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Allstate

The Allstate Corporation is an American insurance company, headquartered in Glenview, Illinois (with a Northbrook, Illinois address) since 2022. Founded in 1931 as part of Sears, Roebuck and Co., it was spun off in 1993, but was still partially owned by Sears until it became an independent company completely in June 1995. The company also has personal line insurance operations in Canada.

Allstate is a large corporation, and with 2018 revenues of $39.8 billion, it ranked 79th in the 2019 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue. Its long-running advertising campaign, in use since 1950, asks, "Are you in good hands?", and the recognizable logo portrays a pair of human hands.

In 1925, Sears held a national contest to decide the name of a new brand of car tires. After 2,253,746 name submissions from 937,886 participants, "Allstate" was chosen. Hans Simonson of Bismarck, North Dakota, received a $5,000 cash prize for his winning entry among a list of 31 he submitted. The trademark was officially registered on April 19, 1927, and the tires' new name made its debut in the spring 1927 Sears catalog.

The idea for Allstate Insurance Company came when insurance broker Carl L. Odell proposed to Robert E. Wood, his neighbor, the idea of selling auto insurance by direct mail. The idea appealed to Wood, and the proposal was sent to the Sears board of directors, which approved it. Allstate Insurance Company, named after Sears' tire line, went into business on April 17, 1931, offering auto insurance by direct mail and through the Sears catalog. This was in line with one of the objectives of a company to sell automobile insurance in the same manner as Sears sold its merchandise.

Lessing J. Rosenwald was Allstate's first board chairman, and Odell was named vice president and secretary.

In 1933, at the Century of Progress World's Fair in Chicago, Allstate's Richard E. Roskam sold insurance at a booth in the Sears pavilion.[citation needed] In 1934, Allstate opened its first permanent sales office in a Chicago Sears store.

In 1941, only about a quarter of US drivers had auto liability insurance. This led to the state of New York passing a law that established the financial responsibility of drivers for damage or injuries resulting from auto mishaps. That law inspired legislation in other states, and by the mid-1950s, nearly every state had some sort of financial responsibility law on its books.

In 1949, the Allstate Headquarters Building was completed at 3246 W. Arthington Street in Chicago as a part of the Sears, Roebuck and Company Complex. The midrise building is vacant (as of 2013) and in danger of demolition. The building is noted for its early postwar midrise construction. This location was vacated when the company relocated in the postwar years.

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