Preview
  • A Secret History of Brands

  • The Dark and Twisted Beginnings of the Brand Names We Know and Love
  • By: Matt MacNabb
  • Narrated by: Matt Godfrey
  • Length: 6 hrs and 22 mins
  • 3.8 out of 5 stars (5 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

A Secret History of Brands

By: Matt MacNabb
Narrated by: Matt Godfrey
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $17.19

Buy for $17.19

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

We live our lives immersed in name-brand products. It's hard to drive down the street without seeing a plethora of chain restaurants, car dealerships, branded clothing; they're all around us. What most of us don't know is that the origins of many of the most well-known and beloved brands in the world are shrouded in controversy, drug use, and sometimes even addled with blatant racism.

A Secret History of Brands cuts through the rumors and urban legends and paints a picture of the true dark history of famous brands, like Coca-Cola, Hugo Boss, Adidas, Ford, Bayer, Chanel, and BMW among others. Explore the mystery of the cocaine content of Coca-Cola, the Hitler-Henry Ford connection, and why Bayer is famous for aspirin but began their journey with heroin, and how Kellogg's Corn Flakes were crafted to deter sexual arousal. Thoroughly researched, MacNabb details firsthand conducted interviews alongside fairly weighed research to present the decisive view of brands histories that you haven't heard of yet.

©2017, 2018 Matt MacNabb (P)2021 Tantor
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about A Secret History of Brands

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    3
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1
  • 4 Stars
    3
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 3 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Mostly a Deep historic dive into a few brand’s seedy past

A lot of history surrounding pre-world war 2 German companies and what they did during the war and their affiliation with the Nazi party. Then a few stories about US companies focusing on what can only be described as disturbed owners and their fringe views or deranged tendencies. I was hoping for less deep dive and more of the quirky interesting stories. Leading off with the history of Coca Cola was the best portion of the book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!