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Latest revision as of 19:58, 27 July 2024 edit undoKinsio (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Rollbackers440 edits add more rcats reflecting merge and the fact that this name referred to the company before the merger |
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#REDIRECT ] |
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{{Short description|Brand name}} |
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{{Rcat shell| |
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{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2022}} |
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{{R from merge}} |
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{{About|the company prior to its merger with ]|the company after the merger|ExxonMobil}}{{Distinguish|Exon}}{{More citations needed|date=October 2009}} |
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{{R from short name}} |
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{{infobox company |
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{{R from predecessor company name}} |
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| name = Exxon Corporation |
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| former_names = |
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| logo = Exxon_logo_2016.svg |
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| logo_size = 170 |
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| image = 1251 Avenue of the Americas.JPG |
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| image_size = 200 |
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| image_caption = ] (1251 Avenue of Americas), former headquarters of Exxon |
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| type = ] (1911–1999) |
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| industry = ] |
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| predecessor = {{plainlist| |
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* Standard Oil of New Jersey (1911–1973) |
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* ] (1911–1973) |
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}} |
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}} |
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| successor = ] |
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| founded = {{Start date and age|1973|1|1}}<ref name=nyt>Smith, William D. (June 22, 1972). . '']''.</ref> |
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| founder = <!-- or: | founders = --> |
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| defunct = |
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| fate = Merged with ] to form ] in 1999; ''Exxon'' remains as a brand |
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| hq_location_city = ] |
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| hq_location_country = U.S. |
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| area_served = Worldwide |
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| key_people = |
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| products = {{plainlist| |
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* ] |
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* ] |
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* ] |
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* ] |
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}} |
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| owner = |
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| num_employees = |
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| num_employees_year = <!-- Year of num_employees data (if known) --> |
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| parent = |
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| brands = {{plainlist| |
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* ] |
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* ] (1960–1972) |
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* Humble (–1972) |
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}} |
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| website = {{URL|https://www.exxon.com}} |
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}} |
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'''Exxon Corporation''', formerly known as the '''Standard Oil Company of New Jersey''' until 1973, was an American ] and descendant of ] which merged with ] to form ] in 1999.<ref name=nyt/><ref>{{Cite web|title=Exxon Corporation {{!}} American company|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Exxon-Corporation|access-date=February 8, 2021|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref> Once one of the ] that dominated the global petroleum industry, Exxon was one of the largest companies in the world, being one of the top five companies on ] between the first edition of the list and the year of its merger with Mobil and reaching the #1 spot on the list a few years between 1970 and 1995.<ref>{{cite web|title=A Guide to the ExxonMobil Historical Collection, 1790-2004: Part 1|url=http://www.lib.utexas.edu/taro/utcah/00352/cah-00352.html|website=Briscoe Center for American History|publisher=The University of Texas at Austin|access-date=January 17, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Fortune 500: 1998 Archive Full List 1-100|url=https://archive.fortune.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500_archive/full/1998/|access-date=February 16, 2022|website=]}}</ref> |
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Today, Exxon is used as a brand name for some gas stations operated by the now-merged company, as well as for ] operations selling motor fuel and related products (the highest concentration of which are located in ], ], ] and in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern states). |
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== History == |
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=== Background === |
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In 1959, Standard Oil Company of New Jersey secured full control of Humble Oil and restructured it into its U.S. marketing and refining division, to market nationwide under the Enco, Esso, and Humble brands. Enco was created as an acronym for the phrase "Energy Company". Humble introduced the Enco brand in 1960 in ] and surrounding states, to replace Humble's subsidiary Oklahoma and Pate brands. Humble also tried marketing under Enco in ], but ] protested that the Enco name and logo (a white oval with a blue border and red lettering) too closely resembled that of Esso. Consequently, stations in Ohio were rebranded as Humble and remained so until the Exxon brand came into use. |
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After the Enco brand was discontinued in Ohio, it was moved to other non-Esso states. In 1961, Humble stations in Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and ] were rebranded to Enco. That same year, Enco appeared on former Carter stations in the Midwest and the Pacific Northwest. |
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In 1963, Humble Oil and ] began negotiating a sale of Tidewater's West Coast refining and marketing operations. The sale would have given Humble Oil many existing Flying A stations and distributorships, as well as a refinery in ], the nation's fastest-growing gasoline market. However, the ] objected to the sale on anti-trust grounds. (In 1966, ] bought Tidewater's western properties and rebranded all Flying A outlets to ].) |
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Humble Oil continued to expand its West Coast operations, adding California to its marketing territory, building many new Enco stations, and rebranding others. In 1967, Humble Oil purchased all remaining Signal stations from ] (]) and rebranded them as Enco outlets, greatly increasing Enco's presence in California. Finally, in 1969, Humble Oil opened a new refinery in ]. |
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In 1966, the U.S. Justice Department ordered Humble Oil to "]" from using the Esso brand at stations in several southeastern states, following protests from ] (Kyso), which was a Standard Oil of California subsidiary in the process of rebranding its Standard stations to Chevron. By 1967, Humble Oil's Esso stations in the Southeast were rebranded to Enco. |
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In the 1960s and early 1970s, Humble Oil continued to have difficulties promoting itself as a nationwide marketer of petroleum products, despite a number of high-profile marketing strategies. These included the popular "Put a Tiger in Your Tank" advertising campaign and accompanying tiger mascot created by American illustrator ],<ref name="society">{{cite web | url=https://www.societyillustrators.org/society-mourns-loss-robert-goodhue-jones | title=The society mourns the loss of Robert Goodhue Jones | access-date=July 12, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.exxonmobil.com/Corporate/history/about_who_history_alt.aspx| title=ExxonMobil - Our History| access-date=February 13, 2010}}. 1959 as the year of the final slogan message is also mentioned by: ], ''Tiger in Your Tank: The Anatomy of an Advertising Campaign'' (1969), p. 32.</ref><!--Different persons are credited with originating the slogan, such as Austrian born American-based psychologist and marketing expert ], British artist ] or Chicago copywriter Emery Smith, cf. http://www.petcaretips.net/famous_cats_tony_tiger.html--> to promote Enco Extra and Esso Extra gasolines. Humble Oil also used similar logotypes, use of the Humble name in all Enco and Esso advertising, and uniform designs for all stations regardless of brand. In addition, Humble Oil was a major promoter and broadcast sponsor for college football in the Pacific-8 (now ]) and Southwestern conferences. |
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But Humble Oil still faced stiff competition from national brands such as ] and ], which at that time was the only company to market under one brand name in all 50 states. By the late 1960s, Humble officials realized that the time had come to develop a new brand name that could be used nationwide. At first, consideration was given to simply rebranding all stations as Enco, but that was shelved when it was learned that the word "Enco" is similar in pronunciation to the Japanese slang term ''enko'', meaning "stalled car" (an abbreviation of ''enjin no kosho'', "engine breakdown").<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,879122,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080902010819/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,879122,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 2, 2008|title=On with Exxon|access-date=December 25, 2008|work=] |date=May 22, 1972}}</ref> |
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Prior to its purchase by Standard Oil of New Jersey, Humble Oil had conducted a study titled "Radiocarbon Evidence on the Dilution of Atmospheric and Oceanic Carbon by Carbon from Fossil Fuels" in 1957.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ucsusa.org/about/news/new-evidence-reveals-fossil-fuel-industry-funded-cutting-edge-climate-science-research|title=New Evidence Reveals Fossil Fuel Industry Funded Cutting-Edge Climate Science Research Dating Back to 1950s | Union of Concerned Scientists}}</ref> |
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=== Exxon Corporation === |
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{{multiple image |
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|align =left |
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|total_width= 400 |
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|image1 = Humble Gas Station photograph.jpg |
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|image2 = Seattle_-_Pedestrians_at_Jackson_St._and_Empire_Way,_1961_(26631589818).gif |
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|footer = Starting in 1973, Humble (left) and Enco gas stations were rebranded to ''Exxon'' |
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}} |
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The company changed its corporate name from Standard Oil of New Jersey to "Exxon Corporation".<ref name="NYT19721025"/> Once Exxon was officially constituted on January 1, 1973, the company replaced the ], ], and ] brands in the United States. ''Exxon'' established as the new, unified brand name for all former Enco and Esso outlets. <ref name=nyt/><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1973/03/10/it-will-grow-on-you|title=It Will Grow On You|last=Brooks|first=John|date=March 3, 1973|work=]|access-date=May 14, 2018|language=en|issn=0028-792X}}</ref> The Esso name was a trademark of Standard Oil Company of New Jersey and attracted protests from other ] spinoffs because of its phonetic similarity to the acronym of the name of the parent company, ]. As a result, Standard Oil Company of New Jersey was restricted from using Esso in the U.S., except in those states awarded to it in the ].<ref name="NYT19721025">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1972/10/25/archives/and-now-the-esso-name-is-history-the-esso-name-is-history-now.html | title=And Now the Esso Name Is History | first=William D. | last=Smith | newspaper=The New York Times | date=October 25, 1972 | access-date=January 11, 2018}}</ref> |
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The company initially planned to change its name to "Exon", in keeping with the four-letter format of Enco and Esso. However, during the planning process, it was noted that ] was the governor of Nebraska. Renaming the company after a sitting governor seemed ill-advised. George T. Piercy, a senior member of the board of directors suggested adding an X resulting in the new EXXON name. |
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In states where it was restricted from using the Esso name, the company marketed under the Humble or Enco brands. The Humble brand was used at Texas stations for decades, as those operations were under the direction of Standard Oil Company of New Jersey affiliate ]. In the middle to late 1950s, the use of the Humble brand spread to other southwestern states, including ], ], and ]. |
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The rebranding came after successful test-marketing of the Exxon name, under two experimental logos, in the fall and winter of 1971–1972. Along with the new name, Exxon settled on a rectangular logo using red lettering and blue trim on a white background, similar to the familiar color scheme on the old Enco and Esso logos. |
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] |
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The unrestricted international use of the popular Esso brand prompted Exxon to continue using it outside the U.S. Esso is the only widely used Standard Oil descendant brand left in existence. Others, such as ], maintain a few Standard-branded stations in specific states in order to retain their trademarks, and prevent others from using them. |
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On March 24, 1989, in what is regarded as one of the worst ]s in American history,<ref name="NYT20131209">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/09/booming/lessons-from-the-exxon-valdez-oil-spill.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/09/booming/lessons-from-the-exxon-valdez-oil-spill.html |archive-date=January 1, 2022 |url-access=limited | title=Lessons From the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill| first=Henry | last=Fountain | newspaper=The New York Times | date=December 9, 2013 | access-date=January 13, 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref> a tanker owned by Exxon, the '']'', crashed into ], ] its cargo of over ten million gallons of crude oil into the ] in ]<ref name="NYT19890402">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/04/02/weekinreview/ideas-trends-oil-exacts-a-price-from-the-earth.html | title=Ideas & Trends; Oil Exacts A Price From The Earth | first=William K. | last=Stevens | newspaper=The New York Times | date=April 2, 1989 | access-date=January 13, 2020}}</ref> and causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of seabirds and sea mammals.<ref name="NYT19900301">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/03/01/us/exxon-valdez-the-spill-the-cleanup-and-the-charges.html | title=Exxon Valdez: The Spill, the Cleanup and the Charges | newspaper=The New York Times | date=March 1, 1990 | access-date=January 13, 2020}}</ref> The ship was piloted by a captain with a history of drunk driving convictions,<ref name="NYT19890328">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/03/28/us/captain-has-history-of-drinking-and-driving.html | title=Captain Has History of Drinking and Driving | first=Timothy | last=Egan | newspaper=The New York Times | date=March 28, 1989 | access-date=January 13, 2020}}</ref> and Exxon was ordered by a jury to pay punitive damages in the amount of $5 billion. This judgment was eventually reduced, after multiple appeals, to just $500 million by 2008.<ref name="NYT20080626">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/26/washington/26punitive.html | title=Damages Cut Against Exxon in Valdez Case | first=Adam | last=Liptak | newspaper=The New York Times | date=June 26, 2008 | access-date=January 13, 2020}}</ref> |
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As a result of the ], in July 2020, Exxon announced deep spending and job position cuts in order to save an 8% shareholder dividend. According to Reifinitiv Eikon data, the company experienced a $2.63 billion loss and their shares were down by 35%.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-exxon-mobil-cuts-exclusive/exxon-prepares-spending-job-cuts-in-last-ditch-move-to-save-dividend-idUSKCN24V2RP|title=Exxon prepares spending, job cuts in last ditch move to save dividend|publisher=]|author=Jennifer Hiller, Ron Bousso, Dmitry Zhdannikov|date=July 30, 2020|access-date=August 8, 2020}}</ref> Later, in October 2020, Exxon released a statement which expanded on the planned cuts, stating that 15 percent of the company's global workforce would be fired over the next two years, including layoffs of 1,900 U.S. jobs, reducing the total global workforce by 14,000 employees.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Exxon to cut global workforce by 15 percent, including 1,900 U.S. jobs|language=en-US|work=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/exxon-to-cut-global-workforce-by-15-percent-including-1900-us-jobs/2020/10/29/efbc31e6-19da-11eb-aeec-b93bcc29a01b_story.html|access-date=October 30, 2020|issn=0190-8286}}</ref> In February 2021, Exxon announced that in 2020 it registered a loss of $22.4 billion, adding that it was planning to invest $3 billion in the next four years. <ref>{{Cite news|date=February 2, 2021|title=Exxon plunges to first loss in decades as pandemic chokes off demand|language=en-GB|publisher=]|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55907863|access-date=February 8, 2021}}</ref> |
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==Exxon Office Systems== |
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Under the guidance of its paid consultants at Boston Consulting Group, Exxon announced in the 1970s that it would compete against IBM and Xerox. The mantra was "Information Is the Oil of the 21st Century". It launched Exxon Office Systems, and the early 1980s, Exxon retailed its fax machines and software through ].<ref>{{cite news |last=Pollack |first=Andrew |title=Exxon Closes Plant and Lays Off 1,100 in Office Company |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/12/02/business/exxon-closes-plant-and-lays-off-1100-in-office-company.html |access-date=October 14, 2018 |work=The New York Times |date=December 2, 1981 |quote=To beef up its marketing, Exxon is selling its electronic typewriters through Sears, Roebuck & Company's new business equipment stores.}}</ref> The venture failed since "the giant oil company failed to fully realize the subtleties of managing small high-tech companies."<ref>{{cite news |last=Potts |first=Mark |title=Exxon to Quit Office-Systems Business |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/business/1984/11/28/exxon-to-quit-office-systems-business/16cdefe3-1664-48f9-9e8a-a3b6e51988ed/?noredirect=on |access-date=October 14, 2018 |work=The Washington Post |date=November 28, 1984 |quote=Analysts repeatedly have rapped Exxon for its performance in office systems, saying that the giant oil company failed to fully realize the subtleties of managing small high-tech companies.}}</ref> Exxon announced the closure of the venture at the end of 1984.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Jean-Louis Gassée |title=The Exxon Delusion |url=https://mondaynote.com/50-years-intech-part-4-the-exxon-delusion-d92ada84f6e |access-date=October 14, 2018 |work=Monday Note |date=September 16, 2018}}</ref> |
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==Recent years== |
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] |
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In 1989, Exxon announced that it was moving its headquarters, including about 300 employees, from ], New York City to the ] area of ]. Exxon sold the ] (1251 Avenue of the Americas), its former headquarters in ], to a unit of Mitsui Real Estate Development Co. Ltd. in 1986 for $610 million. John Walsh, president of Exxon subsidiary Friendswood Development Company, stated that Exxon left New York because the costs were too high.<ref>Pearson, Anne and Ralph Bivins. "". '']''. Friday October 27, 1989. A1. Retrieved on July 29, 2009.</ref> In 2009 Exxon partnered with Turner Ridge Capital Management to develop and finance their U.S. alternative energy infrastructure.{{citation needed|date=June 2019}} |
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In 2016, ExxonMobil successfully asked a U.S. federal court to lift the aforementioned trademark injunction that banned it from using the Esso brand in various states. By this time, as a result of numerous mergers and rebranding, the remaining Standard Oil companies that previously objected to the Esso name had been acquired by ]. ExxonMobil cited trademark surveys in which there was no longer possible confusion with the Esso name as it was more than seven decades before. BP also had no objection to lifting the ban.<ref name="CSP">{{cite web | url=http://www.cspdailynews.com/industry-news-analysis/corporate-news/articles/return-esso-gasoline|title=The Return of Esso Gasoline?|date=February 16, 2016|publisher=CSP Daily News| access-date=September 18, 2016}}</ref> ExxonMobil did not specify whether they would now open new stations in the U.S. under the Esso name; they were primarily concerned about the additional expenses of having separate marketing, letterheads, packaging, and other materials that omit "Esso".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.law360.com/articles/740293/after-78-years-exxon-asks-court-to-use-esso-name-again|title=After 78 Years, Exxon Asks Court to Use 'Esso' Name Again|date=December 21, 2015|publisher=CSP Daily News| access-date=September 18, 2016}}</ref> |
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==Corporate image== |
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] |
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The rectangular Exxon logo, with the blue strip at the bottom and red lettering with the two 'X's interlinked together, was designed by noted industrial stylist ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2013/11/5/5068132/raymond-loewy-the-man-who-designed-everything|title=Raymond Loewy: the man who designed everything|last=Savov|first=Vlad|date=November 5, 2013|website=The Verge|access-date=August 29, 2017}}</ref> The interlinked 'X's are incorporated in the modern-day ExxonMobil corporate logo; in mid-2016, as part of a corporate rebranding accompanying the launch of ExxonMobil's "Synergy" fuel products, the mixed-case Exxon wordmark from the ExxonMobil corporate logo became the brand's main logo.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.cspdailynews.com/fuels-news-prices-analysis/fuels-news/articles/exxonmobil-debuts-synergy-fuel-imaging|title=ExxonMobil Debuts Synergy Fuel, Imaging|work=CSP Daily News|access-date=September 20, 2018|language=en}}</ref> |
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In 1985, ] introduced an autofocus SLR camera system named "Maxxum" in the United States. Originally, cameras (such as the ]) lenses and flashes used a logo with the X's crossed in 'MAXXUM'.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://basepath.com/images/PhotoArticles/big/MaxxumCrossedXX.jpg| title = Minolta Maxxum camera with original crossed 'XX' logo}}</ref> Exxon considered this a violation of their trademark, and as a result, Minolta was allowed to distribute cameras already produced, but was forced to change the stylistic 'XX' and implement this as a change in new production.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://basepath.com/Photography/Minolta7000.php |title=Minolta Maxxum camera with modified double 'X' logo |access-date=July 3, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927141857/http://basepath.com/Photography/Minolta7000.php |archive-date=September 27, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> ExxonMobil similarly sued ] over its cable channel ], but the parties agreed to dismiss the suit in October 2015.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/fox-exxonmobil-hit-brakes-fxx-833113|title=Fox, ExxonMobil Hit Brakes on "FXX" Trademark Dispute|work=The Hollywood Reporter|access-date=September 20, 2018|language=en}}</ref> |
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== Branding == |
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] |
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Exxon is ExxonMobil's primary retail gasoline brand in most of the United States, with the highest concentration of retail outlets located in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas, and in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern states. The Exxon brand also has a market presence in the following metropolitan areas: |
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{{Div col|colwidth=20em}} |
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* Atlanta |
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* New Orleans |
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* Baltimore |
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* New York City Metro (New Jersey) |
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* Birmingham |
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* Philadelphia |
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* Charlotte |
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* Pittsburgh |
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* Dallas |
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* Raleigh |
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* Houston |
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* Richmond |
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* Memphis |
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* Miami |
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* Virginia Beach/Norfolk/Newport News |
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* Nashville |
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* Washington, D.C. |
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{{div col end}} |
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Mobil is the company's primary retail gasoline brand in California, Florida, New York, New England, the Great Lakes, and the Midwest. Esso is ExxonMobil's primary gasoline brand worldwide except in Australia, Guam, Mexico, Nigeria, and New Zealand, where the Mobil brand is used exclusively. In Colombia, Canada, and Egypt, as well as formerly Japan and Malaysia, both the Esso and Mobil brands are used, in which the latter was rebranded as Petron in 2013, and ENEOS for the former in 2019, respectively. The Mobil brand is applied to each Esso fuel tanks in Hong Kong and Singapore. |
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{{clear}} |
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==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
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== External links == |
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{{commons category}} |
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* {{official website}} |
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{{ExxonMobil}} |
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{{Standard Oil}} |
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{{Portal bar|Companies|United States}} |
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]<!--gas stations/convenience store--> |
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