UPS Capital history

The company also bought its first car, a 1913 Model T Ford, and attached a truck bed to its back.

In 1915, by which time the fleet had expanded to four cars and five motorcycles, the company began painting its delivery vehicles brown.

1915: The company begins painting its delivery vehicles brown.

The new logo kept the shield that had been part of the logo since 1919, though the shield was modernized with a more three-dimensional look.

The company also reintroduced air service (there was a badly-timed two-year venture started in 1929) offering two-day delivery to major East and West Coast cities.

1953: UPS begins a steady expansion of its common-carrier parcel business, through which it picks up parcels from anyone and takes them to anyone else; UPS Air is launched as a two-day air express service connecting major cities on the East and West Coasts.

1976: UPS enters the European market through the start-up of a delivery service in West Germany.

By 1980 UPS earned $189 million on revenues of $4 billion, shipping 1.5 billion packages.

When UPS then released information showing its net income rose 74 percent in 1981, labor relations worsened.

In 1982 UPS earned $332 million on $5.2 billion in sales.

The first such campaign, "UPS Saves You Money from the Ground Up," was launched in 1982.

Cofounder Casey was active in UPS management until his death in 1983.

The 300-plane fleet of the UPS overnight service handled 600,000 parcels and documents per day, making $350 million on $2.2 billion in sales in 1988.

By 1988 UPS's ground service was growing by seven percent to eight percent per year, and air service was growing by 30 percent per year.

In 1988, UPS won approval from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to operate its own aircraft, launching UPS Airlines.

Entering the field of overnight air delivery, the company started UPS Airlines in 1988.

In 1988, UPS received authorization from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to control its own craft, thereby formally turning into associate airline.

After a decade of seeing its reach grow throughout the Americas and Europe, in 1989 UPS extended service to the Middle East, Africa, and the Pacific Rim.

Another important development during this period came in 1995, when the corporation introduced a new stock purchase program that was open to all UPS employees--both full- and part-time; previously, only management was given the opportunity to buy the stock.

Some of the first television spots in the campaign aired during coverage of the 1996 Olympic Summer Games, professional basketball and golf competitions, and network television programs such as 60 Minutes and the NBC Sunday Movie.

The strike cost UPS $700 million in lost revenue, resulting in less than 1 percent sales growth for the year and a decline in profits to $909 million from the 1996 figure of $1.15 billion.

As the company approached its ninetieth anniversary in 1997, it looked forward to reaping the rewards of its global investment.

Aided by a UPS strike in 1997, the competition was beginning to nip at the heels of UPS by the turn of the millennium, prompting a change in marketing strategy and a repositioning of the brand.

One study found that the company transported more than half of the merchandise that consumers ordered over the Internet during the holiday shopping season at the end of 1998.

Near the end of 1998 United Parcel Service was considering a second traveling seminar to follow a successful road show it had conducted two years earlier.

A 1998 television commercial named "Ozone Monday" parodied Hollywood action films by showing a UPS deliveryman saving the day for a motion-picture crew frantically trying to work despite overwhelming difficulties.

UPS Capital was created in 1998 as a financial services division within UPS.

One study found that the company transported more than half of the merchandise that consumers ordered over the Internet during the holiday shopping season at the end of 1998. For example, by 1998 it was delivering 12.4 million packages and documents every day and had developed a system that could track the progress of each item.

"A Century of Business," Puget Sound Business Journal, September 17, 1999; Junior Achievement of Greater Puget Sound Hall of Fame Series; "Company History," UPS Website, accessed September.

Although UPS sold a 10 percent stake in the company to the public in November 1999 through newly created Class B shares, the Class A shares, which control 99 percent of the voting rights in the company, remain in private hands, mostly those of employees and retirees.

Not until 1999 were shares first offered to the public.

In 1999 company executives determined that UPS needed the added flexibility of publicly traded stock in order to pursue some larger acquisition targets.

1999: The company raises $5.47 billion through an initial public offering; the official name of the company is changed from United Parcel Service of America Inc. to United Parcel Service, Inc.

UPS's post-IPO acquisition spree began with the 2000 purchase of Challenge Air Cargo, a Miami-based freight carrier operating in Latin America.

The "What Can Brown Do for You?" campaign, developed by the Martin Agency, debuted in January 2002 with such television spots as "Mailroom Guy," "Logistics Manager," "Shipping Manager," and "CEO." The first ads reflected the all-inclusive approach UPS wanted to convey.

"UPS Unveils 'What Can Brown Do for You?' Ad Campaign." Business First, February 7, 2002.

During 2002 alone more than 10 television commercials were released, and there was a national print promotion, all of which cost UPS $45 million.

The "What Can Brown Do for You?" campaign had its debut during the telecast of the opening ceremony of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games and appeared later that year during the Academy Awards.

Later in 2002 UPS launched an extension of the "What Can Brown Do for You?" campaign.

At the end of fiscal year 2002, UPS's domestic revenue was virtually stagnant.

To highlight its rebranding, UPS introduced a new logo in 2003, abandoning the brown-and-white bow-tied package that had been used for 40 years.

Further, international revenue for UPS increased by approximately 25 percent in 2003, from $4.6 to $5.5 billion.

In 2003, UPS issued its first company property report, highlight the importance of balancing economic, social and environmental objectives. currently an annual report, it tracks the company’s key performance indicators relevant to the business.

2003: Most of the United States locations of Mail Boxes Etc. change their names to the UPS Store.

With its large-scale print and online advertising and a broadcast campaign that ran during the 2004 Olympic Games—in which the company promoted its Express Delivery Service in the United States—DHL created increasing competition for UPS.

DHL's overall revenue growth of nearly 8 percent in 2004, along with $30 billion in sales, made it a serious competitor.

Further, the early success of the UPS rebranding prompted another global advertising campaign, "Deliver More," which was launched in 2005.