10. Xerox Sold Photography Paper Before The Xerox Machine
Xerox started out selling photography paper in New York at the turn of the century under the name The Haloid company. It wasn’t until the 1930s that their business model and indeed their fortunes would change.
After backing an invention by Chester Carlson, the company invested heavily in bringing his idea of a copier machine to the mass market.
After a number of years of trial and error and changing their name to Xerox, it was in the 1960s that the company established possibly the most successful invention of the decade as their revenues shot up overnight.
The cutting-edge technology behind the machines and their relative ease of use were huge factors in the popularity of the product from businesses all over the country.
With hundreds of millions of dollars coming through the door, the company was essentially printing money as they became the gold standard in the photocopying industry.