Aunt Jemima's Brand Positioning

 A Sticky Situation

 In June 2020, amid the national reckoning over racism that followed the death of George Floyd, The Quaker Oats Company, a subsidiary of PepsiCo, Inc., announced its plans to change the name of its nationally recognized brand Aunt Jemima, as well as remover her imagery from its packaging. Both symbols have been part of the brand's history and legacy for over 130 years, however, Kristin Kroepfl, Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, Quaker Foods North America states "we recognize Aunt Jemima's origins are based on a racial stereotype. While work has been done over the years to update the brand in a manner intended to be appropriate and respectful, we realize those changes are not enough. As we work to make progress toward racial equality through several initiatives, we also must take a hard look at our portfolio of brands and ensure they reflect our values and meet our consumers' expectations (The Quaker Oats Company, 2020)." 

Before the rebrand, Aunt Jemima's aimed to represent good old fashioned cooking from loving moms of diverse backgrounds who want the best for their families. Despite these good intentions to shift, having a logo rooted in a racist stereotype is still a touchy subject and worthy of a second look. Kroepfl goes on to say "we acknowledge the brand has not progressed enough to appropriately reflect the confidence, warmth and dignity that we would like it to stand for today. We will continue the conversation by gathering diverse perspectives from both our organization and the Black community to further evolve the brand and make it one everyone can be proud to have in their pantry (The Quaker Oats Company, 2020)."

This change in direction has provoked a number of reactions. An especially interesting one is those moved to preserve the legacy of Nancy Green, the woman who inspired and represented Aunt Jemima. Little is known of her due to poor coverage of minorities during that time period other than that she was a former slave that begun a new life in Chicago working as a caretaker for a prominent white family, until she was hired to portray a living version of the character at the 1893 World's Fair. From then, Green played the role of Aunt Jemima for the pancake company until her death. Her likeness and imagery was used for a hundred years after the fact, becoming a modern household name. Advocates would like that fact remembered, that "Nancy Green was a real human being who worked as a living trademark for a product that made millions. Knowing her story will help debunk the caricature (Nagasawa, 2020)." These advocates even suggest to Quaker Oats that rather than erasing the logo completely, they should invest more money into educating consumers about "the role enslaved black women have played in taking care and feeding this nation from enslavement till now (Nagasawa, 2020)."

New Name Same Great Taste

According to Wheeler, naming a business requires a strategic approach, and if done incorrectly can "subject a company to unnecessary legal risks or alienate a market segment (2017, p. 27)." This is what happened with Aunt Jemima over the course of time. Moving forward, brands should make sure their new names are meaningful, distinctive, future-oriented, positive, and visual. This means the name communicates the essence/values of the brand, is unique and differentiated, positions the company for growth and sustainability, has positive connotations, and lends itself well to graphic presentation (Wheeler, 2017, p. 27).

When PepsiCo and The Quaker Oats Company realized that the name and imagery of Aunt Jemima no longer reflected the company's core values and consumer expectations, they made a commitment to change. However, the quality of their great tasting products wouldn't. They went with Pearl Milling Company, with the “pearl” representing what really matters - the goodness inside the familiar red box. Their mission is to create joyful breakfast moments for everyone, and have started a community impact initiative called the  P.E.A.R.L. Pledge. It is a "multi-year program focused on championing the empowerment and success of Black women and girls across the country (Pearl Milling Company, n.d.)." $750,000 in grants will be awarded by Pearl Milling Company to nonprofit organizations helping to fulfill this mission. As the company transitions towards this new position, they plan to "maintain our brand look and feel so that we will continue to stand out on the shelf in a consistent way (Pearl Milling Company, n.d.)." The new packaging will feature a call out that reads "New Name Same Great Taste”, along side the old Aunt Jemima brand name logo, to help consumers adjust (Pearl Milling Company, n.d.).

References:

The Quaker Oats Company. (2020, June 17). Aunt Jemima Brand To Remove Image From Packaging And Change Brand Name. PR Newswire. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/aunt-jemima-brand-to-remove-image-from-packaging-and-change-brand-name-301078593.html

Nagasawa, K. (2020, June 19). The Fight To Commemorate Nancy Green, The Woman Who Played The Original “Aunt Jemima.” NPR.org. https://www.npr.org/local/309/2020/06/19/880918717/the-fight-to-commemorate-nancy-green-the-woman-who-played-the-original-aunt-jemima

Pearl Milling Company. (n.d.). Our History. Retrieved November 5, 2022, from https://www.pearlmillingcompany.com/our-history

Wheeler, A. (2017). Designing Brand Identity: An Essential Guide for the Whole Branding Team (5th ed.). Wiley Professional Development (P&T). https://mbsdirect.vitalsource.com/books/9781119375418