No One Believed In These ‘Fake’ Chips. Then He Made Billions

Ah, Pringles. Whether you call them chips or crisps, there's just something so satisfying about putting your hand into that cardboard container, reaching for your next snack. They're crispy, addictive, and fun, and raise your hand as if a child, or maybe even as an adult, you also tried sticking two in your mouth to create the original duck face. No, not that one. This one. Pringles is a massive global hit. The brand has 25 different flavors in the US and even more internationally. How many Pringles flavor stack combinations are there? And it is said that when combined, you can make over 318,000 unique flavor stacks. Over the years, the man with the mustache on the cardboard container has become one of the most recognizable brand mascots in the world. But is he also the inventor? And why are Pringles called crisps instead of chips? Keep watching to find out. But beware, you might never look at these snacks the same way again. Pringles history is murky, and many people played an important role in its creation. While you could say that the story began in 1956, we think we should go back in time even further, all the way to 1837. That's the year when William Proctor and James Gamble set up their own business. William was an English candle maker, while James was an Irish soap maker. Although they didn't know each other, the two men had a lot in common. They both emigrated to the United States and settled in Cincinnati, Ohio. And while they both stayed there for the Born in 1803, James emigrated to America with his parents in 1819. They were going on a boat down the Ohio River that was destined for Illinois. But after James got sick, they were forced to stop in Cincinnati instead. His family decided to stay in the city, and James began working as a soap maker. William, on the other hand, was born in 1801, and he emigrated to the US in 1830. He had made the move together with his first wife and began manufacturing candles in New York. Life was going well, but during a trip to Cincinnati in 1832, his wife passed away. William was struck with grief, and although he had planned on only staying in Cincinnati for a short while, he eventually decided to spend the Now, remember how I said the two men have a lot in common? Well, the resemblances don't stop here. Three years after arriving in the States, William married a lady called Olivia Norris, and James, he married a woman called Elizabeth Ann Norris. As you can probably already guess, Olivia and Elizabeth were sisters, and through their marriages, William and James became related. As soap and candle makers, the men had been competing for the same raw materials. Realizing they could negotiate better prices as a team, their father-in-law persuaded them to join forces. And in 1837, Procter and Gamble was invented. By the time Pringles were first created, both William and James had long passed away. But it's safe to say that without them, P&G would never have existed. And without P&G, Pringles would most likely never have been a thing either. Now before we get into how Pringles were created, let's first take a look at how the potato chip industry was doing at the time of its invention. It was the year 1956, and chips remained an incredibly popular snack for many. They were convenient, cheap and tasty. And they were still the most important processed potato products one could find. But however popular they may have been, many snackers also had some complaints. You see, the conventional construction of the American potato chip had some serious issues. And little by little, people began calling them out. Number one, they went stale way too fast. Number two, they got all greasy. Number three, they broke into little pieces in the bag before you even got the chance to eat them. And most importantly, number four, why did all potato chip brands seem to sell more air than chips? Surely there must have been some solution to all these problems. And Procter and Gamble believed they had it. Seeing how everyone was increasingly getting more fed up with potato chips and their four annoying problems, they decided to take matters into their own hands. To do something about the easily breakable chip shape, they enlisted an expert chemist and food technician named Frederick J. Bauer. Fred began experimenting and through the use of supercomputers, he managed to create the saddle shaped form that Pringles is famous for today. This is called a hyperbolic paraboloid. And by taking advantage of unique aerodynamics, the chips were now perfectly stackable. To make them even more crush proof, Fred also invented a new way of packaging them. A tubular vacuum sealed cardboard can. Now that each chip was neatly placed on top of the other, the grease spread was greatly reduced. And it also meant that after opening a can, less oxygen reached the chips. Together with the cans resealable plastic lid, this made the chips stay fresh for much longer. Finally, they also filled the cans up all the way. And by doing so they fixed the last and most annoying problem traditional chip brands had been facing. Selling air. Things were looking great. But there was only one issue though. The chips tasted incredibly bland. After noticing their snack didn't taste very good, PNG ditched its innovative chip product. But if this were the end of the story, Pringles wouldn't be as famous as it is today. So what happened? For more than two years, Fred had poured all his time and energy into the project. But he was eventually assigned to a different product. His Pringles designs had been incredible, but he just couldn't get them to taste good. And no matter how good a snack looks, if it tastes bland, almost no one will want to eat it. This is when the next important key player comes into the picture. Alexander Lipa. By now it was the mid 1960s. Alexander was working as a researcher for PNG. And when he was asked to pick up where Fred had left off, just like Fred, he began experimenting. And he eventually succeeded in bringing some flavor to the bland chips. Using dehydrated potatoes as a base, he mixed in a few other ingredients and put the paste in a cookie cutter device. Each chip was stamped out of the exact same size, shape and weight. And in 1967, nearly a decade after it was first developed, the very first Pringles were released to the public. PNG initially called them the Pringles newfangled potato chips. The product started small and it was initially sold in limited regions. The design was unique. But while the can was a revolution within the snack world, not everyone was pleased. Throughout the 1960s and 70s, Pringles did not sell well. In fact, it did so badly that some called for it to be removed from PNG's lineup. One reason was that the flavor still wasn't good enough for many. And while PNG had spent tons of money to create a special kind of chip that can be easily stacked together, many disliked the uniform shapes, they found it boring. And they complained that with all the chips having identical sizes, they could no longer look for the big or small ones. They felt that they were forced to give up the fun of eating potato chips. And it didn't seem like consumers really appreciated the new design. Now what? After Pringles initial flop, PNG tried to win over the masses by creating new flavors like barbecue, cheddar cheese, and sour cream and onion. Little by little, demand kept increasing. And by the mid-1970s, Pringles were sold all over the United States. With that success also came a downside, though. An increasing number of rivals had their eyes set on Pringles downfall. Noticing that Pringles kept taking more and more of their market share, they took issue with the fact that Pringles were called chips. You see, Pringles aren't really potato chips. They are made of dehydrated processed potato flakes, which are rolled and then fried. Rivals cried foul. And they complained that calling them chips was a lie. After all, the fried dough they were made of had less than 50% potato. Complaints kept growing. And in 1975, the FDA stepped in. They ruled that Pringles could only be called chips on one condition. Procter and Gamble had to include a disclaimer on the packaging that stated that they are made from dehydrated potato. Understandably, P&G didn't want to do that. And so they decided to rename their product instead. From then on, Pringles crisps were born. And Pringles fully began embracing its distinction. With this problem out of the way, P&G could once again focus on making the chips more popular. They tweaked the flavor and introduced the Fever of the Flavor of Pringles ad campaign. It was a big success. And one of the ads even starred Brad Pitt. Keep in mind that this was in 1989, though, so a little before he had made his big break. Nonetheless, the enhanced flavor together with the new ad campaign had a big effect. Pringles slowly but surely became P&G's biggest brand. And by the late 1990s, it was raking in more than $1 billion in revenue. As Pringles popularity surged in the US, the brand began expanding to new international markets. In addition to the expansion, they also began creating more interesting and wacky flavors like seaweed, prawn cocktail, and even blueberry and hazelnut. By 2011, Pringles was sold in more than And it is one of the most popular snack brands in the world. In fact, the brand was doing so well that it made Fred Bauer proud enough to want to take his invention to the grave. Literally. After passing away in 2008, Fred's family granted him his wish of having his cremated ashes buried in a Pringles can. Original flavor, of course. Today, Pringles is doing well. It is jokingly considered to be the one potato chip company that doesn't sell its customers air. After being bought by Kellogg in 2012 for $2.7 billion, the brand has only continued to flourish. And the delicious, thinly sliced saddle shaped crisps are known and loved all over the world. Over the years, the famous Pringles man has become one of the world's most recognizable brand mascots. And while he has embodied many different looks, he has always sported his recognizable bushy mustache. Now the question remains, who is Pringles inventor? The man who first created the design of the chips and the packaging was Fred Bauer. Alexander Lipa then finished his work one decade later by improving the flavor. And the company responsible for hiring both Fred and Alexander was Procter & Gamble, which was founded by William Procter and James Gamble in 1837. So with all of that information in mind, who do you consider to be the Pringles true inventor? This was the story of Pringles. While the unique chips were no overnight sensation, with the help of some experimenting and savvy advertising, they eventually managed to enter the ranks of snack food royalty. They solved the problems their competitors were facing. And to this day, people from all over the world praise them for selling actual chips instead of air. What about this story did you find the most remarkable? Share it in the comments. And don't forget to check out our channel if you'd like to see more inspiring business videos.