Monday 13 February 2012

Brand Loyalties

When shopping, are you loyal to certain brand names for the simple reason that your Mom always used that product? And if she swore by it then goddammit, so do you? Here are the ones I always buy:

Robin Hood flour. My Mom used it for all her baking.


Magic baking powder. I just bought a new container in December when I made cornbread.


Jergens hand lotion -- but only the original cherry and almond scent will do! I've been rubbing this into my hide for over 50 years. I wonder how many vats I've gone through by now?


S.O.S. steel wool scouring pads -- nothing cleans pots and pans better! And they still have that distinctive blue soap in them after all these years. You don't argue with success.


Kleenex and only Kleenex. Any other brand is just sandpaper. Case closed.


Sunlight dish washing liquid. Oh, that distinctive yellow bottle and yellow soap!

Using these products is always evocative and nostalgic for me -- a direct link to my childhood memories.

What brands fall into that category for you?

28 comments:

Snap said...

Fun post. I have SOS pads under the sink. Agree about Kleenex and I haven't thought about Jergens lotion in years! I'll have to see if I can find cherry/almond.

Anonymous said...

you won't beleive this but we use the same brands,, ALL the time, is our Canadian showing??? , lol

Sulky Kitten said...

Oh yes, I agree on the Kleenex and I am also incapable of using any washing up liquid if it's not Fairy Liquid. We really are creatures of habit!

DEZMOND said...

you have ROBIN HOOD flour???? Me is so jealous!!!

mxtodis123 said...

Still use Jergens and Sunlight, but Sunlight now has a new more modern container here. Kleenex is a must both for purse and desk. Another old goodie and can't live without is Pine Sol, the original scent.
Mary

35jupe said...

I love the idea of magic baking powder. Want.

I've actually switched away from most of my mom's brands. Comes from having worked in a natural foods store. My brother says I'm a hippy for jumping ship and doesn't trust my dishsoap. (It works great, actually.) ;)

turquoisemoon said...

I use SOS pads...nothing cleans my stainless pots like em. Lately, I've been giving cheaper/generic brands a try. Haven't been too disappointed yet.

A Beer for the Shower said...

I feel like such an old fart swearing by SOS pads. My wife doesn't understand why I use them, but dammit, nothing cleans a dirty pot like they do.

mermaid gallery said...

My grandfather was a traveling salesman for Robin Hood flour so my loyalty is firm...in agreement with all of the others as well....tried and true!

CorvusCorax12 said...

hubby needs his Kraft ketchup and miracle whip and i love the old fashion Nivea cream , because my grandmother used it and it smells like her

Jane said...

I know what you mean about inheriting brand loyalty. It must be Magic baking powder, Heinz ketchup (there really are no substitutes) and Campbell's tomato soup - not Heinz in this case :)

SUZY8-TRACK said...

Not familiar with Magic baking powder, but I love the name!

Frostbite and Sunburn said...

I've had to seek out new brands since moving here - but a few are internaitonal, like Heinz ketchup and Snickers (the important one, obviously!)

Rox said...

TIDE!!

Jim said...

I was making a cake at my Dad's the other night. He said: "Why don't you use Robin Hood flour....it's the best you know." I should have known!

I am not stuck on any brands I can think of. Have I not a nostalgic bone in my body?! lol

Wendy S. said...

I love the faery from I belive Dreft washing maching powder and I used to love Herbal Essences shampoo and kissing potion. This post made me smile.

Kathy said...

I use store brands of most items so I don't really have an brand loyalty. I don't remember my mother buying a particular brand all the time. Mostly we just bought what was on sale.

Yvonne said...

Hellman's mayo, dawn dish soap, and 'green' cleaners are what I stand by. I make my own laundry soap, bath soap etc. using all natural ingredients. I change around a lot of food items because we have moved so much and can't find the same brand at every place.

MewlKitten said...

Since I started reading labels and watching what I eat, I have changed all the brands of food that I eat, so nothing has stuck with me from childhood. I also change all the brands of cleaners and health and beauty stuff whenever I find something that suits my purposes better. I guess I just like change.

Suzie Ridler said...

I am such a cheap ass! I buy all generic if it's cheaper most of the time. Dove always reminds me of my Mom though, t's the only thing she can use. Downey used to make me suffocate. I was allergic to so many things. Wow, I can't really think of anything, that's sad! I love seeing your list though Debra. Makes me nostalgic and am so glad many of those companies are still around.

Plowing Through Life (Martha) said...

There are some brands that I use faithfully. Not all of them are inherited from my mom, but some are. Magic baking powder is definitely one of them, and so are S.O.S pads. Heinz ketchup, for sure. Tide is my first choice for laundry, although I'm also particular to Sunlight. My mother NEVER used anything but Tide, so I've strayed from that. And I'm also a Sunlight dishwashing liquid gal, but my mother used some others.

Workingdan said...

I used to have my particular brands that I would always get but these days money is so tight I just go for the cheapest brand. Except for Dawn dish soap...it's the only way to do dishes!

The Dancing Crone said...

I like being the last to comment because I get to read what everybody else said. Seems some folks have never heard of magic Baking Powder. I wonder if it is a Cdn brand. Never thought of the name before - But it is kinda cool. MAGIC Baking Powder. Too bad there wasn't a whole line of MAGIC products - Magic dish soap, Magic pot scrubbers. Well ther IS the MAGIC Eraser - a new product I love.

Magaly Guerrero said...

I'm not attached to brands, but when it comes to herbs, I can't even imagine using something different than what my Grandma used for her brews. I feel she's right next to me when I concoct something with the same ingredients she used when she lived.

yellowdoggranny said...

S.O.S. is so much better than those crappy cheap things that turn to rust the first time you use them. I use Charmin tissue because my ass demands the best. I use good paper towels..via, brawny because 1 sheet picks up as much as 3-5 sheets of the cheap stuff. I use brand names on lots of stuff because it is better..but I buy generic for most stuff..like sweet and low, cheap brand the same..store brand on cereals..same/cheaper. I buy the best cat food I can find...Dexter doesn't deserve chicken beaks, feathers and feet in his food..

laughingwolf said...

until prices went thru the roof, i was brand loyal... now i get the no-name, often, and while not perfect, are adequate...

yeah, i pinch pennies where i can

mother used the same stuff as yours did...

btw- research shows the BEST hand cream is VASELINE INTENSIVE CARE... despite others charging a LOT more, the better ones begin with vic-type ingredients, then add perfumes and other useless crap... that's ONE brand i stick with

one thing hard to find: the old sunlight bar soap... it cleaned damn near everything, hardwood floor included...

JeannetteLS said...

the Robin Hood Flour and Magic baking powder I have never seen. But the other products are MY choices as well. Up spooky, scary music.

or not.

Tricky Nag said...

The power of branding!
I try not to go with the old favourites, but when faced with the fancy-packaged brand, and the bright yellow container, it's tough not to go with known and fancy!