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Category Archives: 1970’s
Donruss’ Mouth Full Bubble Gum and that Iconic Smiley Face!
Back in the late 1960’s, the Donruss company of Memphis, Tennessee offered up a “slab bubble gum” product to consumers. Although competitors like Fleer and Topps had similar products on the market, I consider Donruss’ offering notable for its use … Continue reading
Posted in 1960's, 1970's, 1980's, Bubble Gum, Gum
Tagged 1970's, bubblegum, candy collecting, candy collection, candy collector, candy wrapper collection, candy wrapper collector, collectible, collecting candy, confectionery, confections, counter-culture, Donruss, gum, hippie, hippy, packaging, sweets, vintage candy wrapper, wrapper
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Uncovering Thanksgiving’s Forgotten Confectionery Past!
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I hope you’re all enjoying the day with loved ones, great food and good times. In spite of the fact that Thanksgiving isn’t known for its confections, I’ve hunted far and wide to come up with a … Continue reading
Posted in 1970's, 1980's, Chocolate, Holiday
Tagged candy collecting, candy collection, candy collector, candy wrapper collection, candy wrapper collector, collectible, collecting candy, confectionery, confections, holiday, packaging, Russell Stover, sweets, Thanksgiving, vintage candy wrapper, Whitmans, wrapper
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Brach’s Beautiful Fall Chocolate Promotion Packet from 1972!
Since acquiring the files of a former Brach’s salesman earlier this year, I’ve been working to document and preserve everything he saved. Previously I’ve posted the contents of a 1971 Brach’s Halloween sales packet as well as materials related to … Continue reading
Posted in 1970's, Chocolate, Christmas, Hard Candy, Holiday
Tagged 1970's candy, 70's candy, Brach's, Brox, candy collecting, candy collection, candy collector, candy salesman, candy wrapper collection, candy wrapper collector, catalog, collectible, collecting candy, confectionery, confections, marketing materials, packaging, promotional, salesman, sweets, vintage candy wrapper, wrapper
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IGA Grocery Stores’ Private Label Confectionery Offerings!
Over the past couple years I’ve touched upon my growing fascination with private label or “store branded” candy offerings, first with Walgreens’ Nice line and later on with 7-Eleven’s own “Select” confectionery products. Store brand packaging is the kind of … Continue reading
Posted in 1960's, 1970's, Chocolate, Gummies
Tagged candy collecting, candy collection, candy collector, candy wrapper collection, candy wrapper collector, collectible, collecting candy, confectionery, confections, grocery, IGA, packaging, private label, store brand, sweets, vintage candy wrapper, vintage grocery stores, wrapper
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A Groovy 1970’s Flashback: Ghirardelli’s Mother Nature Line!
Over the last decade, the business of artisanal and organic chocolate has exploded. With small manufacturers sourcing their own cocoa and adding all sorts of unusual and exotic ingredients to their bars, it’s a great time to be a chocolate … Continue reading
Posted in 1970's, Chocolate
Tagged 1970's candy, 1970's chocolate, 1970's wrappers, all-natural, Bay Area, candy collecting, candy collection, candy collector, candy wrapper collection, candy wrapper collector, chocolate, collectible, collecting candy, confectionery, confections, counter-culture, Ghirardelli, organic, packaging, San Francisco, sweets, vintage candy wrapper, wrapper
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From 1974 – Clark’s Catchy Clarconut Bar!
Forty years ago the D.L. Clark company launched what was at the time, their latest version of a chocolate-coated coconut bar. While the bar itself might not have been revolutionary, mixing the title of their flagship brand with the bar’s … Continue reading
Posted in 1950's, 1960's, 1970's, Chocolate
Tagged 1970's, 1970's candy wrappers, 70's, candy collecting, candy collection, candy collector, candy wrapper collection, candy wrapper collector, Clark, cocoanut, coconut, collectible, collecting candy, confectionery, confections, D.L. Clark, Hershey, Mounds, Necco, packaging, Peter Paul, sweets, trademark, vintage candy wrapper, wrapper
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When Packaging was a Toy – Junior Mints and their 1975 Circus Animal Series!
Though it is a much more unusual occurrence today, there was a time when companies routinely built more tactile fun into their packaging, especially when it was for a product aimed at kids. They were often producing packages that could … Continue reading
Posted in 1970's, 1980's, Boxed, Chocolate, cookies, Mars, Novelty
Tagged 1970's candy, candy collecting, candy collection, candy collector, candy wrapper collection, candy wrapper collector, circus, collectible, collecting candy, confectionery, confections, Junior Mints, Nabisco, packaging, packaging design, papercraft, sweets, vintage candy wrapper, Welch's, wrapper
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When Gremlins and Candy Met – A History of Gremlins Confections from the 1950’s to Today!
Today I’ll be looking at the confectionery connections to Gremlins, both the 1984 Joe Dante-directed film classic as well as the Brown and Haley treat of the same name that preceded it – along with the time when the two … Continue reading
Posted in 1970's, 1980's, Chocolate, Mars
Tagged 1970's candy, 1970's candy wrappers, candy collecting, candy collection, candy collector, candy wrapper collection, candy wrapper collector, collectible, collecting candy, confectionery, confections, Gremlins, licensed, movies, packaging, sweets, vintage candy wrapper, wrapper
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50-Years of Brach’s Candy Corn Evolution – from 1953 to Today!
Today is October 30th, which is National Candy Corn Day – so I thought it would be the perfect time to bring together an extensive look back at how Brach’s Candy Corn packaging has changed over the decades. This year … Continue reading
Posted in 1950's, 1960's, 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, Boxed, CountdownToHalloween, Gummies, Halloween, Holiday
Tagged Brach's, candy collecting, candy collection, candy collector, candy wrapper collection, candy wrapper collector, collectible, collecting candy, confectionery, confections, Halloween, packaging, packaging design, seasonal, sweets, vintage candy wrapper, wrapper
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Halloween Peeps from the 1950’s! or The Oldest Witchmallows Ever!
During 2013’s CountdownToHalloween, I dedicated a post to the Halloween-seasonal marshmallow Peeps known as Witchmallows. The packaging I featured was from the 1970’s and I had assumed that was about as far back as Witchmallows went. But recently I discovered … Continue reading
Posted in 1950's, 1960's, 1970's, 1990's, CountdownToHalloween, Halloween
Tagged candy collecting, candy collection, candy collector, candy wrapper collection, candy wrapper collector, collectible, collecting candy, confectionery, confections, food packaging, Halloween, Halloween candy, Just Born, marshmallow, packaging, Peeps, sweets, vintage candy wrapper, vintage Halloween, wrapper
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![I was going to title this “If your family was poor and you grew up in the 1980s, this image will hit your soul.” but after some consideration, I realized that in 1983 your family didn’t have to be poor to want to find whatever way they could to save money.
Those early 1980s years were a period still coming to grips with years of inflation and other economic troubles. Those realities helped give way (and opportunity) to not only lower-cost private label products, but also “generics”.
The idea behind generics was that you were getting the absolute lowest cost possible for the item in question. Not a cent spent on design or advertising - it was plainly utilitarian.
The generics area of any grocery aisle (or your pantry) was visually stark and minimalist, so if you loved specific brands or eye-catching branding, it was also kind of sad. But for families that were struggling, cents mattered and these products were lifelines.
In the post pandemic years, we’ve had to endure similar inflation and so we’ve seen big growth in the private label category. Though I haven’t seen a movement to embrace “generics” in the same way.
Rather, private label has been an area of colorful innovation, offering the cost-savings without sacrificing all of the flash.
And while these generics of old were products one might have felt sad or embarrassed about having as a child, as a brand historian I find them nostalgic and deeply moving for the struggling family story they can help tell.
[Pictured are several early 1980s generic Mac and cheese boxes from my historical packaging archives.]
#privatelabel #branding #1980s #80snostslgia #genericproducts](http://collectingcandy.com/wordpress/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png)