Mr. Bubble is an American brand of bubble bath products manufactured by The Village Company. Created by Harold Schafer in 1961, it is the #1 brand of bubble bath products in the United States.[1] In addition to the flagship bubble bath formula, the line includes body wash, shampoo, conditioner, bath bombs, hand soap and baby wipes. The Mr. Bubble brand would also become well known for its advertisements, most famously featuring bright and colorful cartoon depictions of the Mr. Bubble character in humorous settings.

Mr. Bubble
TypeBubble bath
InventorHarold Schafer
Inception1961
ManufacturerThe Village Company
Websitehttps://thevillagecompany.com/pages/mr-bubble

History

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Mr. Bubble was invented by Harold Schafer who, through his love of helping his children during bath time, envisioned a low cost powdered bubble bath product to be sold at grocery stores and pharmacies.[2] The idea for the name "Mr. Bubble" came after Schafer heard a late-night radio ad for foam cleaner Mr. Clean.[3] It was first manufactured by his Gold Seal Company in North Dakota in 1961 and sold for 59 cents ($5.85 in 2022). Due to the cost being too high for the intended market of families at the time, the product quickly flopped. After working with suppliers to lower the cost to 39 cents ($3.86 in 2022 money), combined with its now famous commercials, Mr. Bubble soon catapulted to worldwide success.[2] In 1972, the company introduced the now-standard liquid bubble bath bottles.[4]

Gold Seal continued to manufacture and distribute Mr. Bubble until 1986 when it was sold to Airwick Industries, then a division of Reckitt & Colman. R&C sold the brand to J. W. Childs Assoc. as a part of their Personal Care Group, Inc., and Playtex Products acquired the Personal Care Group in 1997. Ascendia Brands, Inc. purchased Mr. Bubble in 2005 from Playtex Products. Ascendia Brands, Inc. later filed for bankruptcy,[5] which was when The Village Company acquired the Mr. Bubble brand in August 2008.[4]

In 2011, Mr. Bubble celebrated its 50th anniversary with a party at the North Dakota State Capitol hosted by former governor Ed Schafer, the son of Harold Schafer,[2] as well as a redesigned mascot.

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References

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  1. ^ Source: Nielsen Data Total U.S. FMD 52 weeks ending December 25, 2010 (excluding Walmart data).
  2. ^ a b c "Mr. Bubble bubble bath turns 50". Twin Cities. 2011-08-31. Retrieved 2022-07-30.
  3. ^ MR BUBBLE, retrieved 2022-08-23
  4. ^ a b "History of Mr. Bubble". Retrieved 2019-08-19.
  5. ^ Stempel, Jonathan (2000-08-05). "Mr. Bubble maker Ascendia Brands files bankruptcy". Reuters. Retrieved 2009-03-10.
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