Strome Business Minute With Dr. Jeff Tanner

On Christmas Eve 1926, Wheaties, the Breakfast of Champions, became the first product ever advertised with a jingle. Changing the words to a popular song, it was broadcast on a Minneapolis radio station. The product was actually a mistake – it was created when hot wheat bran was spilled onto a hot stove. But it took nearly three years of trying before the company could make a flake that could withstand packaging and shipping. The slogan, Breakfast of Champions, led to using sports celebrities’ photos, with Lou Gehrig the first to grace the front of the box eight years later. By the end of the thirties, it became the dominant brand, with celebrities from all fields seeking a chance to be on the box, a tradition that continues today. A mistake, a song, and a picture became the dominant brand. This has been Strome Business Minute, presented by the Strome College of Business, Old Dominion University.