Mrs Elswood, the UK’s leading gherkin brand, is celebrating its 75th birthday with a refresh of its packaging including a glow-up of its iconic Mrs Elswood character.
Mrs Elswood has been given a modern, more fashionable look with a sleek new hairstyle and red top which matches the classic green and red brand colours.
The aim of the brand refresh is to appeal to younger consumers who have recently discovered the joy of gherkins, without alienating its core audience.
This is the first brand refresh for over 10 years and the first tweak of the Mrs Elswood character since the 1990s. The new branding will be rolled out across the portfolio, and on its website, from this month (July).
Pickled vegetables have become the UK’s latest food trend as the pandemic drove more in-home eating occasions from WFH lunches to family dinners. Gherkins have become more popular as consumers replicated popular takeaways like burgers at home and to lift otherwise drab meals.
Throughout the pandemic, Mrs Elswood saw a huge 43 percent YOY growth (Kantar 2021) and is outperforming the pickled vegetable category which has seen value growth up 16.6 percent adding an additional £17.5m of sales.
Mrs Elswood spokesman Mat Moyes said: “Like many categories, the pandemic brought new consumers to Mrs Elswood. We felt it was the right time for a pack refresh, and to give our iconic and much-loved Mrs Elswood character a makeover to bring her up to date.”
The new Mrs Elswood brand look and feel will feature across its entire iconic range of pickled gherkins including Whole Sweet Gherkins, Sandwich Slices, Dill Spears and Burger Gherkins.
Mrs Elswood was founded in London in 1947. Its signature gherkins are picked, packed and pickled directly in jars only once a year, when cucumbers, grown under the summer sun are at their best – so it was essential that the brand refresh happened in the new summer pickle season.
