Larkin Company, "Supplement No. 1 to 1893 Premium List," July 1, 1893

John D. Larkin established a soap manufacturing company in 1875. He hired his brother-in-law, Elbert Hubbard, as a salesman. Hubbard developed "The Larkin Idea," a plan that sold goods directly to consumers through mail-order catalogs and offered incentivizing giveaways. It was a success. By the early 1900s, Larkin's catalogs contained pages of products and even more pages of premiums from which customers could choose.