Folgers was the leading brand of regular ground coffee in the United States in 2020 by a wide margin. The brand produced sales in excess of one billion U.S. dollars, double that of its next closest rival, Starbucks. The brand seems to America’s overall favorite, as it also leads the decaffeinated ground coffee category with 81 million dollars in sales.
Brand history
Folgers originally began as J.A. Folger & Co, a company founded in 1872 when James Folger bought out his partner in the Pioneer Steam Coffee and Spice Mills. After decades of successful family ownership, the company was acquired by Procter & Gamble in 1963 and then again by The J.M. Smucker Company in 2008.
Ground coffee dominance
Ground coffee, the category where Folgers is king, represents the biggest retail coffee market in the United States, worth over 2 billion dollars. Within this category, Folgers controls just over a quarter of the market. A recent survey confirms the sales figures, with nearly 40 percent of respondents stating that they used Folgers brand coffee in their homes.
