Watch with free trial
Sign in
The Mega-Brands That Built America
The Mega-Brands That Built America

The Mega-Brands That Built America

—The innovations, failures and incredible achievements of some of the most successful businesses in history, from megastores like Costco and Walmart to shipping giants like FedEx and UPS, that forever changed the way Americans live.
4 seasonsDocumentary, HistoryTV-PG
Essential planBundle+ plan
Watch with free trial
Compare plans
HISTORY channel logo
7-day free trial (new users only), then $25 + tax per month.
Cancel anytime. See terms.

Coming Soon

    Ideas That Stick
    Racing to the Top
    The Underwear Boom
  • Ideas That Stick

    A husband's homemade bandage, a college dropout's breakthrough adhesive and a factory worker's wartime fix transform simple strips of tape into indispensable American icons, creating a $90 billion industry, one sticky invention at a time.
    Upcoming
  • Racing to the Top

    A down-on-his-luck mechanic transforms outlaw moonshine racing into a major American spectator sport, overcoming rivals, setbacks, and financial crises to build a billion-dollar sports empire.
    Upcoming
  • The Underwear Boom

    P.H. Hanes sparks a revolution in American underwear, but rivals answer with breakthrough designs, bold branding, and a wartime windfall, transforming an unmentionable necessity into a $100 billion global industry.
    Upcoming

Watch Now

Season 14 of 4 Episodes

  • Founding fathers of the biggest retail stores in the world battle to be the first to innovate, build, and revolutionize the industry; one of the top businessmen of the 20th century, Sam Walton, will construct the world's largest retail empire.

  • A century ago, shipping packages was slow and shipping overnight was impossible, until two Seattle brothers risk everything to reinvent shipping packages for all; a tenacious Yale graduate creates a world-famous express delivery service.

  • The evolution of America's most beloved sports of baseball, basketball and football are made possible by the innovations of sporting goods pioneers named Spalding, Wilson, and the Rawlings brothers.

  • James Gamble and Harley Procter invent a revolutionary new soap that revolutionizes America and opens up a market to entrepreneurs in the late 1800s, when Americans rarely bathed and deadly diseases were commonplace.

Record to Watch Later

13 episodes will be broadcast over the next two weeks

    Easy Money
    Sneaker Head-to-Head
    Suite Dreams: Birth of the Modern Hotel
    The World in Your Palm
    The Retail Reckoning
    Hardware Warfare
    End of the Landlines
    Music on the Move
    Wipe Out the Competition
    Rise of the Office Machines
  • Easy Money

    A small piece of plastic revolutionizes the world of commerce in the middle of the 20th century; Diners' Club, Bank of America and American Express race to change how people pay for everything, kicking off the $6 trillion dollar credit card industry.
    Upcoming
  • Sneaker Head-to-Head

    Two sneaker companies become industry titans through a decades long battle for global dominance, as they unleash iconic footwear that will bring sneakers mainstream and make them part of the fabric of American culture.
    Upcoming
  • Suite Dreams: Birth of the Modern Hotel

    Two visionaries breathe new life into the hotel industry in America and the world by setting the modern standard for hospitality; despite setbacks, economic downturns and international conflict, these rivals will stop at nothing to be number one.
    Upcoming
  • The World in Your Palm

    The biggest names in computers go head-to-head in a race to create the first portable computers; through failures, alliances and the return of an American icon, they'll usher in their first ever handheld device.
    Upcoming
  • The Retail Reckoning

    Three American retail icons are born within months of each other in 1962, sparking a rivalry for the ages.
    Upcoming
  • Hardware Warfare

    Family-owned hardware stores become behemoth brands who battle it out taking big risks, ushering in new innovations and betting it all in a race to become the number one hardware store chain in America.
    Upcoming
The Mega-Brands That Built America

More about The Mega-Brands That Built America

The innovations, failures and incredible achievements of some of the most successful businesses in history, from megastores like Costco and Walmart to shipping giants like FedEx and UPS, that forever changed the way Americans live.

Subscribe to Enjoy 70+ Channels

Watch and record live TV with a Philo subscription

One Subscription.
Endless Entertainment.
Unlock live TV, binge-worthy shows, hit movies, and more. Starting at $25/month.
View plans
  • The Fast History Of
  • Land of the Giants: Titans of Tech
  • The Titans That Built America
  • The Machines That Built America
  • The Toys That Built America
  • The Booze, Bets and Sex That Built America
  • The CEO Series
  • The Disruptors
  • The Food That Built America
  • The American Presidency With Bill Clinton
  • SpongeBob SquarePants
  • The First 48
  • The Golden Girls
  • Tyler Perry's House of Payne
  • 90 Day Fiancé
  • Fatal Attraction
  • Love After Lockup
  • For My Man
  • Martin
  • Everybody Loves Raymond

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Philo is a live TV streaming service that offers two plans to fit your entertainment needs:

    Essential ($25/month): 70+ live channels and over 75,000 movies and shows on-demand. New users get a 7-day free trial!

    Bundle+ ($33/month): Includes all the channels and entire streaming library available in the Essential plan, the entire AMC+ library, and access to HBO Max Basic with Ads plan and discovery+ included.

    Both plans: offer 1-year unlimited cloud DVR, let you stream on up to 3 devices at once, create up to 10 profiles, and cancel anytime with no contract.

    Free Channels: Not ready to subscribe? You can also enjoy Free Channels with no credit card required—simply create your account and start watching.

  • Yes! New users that sign up for the Essential plan can try it free for 7 days. You can explore our channels, features, and content before your subscription begins. No contract required—cancel anytime before your trial ends with no charges.

    • An email address
    • A future payment method
    • A broadband internet connection
    • A supported device
    Philo devices
    Web, iPhone & iPad, Android phones & tablets, Roku, Fire TV, Samsung TV, VIZIO TV, LG TV, Apple TV, Android TV, and Chromecast via Android
  • Yes! You can record an unlimited amount of live or upcoming content to your cloud DVR and save them for up to a year. No equipment needed!
    Save
  • Nope! No hardware is required, ever. Philo's DVR is already built into the app, so there's nothing to plug in, set up, or pay extra for.

    With an Essential or Bundle+ subscription, you get unlimited DVR storage included, and your recordings are saved for a full year. If you're watching with the Free Channels, recordings are saved for 30 days.

  • Yes! You can enjoy tons of premium television and movies by upgrading your Philo subscription plan with add-ons.

    Here is a list of our available add-ons:

    • HBO Max Standard (ad-free): Watch HBO Originals and hit movies ad-free for $13 more per month. Live sports included (in HBO Max app).
    • discovery+ (ad-free): Stream hit reality shows, documentaries, and more without the ads - all for $8 more per month.
    • Movies & More: Watch award-winning films, cult classics, celebrity stories, documentaries, and more - for $3 more per month.
    • AMC+ (ad-free): Enjoy ad-free access to the entire AMC+ library for $4 more per month.
    • MGM+ (ad-free): Stream thousands of the latest hits, fan favorites, original series, documentaries, and comedy specials for an additional $8/month.
    • ALLBLK (ad-free): Stream original series, independent films, nostalgic Black cinema, reality, and lively stage plays for $7 more per month.
    • Hallmark+ (ad-free): Watch exclusive originals, reality shows, rom-coms, cozy mysteries, heartfelt dramas, and beloved holiday movies for an additional $8/month.
    • STARZ (ad-free): Enjoy today’s hits, classic movies, and bold original series for an additional $12/month.
  • HBO Max:
    • Sign up for the Bundle+ ($33/month) plan.
    • Go to your Philo account page and follow the steps to activate your HBO Max Basic with Ads plan account.

    discovery+: Sign up for the Bundle+ ($33/month) plan.