George Stephen

• George Stephen was an employee of Weber Brothers Metal works in Illinois, mainly welding metal buoys for the coastguard. He is said to have also had a passion for grilling, seeing it as a great way to relax with his growing family. He was said to be dissatisfied with the flat open brazier, the most popular grill of the day, and so decided to work on his own design.

From Buoy to Grill

• While welding buoys in 1951, Stephen had the idea of using the bottom of the buoy as the cooking base for the grill and the top half as the lid, thereby creating the now famous and distinctive Weber Grill after adding a tripod at the bottom and a handle for the lid. After having trouble keeping the fire alight inside the grill, he drilled three holes in the top to provide the flames with oxygen and then the invention was complete. He then took his grill on the road, selling George's Barbecue Kettle to hardware stores around the country. Weber-Stephen Products was then established in 1958.

Entering Mass Production

• Despite the barbecue kettle costing $43 more than its main competitor, the flat open brazier set at $7, his design was wildly popular. In 1959 he employed 12 men who made 15,000 units that year. Sales grew slowly, generally between 15 and 30 percent each year, eventually becoming a household name in the midwest United States. By focusing on the higher end of the market, generally being neglected by its main competitors, the company began making profits of 40 percent a year throughout the 70s, making an estimated gross sales of between $15 million and $24 million, selling up to 800,000 units per year.

Trademark Status

• In the early 80s, Weber-Stephen had to fight to protect their trademark kettle design after it had been copied by dozens of foreign competitors at the National Hardware Show. This prompted a five-year legal battle.

The Rise of Gas

• By the mid-80s gas grills were beginning to make significant gains on the old charcoal grills. After trying and failing to incorporate gas into their grills in the 70s, in 1985, Weber-Stephen invested greatly in the technology to create their Genesis range of gas grills. These would eventually outsell the charcoal grills by 1995.

The Restaurants

• Weber-Stephen took a step into the restaurant business in 1989 by opening their first grill restaurant in Welling, Illinois. Food would be cooked on over-sized traditional Weber grills which patrons could see through a window. Mixed reviews of the concept meant growth of this side of the company was stalled. In 1999 and 2002, they opened two more branches, both in Illinois. The chain finally broke out of its Illinois heartland and opened a restaurant in Indianapolis in 2007. As well as offering the traditional burgers and chicken, they restaurants also serve up grilled pizzas, breaded tilapia and a variety of vegetarian options.