the Super 80
The Pro Bown has the capacity to stock 5,000 gumballs
Northwestern's Kiosk features two rotating levels
of machines, allowing many location possibilities