Walkers crisps exist because a Leicester butcher couldn't get enough meat to sell in the late 1940s — not because anyone set out to build the UK's biggest crisp brand from scratch.
A butcher's shop response to rationing
Henry Walker founded Walkers in Leicester in 1948. He was a butcher by trade, and post-war meat rationing was squeezing that side of the business, which pushed him toward crisp production as an alternative product line — a fairly unglamorous, practical origin for a brand that would go on to dominate UK snack aisles.
Becoming the UK's biggest crisp brand
Walkers grew steadily through the second half of the 20th century before being acquired by PepsiCo in 1989, folding it into the American company's much larger global snacks portfolio alongside brands like Doritos and Lay's. Under that ownership it became, and has remained, the UK's leading crisp brand by sales for decades.
Flavours and the "Do Us a Flavour" era
The core range has long centred on Ready Salted, Cheese & Onion, Salt & Vinegar and Prawn Cocktail. In 2008 and again in 2013, Walkers ran "Do Us a Flavour", a public competition inviting people to invent new flavours, which generated huge press coverage and a rotating cast of limited-edition bags built entirely from public submissions.
Gary Lineker and three decades of ads
Gary Lineker has fronted Walkers advertising since 1995, built around gags that play on his clean-cut, ex-England-striker image being undermined by mischievous ad scenarios. It's now one of the longest-running celebrity sponsorship deals in UK advertising.
Frequently asked questions
How did Walkers crisps start?
Walkers began in 1948 in Leicester, founded by Henry Walker, a butcher who turned to making crisps partly because meat rationing after the Second World War was limiting his usual trade.
Who owns Walkers crisps?
Walkers has been owned by PepsiCo since 1989, when the American food and drinks giant acquired the UK crisp maker and folded it into its snacks division.
Since when has Gary Lineker advertised Walkers?
Gary Lineker has fronted Walkers advertising since 1995, making it one of the longest-running celebrity sponsorship deals in UK advertising history.