Every once in a while my thought processes wind up on a very twisted offramp. These are usually things that I think about late at night or when the power goes out.
Recently a good friend recommended a new flavor of potato chips called Miss Vickies Smokehouse Barbecue. I tried ‘em. Pretty good actually. But here’s where the lateral thinking got a bit wonky. I started wondering about Miss Vickie. Was she a real person or just some figment of imagination cooked up by a potato chip marketing guru? Google, here I come.
Turns out that Miss Vickies is owned by Frito-Lay. Aha, I thought to myself. There is no such person. It’s just a name created to catch my attention. However, a little more Google and voila, there really is a Miss Vickie. The recipe originated with Vickie and Bill Kerr at their potato farm in New Lowell, Ontario. The chips saw their debut at the 14th annual Alliston Potato Festival in 1987, gained quick popularity amongst festival go-ers and over the next few years the chips were produced and marketed from Pointe-Claire, Quebec until they were purchased by Frito-Lay in 1993.
It wasn’t a big leap from there to start wondering about other brand names. You can see how this almost turned into an all-nighter. I just had to know how far I could take this so I compiled a list.
REAL PERSON OR FIGMENT OF THE IMAGINATION?
(See how many of these you get correct. Answers at bottom of page)
Mrs. Fields?
Chef Boyardee?
Dr. Pepper?
Granny Smith Apples?
Marie Callender?
The Reuben Sandwich?
Duncan Hines?
THERE IS A POINT TO THIS
In today’s world of instant worldwide communication, internet marketing gurus and global reach it is crucially important to make sure who you’re dealing with. When you’re approached with a great new product, idea or opportunity, please do your research first. Anything can be made to look real on the internet. As an entrepreneur its very easy to make snap decisions and many have lived to regret their decision. Here’s a good rule of thumb. The more pressure that someone puts on you to “start today before the opportunity is gone”, the more likely there’s a reason they want your money today.
Be careful out there my friends. And if you’re looking for a great article on how to find a legitimate opportunity, you really should click this link and spend a few seconds reviewing an article called ‘How To Start A Home Business’. It’s safe. No sales pitches. I know because wrote it.
And as always, we end with something to think about. “Your initial instincts about investments and people are usually correct. We do a lot of due diligence in this business and most of the time it comes out where we started.” (Alan Patricof)
ANSWERS
(Tell me how many you got correct in the comments section below)
Mrs. Fields? Real Person. Mrs. Fields Cookies was founded by Debbi Fields (b. 1956, Oakland, California)
Chef Boyardee? Made up. Chef Boyardee was a fictional creation whose name was taken from the given names of the company’s three founders: Boyd, Art, and Dennis.
Dr. Pepper? Figment of imagination. Charles Alderton, a young pharmacist working at Morrison’s Pharmacy in Waco, Texas is credited as the inventor.
Granny Smith Apples? Real Person. The Granny Smith originated in Australia in 1868. Mary Ann (Granny) Smith found the seedling (believed to be French Crab) growing in her garden where she had thrown out some apples.
Marie Callendar? Real person. The legacy of Marie Callender began in the early 1940s in Orange County, California, when Marie, an accomplished baker, first launched her legendary pie business delivering freshly baked pies to area restaurants.
Reuben Sandwich? Real Person. Most print evidence credits chef Reuben Kulakofsky from the Blackstone Hotel in Omaha, Nebraska. Sorry about that New York.
Duncan Hines? Fictitious, sort of. There was a real Duncan Hines, salesman, entrepreneur, author, critic and philanthropist. He did not, however, invent the cake mixes that bear his name.
Saul Jacobson 