Kraft Foods and ConAgra Foods, like most mega-consumer products companies these days, have limited use for “niche” brands. These are brands with limited by loyal following, especially when tastes change over the years. So it is sad to report that, despite years of survival as the “red-headed stepchild” of theseMORE HERE
FORT LAUDERDALE – Make a simple boring product, keep at it, and folks will buy it. That’s the philosophy behind National Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ:FIZZ), makers of the discount brands Shasta, Faygo, LaCroix and Everfresh. The company reported a good financial period ending January 31, 2009. Revenues increased 5 percent toMORE HERE
MONTVALE, N.J. – There is but one grocery chain that inspires literature. It’s the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company (NYSE: GAP), this year celebrating its 150th anniversary. In John Updike’s Kennedy-era short story “A&P” a 19-year-old clerk identifies with three scantily clad girls who come into an A&P inMORE HERE
GLOUCESTER COURTHOUSE -Little Sue can’t find her way to the store. We were in Gloucester, Virginia a few weeks ago and happened upon one of the last Little Sue convenience stores. We went in the store, and the clerk said it was one of the last two remaining; it wouldMORE HERE
PALMYRA, Penn. – If you like Lebanon bologna, there is only one brand, Seltzer’s. Made and smoked by hand in Palmyra Pennsylvania, Selzter’s was founded by Harvey Seltzer, who “created a unique blend of pure beef and spices in 1902, his bologna was so popular that he began commercial production andMORE HERE
Pepsico will bring back Tropicana’s old package after an outcry. The news was reported on the British website Brand Republic. The packaging was created by Arnell; it got early bad reviews on the trendy design website Under Consideration. Here at BrandlandUSA, not only did we not like the new design,MORE HERE
OKINAWA – Okinawa rarely ventures into the minds of most Americans. The subtropical archipelago – actually closer to Taiwan than the Japanese mainland – comes to most folks in small snippets history and a few snippets of pop culture. The World War II battle scarred the region, destroying the prefecturalMORE HERE
Kraft obtained the Seven Seas brand (see the photo of a 1976 bottle from the website www.winslam.com) through its acquisition of Anderson Clayton Foods. AC was in businesses similar to Kraft: salad dressings, oils, and margarine. Alas, Kraft has scrapped all but the dressings.
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LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS – In the pantheon of grocery products, there are certain ones that are not essential, yet are essential. In the UK, it’s Marmite and Bovril. And across the United States, we have all sorts of regional variations. One regional New England product is Marshmallow Fluff, made by Durkee-MowerMORE HERE
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Can you say Pickle Packers? If you need pickles, the group Pickle Packers International keeps track of all the pickle brands across the world. At right, a children’s coloring project from the site; it has lots of kids items they can print out to color or doMORE HERE