PEZ - Iconic

PEZ – a brand with cult status

The creation of a particularly fine peppermint candy in 1927 by Eduard Haas III in Austria marks the birth of PEZ – a name derived from the German word for peppermint, PfeffErminZ. The little tins of refreshing candy prove extremely popular, especially with the high society.

The PEZ dispenser

In 1949, the basic design for the PEZ dispenser is created by Viennese engineer Oskar Uxa: a PEZ dispenser in the form of a golden lighter provides the perfect packaging for offering fine peppermint candies to the high society as breath fresheners and an alternative to cigarettes.

Under the slogan ‘Smoking prohibited, PEZing allowed!’, the innovative candy dispenser enjoys widespread popularity and becomes a stylish accessory of its time.

The invention is revolutionary and remains unique to this today. Quickly recognising the distinct competitive advantage offered by his candy packaging, Eduard Haas III has the PEZ dispenser concept globally patented in 1950.

PEZ ladies

To increase awareness for his exclusive peppermint candies, Eduard Haas devises a rather bold strategy for its time:

Young and beautiful women dressed in uniforms and handing out tasters – a strategy that not only sparked curiosity, but also generated a great deal of awareness.

Equipped with a vendor's tray, the ladies handed out PEZ candies at trade shows, in stores, on busy squares and at various major events. With their radiance and the magic words 'Already PEZing?', the ladies attracted lots of attention and proved to be extremely popular within a short space of time.

The PEZ ladies soon became the focus of all commercial activities, smiling from countless posters, enamel signs, display stands and eventually also from PEZ vending machines. The PEZ ladies remain a popular motif to this day.

PEZ vending machines

From the 50s to the 80s, 36,000 PEZ vending machines were in circulation in Austria and Germany.

The machines not only boosted sales of PEZ candies, they also acted as a kind of billboard, increasing brand awareness and popularity.

Legends

In 2007, PEZ created a gift set to mark the occasion of the 30th anniversary of Elvis' death.

In 2010, the rock band Nickelback were also immortalised with customised PEZ characters.

And before Kate & William were married in 2011, they went down in history as an exclusive PEZ dream couple. The dispensers were auctioned off on Ebay for about 13,300 US dollars - the proceeds were donated in full to charity.