In the industry, Rex Cola has always been considered the desert cola. Its popularity tracing a route from the high plateaus of New Mexico and Arizona where John Steam would winter, through Nevada, Oregon and Idaho and reaching its northernmost range in the Battlefords region of Central Saskatchewan.

It was the one of the first virtual industries really. There were individual manufacturers in each small town or city. John would provide them with recipes, instruction manuals for creating a bottling facility out of old car parts, all such basic requirements. And then on his yearly tours he would just pass on marketing advice, give them whatever new ad captions and concepts he'd had on the drive over from the last town.