It’s Christmas! Well, almost…so here’s a themed Wrapper Wednesday suited to the season – ‘Reese’s Peanut Butter Trees’.
The Reese’s empire was founded in the 1920’s by former Hershey employee, Harry Burnett Reese. Reese was a talented confectioner and saw an opportunity to create something for himself, and in 1928, created the first incarnation of his famous Peanut Butter Cups.
These quintessential American candies were bought out, along with the whole company, by Reese’s former employer in 1963, and the brand has since expanded into a plethora of peanut and chocolate-based treats: perhaps the most iconic, is the original peanut butter cup.
In the USA, these sweets are molded into seasonal shapes to reflect the holidays; hearts for Valentines, eggs at Easter, ghosts and pumpkins for Halloween, and of course, Christmas trees at Christmas!
The Reese’s brand is instantly recognizable with the strong, punchy use of orange, yellow and brown, a colour combo that has been in use since the 1940’s. It’s an iconic combination and the ‘orange background’ is even trademarked! But this first wrapper is a little more subdued, with a primary focus on presenting a winter landscape. It’s cool, and calm, allowing that iconic orange to be lifted front and centre.
The second example features more of the famous colour scheme, and includes a rendering of the confection too…although they look more like wobbly poops more than trees…that clear cut shape is somewhat lacking! But, I believe people buy these primarily for the taste, not the shape.
I personally prefer the cool, crisp winter version. The product branding is so strong for Reese’s, that it doesn’t need to dominate the majority of the wrapper – just a simple, orange silhouette is enough to be recognizable.
Who would like to see more shapes for more holidays? Shamrocks for St. Patrick’s Day? Peanut butter turkeys at Thanksgiving? Star shapes for Veteran’s Day perhaps? Maybe some of these have already been and gone – let me know if you have had other fun Reese’s shapes!
The British Candy Connoisseur 