K&B Purple is better remembered than the original name of this drug store. Acquired by Rite Aid in 1997 the stores have all been repainted and the K&B brand is now gone.
Founding partners Gustave Katz and Sydney Besthoff opened their first
drug store in 1905 at 732 Canal Street. In 1911 a paper merchant with a large order of unwanted purple wrapping paper
sold the rolls of paper to Katz & Besthoff for his freight cost.
The unusual paper attracted such attention and word-of-mouth
advertising that purple became the drug chain's identifying
corporate color.
In 1977 the name of the corporation was officially changed from Katz and Besthoff to K&B, Inc. Managers believed that an overtly Jewish name would be a liability as the store expanded in the Gulf South region in 1977.
In 1963 I had my first drugstore cheeseburger, fries and a
fountain coke in the K&B at St. Charles and Broadway. I was hooked.
Later I found the burgers at Eddie Price's just down Broadway at Zimple
were even better. I remain engaged in a lifelong search for the perfect
burger.
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