Thursday 31st October 1901
Packard used its famous ‘Ask the man who owns one’ slogan in their advertising for the first time. By the time this ad came out, Packard already had a prestigious owner on its side in New York millionaire William D. Rockefeller. Mr. Rockefeller previously drove Winton cars. An anecdote retelling the creation of Packard’s slogan is featured in many of the company’s histories, including, “Packard 1899-1945.” The following is the retelling that is used over and over again in Packard literature often with slight variation in the wording, but the gist always remains the same:
‘Time: 1902. Place: Office of J. W. Packard. His secretary speaks: “Here’s a letter from a man who wants information about the dependability of Packard cars.” Replies Mr. Packard: “Since we have no sales literature yet, tell him to just ‘ASK THE MAN WHO OWNS ONE.’” Thus was born the Packard slogan. This 43 year slogan expresses the confidence Packard has in its product.’