50 most iconic brands that built America

50 most iconic brands that built America

From The Excerpt by USA TODAY

April 16, 2026 · 17 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the 50 most iconic brands that have shaped America as the nation celebrates its 250th anniversary.

You can sip it. Zip it. Drive it. American brands do more than fill our lives, they shape who we are. As the nation marks its 250th anniversary, we decided to look at brands that capture America’s ingenuity and drive . From Motown to Harley-Davidson, these names tell a uniquely American story . Narrowing it down to the 50 most iconic? That was the tough part. Business Editor Jim Nelson and Business Reporter Ricardo Torres of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, part of the USA TODAY Network, join The Excerpt to look at some of the standouts from USA TODAY’s Iconic Brands series. Let us know what you think of this episode by sending an email to  podcasts@usatoday.com .  Episode transcript  available here .  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

People in this episode

Guests: Jim Nelson, Ricardo Torres

Topics covered

  • iconic brands
  • American ingenuity
  • business history
  • cultural impact
  • brand recognition

Keywords

  • iconic brands
  • American brands
  • business
  • history
  • cultural impact

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: USA TODAY, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, USA TODAY Network, Motown

Products: Harley-Davidson

Books & works: Iconic Brands series

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