Skip to main content
Sweet 'N Low Logo
snl-cleft

The Story of
Sweet'N Low

More than fifty-five years ago
Sweet'N Low® was a radical innovation.
Now it's a familiar part of the American landscape.

treble-cleft
1945
1945-1

New Beginnings

World War II was finally over, and with it had gone the uniformed customers of Ben Eisenstadt’s Brooklyn Navy Yard cafeteria. With four kids and two newly immigrated in-laws to support, Ben needed to find a way to make a living.

After selling the eatery’s fixtures, Ben had just enough money to purchase one tea-bag machine. Vague memories of working at a tea factory as a child (probably illegally) prompted his business interest in the tea industry. It was this machine that would forever change Ben’s life.

1957

Today's Special:
Innovation

During a rare lunch out with his wife Betty, Ben ordered a cup of tea and attention turned to the sugar bowl. Betty had long decried fly-swarmed sugar bowls as unsanitary. “Wouldn’t it be nice if sugar came in individual bags, like tea?”

Ben then realized that packing sugar couldn’t be much different from packing teas and the idea of the individual sugar packet was born.

1957
1945-2

Ben, Marvin And
One Sweet Idea

Working together, Ben and his son Marvin came up with the idea of a single-serve zero calorie sugar substitute packet. The name was inspired by Ben’s favorite song, “Sweet and Low.” The pink color was chosen so the packets would stand out in the sugar bowl. With the brand look and name established, Sweet’N Low received Federal Trademark Registration No. 1,000,000.

1963
1963

Enjoying
Sweet’N Low
at Home

For the first 6 years of being in market, Sweet’N Low was only available in restaurants and coffee shops. In 1963,
Sweet’N Low made its debut in grocery stores so people could pick up a box of their favorite zero calorie sweetener and enjoy its sweetness at home.

1960s
1960s

Being Sweet
in NYC

Sweet’N Low began running local advertisements in New York City. Pictured is Marvin Eisenstadt next to one of Sweet’N Low’s first New York City bus advertisements. The photo was taken in front of the Sweet’N Low office in Brooklyn, NY, which is still home to our business today!

1968
1968

What a
Wonderful Fan

On December 19th, 1968, Louis Armstrong wrote a letter to our offices in Corona, NY expressing his love of our little pink packet.

"Dear Sweet’N Low Folks, I just want to tell you that Sweet’N Low picks me up and is just right for my diet. Since I use lots of it, I wonder if I could order direct from the company? I buy large orders. Anyway, let me know if I can buy maybe a carton or so, or something or other. Yea! Regards, Satchmo Louis Armstrong"

1980s
1980s

Our TV Debut

As our business grew, Sweet’N Low continued to share its sweet message in new places. Throughout the 1980s, a number of television commercials were developed to show consumers why our little pink packet was the number one sugar substitute.

2009
2009

A Gift
From 1966

On July 15th, 1966, Sweet’N Low issued a coupon that had no expiration date. A customer redeemed it on March 4th, 2009. Even after 43 years in the coupon caddy, Sweet’N Low is still "Wherever You Go."

Present
Present

We’re Still
Based in Brooklyn

We’re still based in Brooklyn, on the site of Ben’s original diner, sweetening the rest of the world one little pink packet at a time.

treble-cleft-bottom
Sweet Art  
Vintage Labels