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Sometimes I think fondly on the America that was, during the height of the Chewing Gum Wars of the late 20th century. Combatants included Big Red, Doublemint, Bazooka, Big League Chew, Chiclets, and too many others to mention. They all had aggressive marketing campaigns, niche consumer bases, and seemingly an endless amount of hope and promises.
It was a different time. Everyone was chewing gum.
Today, The Chewing Gum Wars are mostly behind us, though nobody is entirely sure how or why they ended. There are many theories (HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE.)
Young people who don’t remember might ask, what is Juicy Fruit?
Juicy Fruit is an American brand of chewing gum made by the Wrigley Company, a U.S. company that since 2008 has been a subsidiary of the privately held Mars, Incorporated. It was introduced in 1893, and in the 21st century the brand name is recognized by 99 percent of Americans, with total sales in 2002 of 153 million units.
Flavor
Along with the standard flavor, they have also done collaborations with Starburst to release Fruit Punch, Cherry and Watermelon flavors.
Which fruit serves as the model for its flavor is kept vague in advertising, though in 2003, advertising agency BBDO characterized it as a combination of banana and pineapple, and some people say it resembles jackfruit. According to two books in the Imponderables series, peach is one crucial flavor among many others. It is likely that the chemical used for flavoring is isoamyl acetate (sometimes known as banana oil), a carboxylic ester, which is also found in jackfruit.
Consumer demographics
The average age of the typical Juicy Fruit consumer is under 20, with three to eleven year olds making up the heart of the business; those twenty years old and over account for 40% of the purchases. Sean Payton, former head coach of the New Orleans Saints of the NFL, is well known for requesting Juicy Fruit in the middle of games.
When you saw the title of this post, I bet some of you started singing the once pervasive jingle for Juicy Fruit. Get your water skis ready. Below is the iconic TV ad:
You probably missed it because the Chewing Gum Wars were essentially the early part of the Royal Rumble, when 20+ guys are still in the ring. Beautiful chaos, but a little too hard to follow and get invested in the narratives.
That said, I bet probably half of all Americans over 40 can sing the Big Red and Doublemint jingles.
I was so obsessed with the Cola Wars I didn’t even notice this one happened!
You probably missed it because the Chewing Gum Wars were essentially the early part of the Royal Rumble, when 20+ guys are still in the ring. Beautiful chaos, but a little too hard to follow and get invested in the narratives.
That said, I bet probably half of all Americans over 40 can sing the Big Red and Doublemint jingles.