Saralitta

The Power of Packaging: Where did my Hershey Bar go?

Maybe it doesn’t matter to you, but to me it does.

Where is my foil lining? Where is my paper wrapper? Where is the Hershey bar I grew up with?

Saturday night we celebrated lakeside with a bonfire and s’mores.

Six lovely chocolate bars wrapped in a cellophane package.

Each chocolate bar wrapped in printed foil.

STOP!

It’s not the same.

The foil rips, you can’t slowly unfold the paper and savor the smell of super-sweet milk chocolate.

I’m sure it’s cheaper. The new packaging is tamper resistant (and safer.) Was it worth it? Marketing Research supported the change…And, yes, I know it happened way back in 2003 in an effort to attract the youth market, but I’m still bothered.

As a marketer, I wonder if the outcry would have been louder had the change occurred during the Twitter Generation when blogging hit the mainstream in 2004.

What do you think? Does packaging matter to you?

Tell me if I’m the only nostalgic fool lamenting the loss of the foil wrapper. Good think I can still count on Green and Black’s for that foil/paper experience.

Posted by:

Saralitta

Lover of Snow, Winter Vacations, Good Beer & Great Music, Minnesota Weather, French Wine & Sidewalks. Yogi for life.

7 responses to “The Power of Packaging: Where did my Hershey Bar go?”

market man

November 3, 2011

boy am i glad i stumbled apon your site,,,great information and great site
excellent work

Reply
Heather Robinson

February 2, 2012

Um, yes, I have noticed and it actually cheapens the product. Unwrapping a Hershey’s bar used to be like unwrapping a persent. Some things don’t necessarily need to change, and this is often missed by the most well intentioned, progressive-thinking marketers….but I do have some other things in mind that Hershey’s could change to impress a consumer: having to do with child labor and coco productuion.

.

Reply
Gina Lindsey

June 2, 2012

It’s not the packaging that bothers me. It’s the Hershey bar itself. They are now too thick to use for s’mores. The old bars were perfect! 4 squares on the graham cracker fit exactly. I want my old H bars back!!!!

Reply
Amanda

September 18, 2012

I just bought a Hershey bar today, and I was thinking the same thing! I really miss the old packaging. 😦

Reply
ronda

December 14, 2012

it is a tradition at christmas to enclose a $100 bill inside the foil lining of my childrens giant size Hershey cand bar…My long standing tradition has been, indeed…. “foiled” 😦 I’m extrememely saddened–opening christmas stockings will never quite be the same!

Reply
Anupama Pasricha

January 12, 2013

I know it changes our experiences. It may have a positive side though. Check Hershey’s commitment to env. responsibility…http://www.thehersheycompany.com/social-responsibility/environment.aspx

Reply
1. Sara Geneva Noreau Kerr
  
  January 13, 2013
  
  Thank you — it’s good to know Hersey is visibly aiming for greater sustainability. I just downloaded the packaging changes pdf which is from 2010. I’m curious to know what they did in 2012 (I’m hoping its something). On one hand, I assume that all companies are, but that’s pretty naive on my part. One of my areas of interest (and research) is how organizations communicate sustainability measures and stakeholders’ perceptions.
  
  Reply