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For over four decades, Mr. Pibb has been a part of America’s soft drink aisle.
However, much of its origins remain a mystery.
Join us as we go through the history of Mr. Pibb, recounting its inception, marketing campaigns, reformulations and rebrandings.
The year was 1972.
The cola wars were in full swing, and the major cola giants were trying to be number one.
Coca-Cola saw the success of Dr Pepper.
Though small compared to Coke’s market dominance, Dr Pepper had a devoted following.
So Coke’s food scientists worked on formulating a rival.
They invented something similar to Dr Pepper but different.
They called it Mr. Pibb.
It was a sweet dark brown cola, but it was a little spicy—distinguishing it from Dr Pepper’s more gentle vanilla taste.
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The origins of Mr. Pibb’s name are unclear.
Some think it was named after the Coca-Cola employee who invented it.
There is speculation that “Pibb” was meant to evoke “pep” or create connections to baby bibs.
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In 1972, Coca-Cola launched Mr. Pibb, in order to compete against Dr Pepper with the aggressive slogan “Show ’em who’s boss!”
The campaign was designed to appeal to rebellious youth culture.
This sparked widespread backlash from educators and critics, leading Coca-Cola to abandon the slogan by 1974.
The Coca-Cola Company rebranded Mr. Pibb to “Pibb Xtra” in 2001 and reformulated the original recipe with enhanced flavor.
Fans were not happy with the name change.
But they eventually got used to the new taste and name.
There is an urban legend that claims Coca-Cola repurposed surplus prune juice as a secret ingredient when developing Mr. Pibb in 1972.
However, the company has never confirmed this.
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In the 1990s, Mr. Pibb’s marketing team came up with animated commercials featuring cyclops creatures playing “Pibb pong” and wise-cracking blobs making pop culture references.
These psychedelic ads targeted Generation X’s appetite for irony, but they failed to boost sales.
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Though it’s never taken over Dr Pepper’s market share, Pibb Xtra has evolved into a cult phenomenon.
People who really love this soft drink are known as “Pibbists.”
It’s become a real niche community in the soda community.
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