The company roots trace back to 1971 when friends
John Ferolito and
Don Vultaggio opened a beverage distribution business, Ferolito, Vultaggio & Sons, in
Brooklyn, New York. They used a
Volkswagen bus to work delivering reduced-price beer and soda to Brooklyn homes and grocery stores, and eventually acquired a small fleet of trucks. The company later transitioned from distributor to producer of
malt liquors, continuing their practice of selling at low prices. In 1990, they saw the success of
Snapple (also a
Long-Island-based company founded in the 1970s) bottled juices and teas, and attempted to make their product. To make the beverage stand out, they used bright, pastel packaging in "Big Can" tin cans. Vultaggio said the name was originally Santa Fe, in reference to the adobe-style house he lived in, but he felt it did not look right on the packaging. He went with Arizona even though he had never been to the state and, in fact, had not even traveled west of the
Mississippi River. According to Vultaggio's son Spencer, the can designs came from his mother, Eileen, whose
water cooler inspired the lemon tea can design and whose perfume bottle, along with Spencer's coloring books, inspired the green tea design.
Graphic designer Jean Pettine also worked on the initial designs; By mid-1993 the four AriZona teas each were available in 7.7- and 16-ounce sizes as well as in the big can, in more than 30 states, although a majority of their sales came from
New York,
New Jersey,
Detroit, and
Miami. By the end of 1994, AriZona Iced Tea was being sold in all 50 states, with estimated sales of $300 million a year, compared to an estimated $10 to $20 million in 1992 and an estimated $130 million in 1993. In 1994, the company moved their headquarters from Brooklyn to
Woodbury, New York on
Long Island. In 2024, the company opened AriZonaLand at its facility in the
Keasbey section of
Woodbridge Township, New Jersey, offering visitors a "Willy-Wonka-esque" tour of its factory, complete with a gift shop and museum.
Prices The
suggested retail price printed on the can has remained at 99 cents even with rising costs for the company and despite rising inflation. Retailers, however, can set their own price, with the company also producing cans without the 99¢ price on them as an option for retailers. In 2025, it was reported Don Vultaggio was considering raising the price on canned products, such as AriZona Iced Tea "tallboys", due in part to
tariffs imposed by the second Trump administration on imported fruit and
aluminum. Vultaggio stated, "I hate even the thought of it. It would be a hell of a shame after 30-plus years. … Our price has been dramatically bumped up because of this tariff talk." Vultaggio said, "I grew up in
Brooklyn, and I worked for $1 an hour. I respect the value of $1. And I’d say, 'if I can help people who do that and give them a refreshing beverage for an affordable price, why not?' And since I can afford to do it, why not continue to do it?" == Products ==