What do you think of this fact?
When you think of PEZ, you probably picture little plastic dispensers with a Mickey Mouse head and fruity candies. But the brand started out very differently: as a peppermint for adults.
A name built from one word
According to PEZ, Austrian Eduard Haas III created the brand’s first peppermint candy in 1927. The name is an abbreviation that comes straight from the product: the first, a middle and the last letter of the German word for peppermint, PfeffErminZ. There were no fruit flavors at the start.
According to MIT’s inventor database, Haas was an anti-smoking advocate. His idea: if you feel like having a cigarette, suck on a peppermint instead. PEZ itself says the candy was invented as a healthier alternative to cigarettes. The slogan that went with it was “Smoking prohibited – PEZing allowed”.
A dispenser dressed as a lighter
Then came the dispenser. In the late 1940s, Oskar Uxa designed a plastic dispenser for PEZ that looked like a lighter. According to MIT, it was shown at the Vienna Trade Fair in 1948 and patented in 1949. The target group was obvious: people who would otherwise be holding a real lighter.
From smokers to kids
In the early 1950s, Haas tried to sell PEZ in the United States. Sales were slow at first, so he flipped the whole concept. Instead of smokers, kids were going to buy the candy. According to MIT, by 1955 the dispensers had cartoon heads and fruit flavors had been added. The first heads reportedly included Santa Claus, Popeye and a space trooper.
In 1962, Haas signed a licensing deal with Walt Disney, and Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck ended up on the dispensers. The smoking substitute had officially become a toy.
Bonus fact: In 1973, PEZ built its own factory in Orange, Connecticut.
The lighter dispenser is a collector’s item today. The head on top outlived it.