I was curious how such a staple of the Southern diet, namely a Coke and Nabs, could be served on an airline that made such a pretense of being sophisticated. Biscoff maybe, but I could not understand Nabs. Perhaps the Deep South roots of Delta were showing through?

I asked, “How long has Delta been giving out Nabs in flight?”

“Nabs?” she asked.

She did not know what “Nabs” were. I then had to explain that “Nabs” were what most in the South call peanut butter crackers. Lance (and that other brand Austin, owned by Kellogg’s) might be the top brands for a peanut butter cracker, but they are all called Nabs because route men from Nabisco used to distribute the Nabs brand for sale at checkout counters and filling stations.

Sometime in the 1970s or 1980s, Nabs by Nabisco were discontinued, and Lance became the dominant brand.

Sadly, I am encountering more and more folk who do not know that packaged peanut butter crackers are called “Nabs.”

In primary school (I have forgotten which grade), I recall doing a Warriner’s grammar exercise where it came up. Perhaps it was about the use of nouns, or singular or plural; that’s not important. The question was something like, “Service stations sell ____ and ____. My good friend Russell Smith gave the answer as, “gas and Nabs.” Why of course! Filling stations sell Nabs. That wasn’t the actual answer, but everyone in the class had a laugh. I don’t know why I remember that.

On Facebook, in the Mississippians section, there is a page called “Nabs or Crackers?” Somehow, you can define yourself by what you call these orange crackers. The main food staple of a Southern filling station, the lowly Nab.

The question, though is that Nabisco, while it had bakeries around the U.S., was mostly a Northeastern company, though I don’t think that many Northeasterners call them Nabs. Perhaps it is that back in the 1950s and 1960s, they didn’t spend as much time in filling stations?

Perhaps Kraft, owners of the Nabisco name, might bring back “Nabs” and reclaim their brand equity and legacy?

Love to hear what other folks think. Nabs or crackers?

That’s the question a BrandlandUSA reader asked us, as to whether Nabisco could be separated from Kraft, and united with Coca-Cola. Our answer? It does have a certain logic, particularly since Coke competitor Pepsico has Frito Lay. That is not to say Kraft would want to get rid of all of its sweet cookie brands.

Recently, Kraft has been downplaying the Nabisco brand in favor of the individual product brands. In addition, they have introduced some Nabisco branded cookies that do not have sub-brands. At right, Wheat Thins, with nary a red Nabisco logo anywhere. Nice looking package, by the way. Hmm…

Read our previous post about Kraft Downplaying Nabisco.

So we are reading this news that Kraft wants to buy Cadbury (NYSE: CBY). Frankly, we could make all sorts of analysis of why it’s not a good idea for Cadbury stockholders, but in capitalism, if Kraft has enough cash and they want the company bad enough, they could get it.

However, we are opposed to the sale, and we think England will lose out, big time, if Cadbury is sold. Since 1824, Cadbury has been English. It is a part of British identity and British culture, and Kraft won’t understand those nuances. While we don’t like governments meddling in company affairs, the British government would do well to meddle in this one in order to protect a critical British institution.

Some concerns:

• Cadbury World: There are concerns larger than the company’s candy business. Cadbury World is an important stop for tourists, and we know Kraft knows nothing of running a theme museum and tourist attraction. They would be fools to close it to tourists, but things like that happen all the time. While Bournville history will still be there, what makes it all so compelling is the factory aspect. It’s a real Wonka factory, and it’s special.
• Factory closings: First, while Cadbury can ask for all sorts of staffing guarantees after the sale, there is every reason to assume that not only will British staff be fired, but the production could very easily be moved out of Britain gradually. It will go in drips, first this candy, then another. Those eight factories will turn to six, then five, then on down. Then a large bit will go, and pretty soon it will be a ghost. Kraft would argue this, but the reality of modern corporate life is that production is moved overseas when American companies get control.
• Layoffs: The corporate staff will go. Bye bye. One less British multinational company.
• Spin-off jobs: Advertising and marketing will also be less British. While Kraft would have to take a British approach to sell candy, more and more decisions would be made in the U.S., and that would mean lost jobs.

We love the letter Cadbury wrote. It was much nicer than we would be be:

We have created a pure play confectionery business with strong brands occupying leading market positions in both developed markets and high growth emerging economies – a business of considerable inherent value, impossible to replicate and with a unique position in the global confectionery market. We have a clear set of targets, a track record of delivery accepted by the market and value enhancing plans to further exploit our proven growth platforms.

We have demonstrated through our performance to date that we have the scale, capabilities and resource to deliver on our commitments to shareholders. Since the Adams acquisition, our confectionery business has delivered top line growth of over 6%, we have increased our global market share by over 100 bps and generated comparable margin growth of over 200 bps, all while materially increasing spend on marketing and science and technology to drive innovation.

We have been able to demonstrate both organic and inorganic growth. The acquisition of Adams, together with more recent acquisitions, including Intergum and Sansei, provided scale and new growth opportunities in attractive product areas of gum and candy together with exposure to emerging markets that complemented our powerful British Commonwealth heritage.

You’ve got to love companies with “British Commonwealth heritage” and if Cadbury is purchased by Kraft, they will not understand what that means. They also will not understand the company’s Quaker heritage, and the religious inspiration for the company.

Kraft is at some times a well run company, but they have not been faithful to many of the brands that they own, and are quite skillful at dumping them. They will most certainly try to extract every nickel out of Cadbury, and they have no allegiance to British corporate traditions. As an American, I want my Cadbury British.

Britain, please send them packing. Making chocolate with a well-known brand is like printing money, except that it goes on forever. That’s why Kraft wants it. And that’s why British investors should not sell it.

We can’t help but think of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory when we think of Cadbury World. Perhaps Cadbury might give Kraft the Augustus Gloop treatment, and send them down a chocolate river.

Frankly, that’s a bit of a scary headline for us brand fiends here at BrandlandUSA. But it is certainly worrisome that we found this bag of Wheat Thins without Nabisco in the corner. Is Kraft (NYSE: KFT) dropping the Nabisco brand, just like they ditched the storied and valuable General Foods brand? And that’s on top of their cheesy new logo that no one likes.

To us the missing logo means one thing. If there is no Nabisco in the corner, there is no quality in the corner. Certainly, it’s an attractive package, and the Wheat Thins were tasty as always, but we won’t be buying them again unless we have the red Nabisco symbol in the corner. We don’t trust Wheat Thins without Nabisco red, and neither should any other readers. Frankly, Kraft’s stock has been stuck in a rut since 2002, and we don’t think ditching Nabisco will help.

Shame on you Kraft!

There could be any number of reasons why they are separating Nabisco from Wheat Thins, including it being a trial. But it is a mistake, as we pointed out in our story, Nabisco Brand Advice Corner.

1. To see how Wheat Thins sell without the red Nabisco label. If they sell O.K., then Kraft could value the Wheat Thins brand as a separate line or brand from Nabisco. Our response: This is an interesting trial of an idea, a trial balloon, but please put the Nabisco back, thank you. And frankly, the packaging looks nice, so there is no reason why it wouldn’t sell well. But the red Nabisco logo has nothing to do with it.
2. Because they think Nabisco is fuddy duddy. If that’s the case, and somehow packaging tests better without it, you all have made the brand fuddy duddy and you need to fix it. There is nothing fuddy about Nabisco; it’s like Coca-Cola. Nabisco is classic. Nabisco is America. Nabisco is the National Biscuit Company, thank you, and I will have no other.
3. Because they might turn Nabisco into a brand itself, and launch new products. That would be odd. As odd as Mac and Cheese branded crackers, btw. But they are doing it; Kraft just turned Nabisco into a classics line, with decent generic cookies iced and animal cookies sold under the brand Nabisco Classics. This is fine, but it is a downgrade, and evidence they are demoting Nabisco.
4. Because they are going to spin off either Nabisco or Wheat Thins, and need to separate the two brands.
5. Because a graphic designer got a bee up his you-know-what, and thought his pretty little design was too great to be cluttered up with a funny red symbol in the corner.

So here’s the deal Kraft. If I am going to trust a cracker and a cookie from your company, I need a Nabisco label on it. Otherwise, it’s Keebler, Sunshine, Pepperidge Farm, Carr’s or a store brand. You hear! And by the way, Kellogg’s makes Sunshine Hydrox now. So if you take the Nabisco off the Oreos too, we’ll have to switch there, too.

Do not drop the Nabisco corner.

What is a company to do if they are faced with a legacy brand that is declining? What if they have a duplicate brand (Northwest and Delta) as a result of a merger?

Here are some tips:

1. Keep the old name. When a business buys another business, make every effort to keep the old name, using it anywhere that fits. Turn the old brand into a sub-brand, or non-consumer operating unit, preserving the brand equity in a legal sense. Do license it, but don’t license it on anything and everything. That’s called naked licensing, and it won’t in a legal sense to preserve the brand for you.

2. Turn it into a niche product. If you have a declining brand, scale back advertising and market it as a niche product. Niche products require no advertising, and carry high margins. Niche products, even if just barely breaking even, help hold market share. Use an old brand like a test lab that pays for itself. License it. Extend it. Have fun with it. Think Tab cola. Strange women in Kansas will buy it, we guess Anderson Cooper’s mom buys it, and hot sorority chicks in Atlanta will buy it, and all will pay $4.99 a six pack for it, no coupons. You will never have to worry about a sale or ad budget. They just sell. Proctor & Gamble licensed the production and marketing of Noxema Shave Cream to an outside company while it kept the main Noxema name for itself.

3. Keep a brand name alive any way you can. A brand is valued on a balance sheet as goodwill. If a brand is screwed up, you can close stores, or rethink. But whatever you do, keep the brand alive. Because if it is determined that there was another opportunity with the brand, you don’t want to be the one that hocked the family silver and lost the rights to the trademark. In families, siblings get angry about that. In publicly traded companies, raiders, accountants and attorneys get a bit pesky about losing assets.

4. License it. Chrysler keeps the AMC and Pacer brands alive by licensing them for remote control toys. Not a big market, but if 20 years from now, everyone decides they want an AMC or Pacer, you’re in business. Sell some T-shirts. Give away some mugs at trade shows. ANYTHING to keep the name in business and viable so it is not lost. Or even sell off the brand.

5. Time heals. Stupid brand names get less stupid with time. Scandals are forgotten. Stick with it for a long time, and folks will get used to it, even if it looks like a logo for Spacely Sprockets. While we’re all for great logos designed by great graphic artists, you want consistency.

6. Always make good products. The quality of the product trumps the price. In addition, the quality of the product also trumps the design. If it is good, it will sell.

7. Company brands are as important as product brands. Many products look strange without the master company brand. Life (the game), while made by Hasbro, has the Milton Bradley logo on boxes. Nabisco is a “Master” brand that “rules” its sub-brands, that include Triscuit, Chips Ahoy, Ritz, Uneeda, Fig Newton. Do not use a brand on its own, without a master brand. Once there was Ritz brand, made by Nabisco brand bakery, made by Nabisco company, that is no more. Now there is Ritz brand, of Nabisco Bakery, owned by Kraft. Kraft appears in small text on the back of the box. There is room for all brands. But don’t sell Ritz without the Nabisco, even if Kraft changes and some hedge fund comes through. It won’t work.

8. Keep old versions of the logo around. If there are tweaks and changes to the logo, don’t make all of your dealers change all the logos on small buildings. A bit of narrative is good. Cookie eaters are smart enough to understand that design evolves, and to have slightly different versions of the design around helps consumers know that the brand has been around for a long time and has the strength of history. Plus all the time enforcing brand standards on little guys or small offices sends the wrong message. It’s a freaking waste of time, this whole process of rooting out old stationary with the “old look” for some anal “consistency” program dreamed up in some not very good branding office in a faraway place. Any bank teller will laugh in the face of the sign guy, who comes through every year to change the brand with new signs.

9. Involve the founding family. If you want to legitimize a brand that has gone dormant and make it real again, involve someone from the founding family to participate. For instance, when Macy’s finally wakes up and revives the Marshall Field’s brand, it can gain extra attention by making the announcement, with the family, at the Field Museum, not at the State Street Store. This will indicate to patrons that Macy’s understands the role of the family’s philanthropy, and city of Chicago, as a primary part of the importance of the brand name.

10. Geography is important. Part of building the history of a brand is the story behind it. A brand must be rooted in a place (Life Savers=Chicago, Marlboro=Richmond, Camden=Campbell’s, Kellogg’s=Battle Creek). Even if a factory must move, keep a presence in the original location. But in reality, all this crap about moving production overseas has done nothing to help American brand names, and only tarnished their reputations.  (End of sermon!)

11. Customers own good brands. Companies don’t. They are merely custodians, who owe it to consumers to keep a good product in business.

12. Companies won’t get into trouble if you revive a dead brand. Companies shouldn’t get embarrassed by bringing an old brand back. Very often, they are worried that it will point up management mistakes if you bring a product back. In case after case, companies that bring back old brands are showered with goodwill for reversing their positions.

13. Stockholders see a missed opportunity with a discontinued brand. If there is a public campaign out there to bring back an old brand or revive a severely declining one, this is prima facie proof to stockholders and the public that the old brand had equity. Company executives that are incapable of harnessing this goodwill look inept.

14. Retailing brands can become store brands. If you have a popular retail name, put it on some of your products. Then, the brand can survive on its own, and have value on its own.

15. Look to overseas markets for licensing opportunities. Buick came very close to dying in the U.S. market, but has thrived in China, because of pre-World War II nostalgia. Your brand also might be loved in a foreign land. If your home market is having a hard time sustaining your brand, look abroad for export or licensing possibilities.

16. Words are a brain connector: A name is a connector, shorthand. We don’t want to get too medical about this, but a word helps people remember things and takes the person back to the certain place in the brain. If the word disappears, what good associations that came with the brain place disappear too. That’s the trouble about killing off a brand name; what the brand stood for automatically disappears.

17. Sometimes it costs more. Sometimes doing things for seemingly irrational reasons is a bit more expensive. But if it differentiates the brand and makes for extra sales, these idiosyncratic expenditures can be worthwhile because they set your company ahead of the other generic marketing approaches.

18. Research, archive. Keep prior versions of your product around, not for sentimental reasons, but for research purposes. Keep a file of old clippings. Frame stuff on the wall. Hire someone like me (promise it’s the only plug in this post for Garland Pollard) to do a company history. History is about collecting facts, and knowing the successes and failures of the past will help you make more informed decisions.

19. Hey Nineteen. It’s a favorite Steely Dan song. I just wanted to write that. Seriously, connect your brand to good music, whether it be a jingle, instrumental theme or playlist. Music registers in the brain like nothing else, and you want it on your side.

20. Keep a sense of humor and good spirits. Brands are personalities, and the people that lead brands help to define the brand over the years. If the people who lead the company are Chainsaw Al, you get a brand that gets tarnished. If you have a brand led by a good humored, decent person, you have a decent brand. Certainly, jerks can run successful companies, but over and over, great brands, in their formation, were created by good people who had a bit of genius inspiration from above.

One of our favorite fan sites relating to a bad decision is Bovril. In 2004, Unilever removed beef from the product and made it a yeast-derived vegetable product akin to Vegemite. While it happened during the mad cow scare and was understandable, Unilever’s reaction was wrong. Customers got upset; they realized that there might be something political.

The correct action whenever a product is threatened is not to kill off the old product and replace it with a new one. Fan Graeme Andrew Stickings put the idea up on his website, consumers rallied, and soon Bovril was back. I quote the Bring Back Bovril site:

“I was not opposed in principal to a veggie Bovril, I just wanted a beef version back. Anyhue, I have my pot of British Beefy Bovril, so all is right with the world.

All is right with the world. That is the phrase that consumers think when a product they love returns. This feeling of goodwill not only extends to consumers, it goes right to the company that made the mistake. Macy’s needs to heed this lesson; folks are still angry about Marshall Field’s, but if they admit the mistake, consumer love (and maybe, dare we suggest stockholder confidence… ???) will flow back to the once-beloved company.

Here, is a list of a few brands that have responded to consumer pressure. We invite readers to add to the list. We hope to add Marshall Field’s to the list.

• Wispa candy bar
• Nabisco Crown Pilot Crackers
• Coca-Cola
• Save Twinings Earl Grey. This is a fascinating website. There is a discrepancy about Twinings, and whether the Earl Grey formula was changed in the U.S. market.
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