A Story of Sweet Success
For more than 60 years, the Dairy Queen system’s recipe for success has been simple.  It’s been a combination of hard-working people who own and operate restaurants and great-tasting food and tempting treats served in our establishments.

The founders of the Dairy Queen system were men and women who introduced a new kind of dessert treat and, in the process, developed the foundation of the franchising industry.  The history of the Dairy Queen system is a story of a unique product that created an industry.

Our phenomenal story began with a 10 cent sale of a then unnamed product on August 4, 1938, in Kankakee, Illinois.  A father and son in the mix plant business in Green River, Illinois, had been experimenting with a soft frozen dairy product for some time.  They contacted Sherb Noble, a good friend and customer, who agreed to run the “all you can eat” trial sale at his walk-in ice cream store.  Within two hours, he dished out more than 1,600 servings of the new dessert.