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stuck and is still a part of popular culture
today. However, by the 1990s the Mars
company needed to revitalize the brand yet
again. That was when M&M’s collectibles
were popularized.

The Creation of the M&M’s Characters
and Their Subsequent
Collectibles
If you want to collect
M&M’s character items, you
need to understand the characters.
Today, there are six. However, when
they were created in 1954, there were
only two. When color came into play,
there were four: Red, Yellow, Blue,
and Green. Brown and Orange were
created a bit later.
Each character had their own illustrated
characteristics, personalities, and physical
quirks. As different M&M’s were added to the 1954. M&M’s characters were changed,
product line (Pretzel, Peanut Butter, Dark introduced, and reintroduced many times
Chocolate, etc.), the character team would since then. One notable example is Orange,
grow or, on occasion, shrink when one of the which was originally the spokesman for crispy
flavors proved unpopular and was eliminated. M&M’s. The Orange character was first
And, as the illustrations changed with the released in 1999 and re-released in 2015.
times, small adjustments would be made. For Meanwhile, the milk chocolate Ms. Brown
example, Green originally wore go-go boots. character was not introduced until 2012.
Since then, she has sometimes worn sneakers Therefore, if you find an M&M’s collectible
or heels. featuring her, you can automatically date it to
2012 onward. Depictions of the characters
Early M&M’s Branding Collecting M&M’s Items by Noting were also changed, including footwear. Most
In the early days, Mars did not market its Character Collectible Changes recently, all M&M’s characters were
M&M’s in the same way it does today. Today, If you want to collect M&M’s items, you redesigned again in 2022.While some changes
it is common to see character stuffed toys, can buy any that tickle your fancy. However, appear to be minimal at best, to the
glassware, alarm clocks, dispensers, clothing, you might prefer to focus on a particular collector this opens up another
and many other collectible M&M’s products. character or marketing period. If so, you need generation of M&M’s to be
However, in the early days, the to acquaint yourself with some of the major discovered and, of course,
candies were simply marketed brand changes that have taken place since collected.
with their name stamped the characters were first added to M&M’s
on each M&M. It was an advertising practices in
unusual move, especially at
that time.
Candy wrappers
featured candy names,
but the candies them-
selves were not usually
marketed. M&M’s was
the exception. That unique
practice, combined with
military endorsement and
word of mouth quickly
increased sales.
1954 saw the M&M’s
branding took another turn.
That was when “melts in
your mouth, not in your
hands” was first released
as the slogan for the can-
dies. That slogan quickly

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