The Hess Toy Truck

How An Oil Executive’s Goodwill Gesture To His Customers Became A Holiday Institution.

- Robert Klara

Driving his father’s tanker truck around Asbury Park, N.J., in 1933, 19-year-old Leon Hess probably had little inkling that he would become one of America’s most successful businessmen—and, almost as an afterthought, create one of the most successful holiday toys in history.

The business is petroleum colossus Hess Corporation. And the toy, of course, is the Hess Toy Truck, a yearly limited edition so popular that it always sells out. “Families across the country have a new truck to look forward to each year and know that it will be something special because of the quality,” said Toy Truck gm Justin Mayer. “They last for many years and the collection grows across generations within families.”