About
What did they do-ooo-ooo to make a Klondike® bar?
Allow us to introduce ourselves …
Although the Klondike® Bar has its roots in America, its name rings Canadian. It’s rumoured that the bar was named after the Klondike River in Canada’s west central Yukon Territory, which was the famous site of the 1890s Gold Rush.
The origins of the Klondike® Bar can be traced back to William Isaly, the son of Swiss immigrants, who founded the Isaly Dairy Company in Ohio, USA, during the early 1900s. (So next time you bite into one of our frozen cubes of deliciousness, you can yell, “Thank you Papa William!”— Or not.)
The original Klondike® Bar was handmade by dipping square slices of homemade ice cream into pans of rich, delicious Swiss milk chocolate. In the 1940s, the Isaly family had several dairy plants that supplied Klondike Bars to more than 300 of their dairy stores.
Until the 1970s, the Klondike® Bar was sold only in Pennsylvania and Ohio. In 1978, distribution expanded into Florida, followed by New York and New England. Finally, in 1982, a nationwide advertising and publicity campaign was launched with the tag, “What would you do for a Klondike® Bar?” Soon Klondike® Bars were available in the majority of U.S. supermarkets.
In 1993, Unilever acquired the Isaly Klondike Company, and in the late 1990s, the company introduced Klondike® Bars to Canada. Ever since then, our delicious frozen treats have been a favorite among Canucks of all ages!