The name was inspired by Wimpy from the Popeye Cartoon, which was created by E.C. Segar. Sadly, all the Wimpy locations in the United States started going under after the death of the owner.
While the rights and trademark were never purchased from the Gold’s after the owners death, there are still some locations open in the UK.
Sandy’s
Instead, they ended up opening a new chain of burger joints, which they made to imitate their competition.
Sandy’s lasted for a good 20 years before McDonald’s eventually took over and Sandy’s shut down.
Wimpy
The Wimpy brand was established by Edward Gold in 1934, in Bloomington, Indiana. The first shopfront was established in Chicago that same year.
In 1954, Wimpy’s was introduced to the United Kingdom as “Wimpy bar”. The chain quickly expanded into a massive 1,500 locations worldwide.
Wetson’s
Reading Wetson’s slogans “Look for the Orange Circles,” and “Buy a bagful,” might make you feel a bit of déjà vu. Especially if we remind you of the very similar, pre-existing slogans of McDonald’s and White Castle respectively.
Overall, Wetson’s was a mixture of all the fast-food joints put together.
Wetson’s
Because it was a mixture of everything, it quickly started to gain popularity and the company grew, with over 70 locations at its peak.
Wetson’s was named after its founder, Herbert Wetanson. In 1975, the mishmash company merged with the hot dog chain, Nathan’s Famous. But the brand was eventually shut down altogether.