Mrs Elswood Haimisha Cucumbers Pickle 670 g

Product Information

By 1972 the Marela brand had disappeared. Ex-employees, Sam Goldman, Joe Rubin, and Dennis Mendel, saw an opportunity and started a new company which Donna Nathan, Joe’s daughter told me they called Elswood because Joe and Dennis came from Elstree, and Sam from St Johns Wood (not Borehamwood, by the way). Joe had the bright idea of creating a person for customers to identify with. They had a photoshoot, a pretty girl came from an agency and Mrs Elswood was born. She was a real person for a while, a model from an agency, but was replaced by the smiling, illustrated lady some years later.”

The decision wasn’t purely cosmetic, according to Mrs Davis. “She was looking a bit dated, but also, the brand was struggling to keep up-to-date in terms of technology. The illustration wasn’t equipped to be used on social media and online,” she said. There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride. Incidentally, the woman on today’s jars is not the girl in the photoshoot. Matthew Moyes of Empire Foods, the current owners, told me that it is believed that the model passed away, obviously quite young, and her family asked for a change of face. It was upsetting to see her every time they went to the supermarket. The company made the change “in line with the values of the brand”. Mrs Elswood has been given a modern, more fashionable look with a sleek hairstyle and new red top which matches the classic green and red brand colours.With Smylies, you can shop all the latest produce from Mrs Elswood, including their famous flavours; whole sweet, sweet ‘n’ sour, hot dill, dill spear and sweet cucumber spears. As one of Empire Foods unparalleled selection of brands, the Mrs Elswood brand is produced by people who have over 50 years combined expertise in the speciality food sector, all of which have a passion and knowledge of the UK grocery market. We felt it was important to retain the brand’s heritage whilst also creating a new naming and colour convention, so that each product would be much easier to identify on shelf.

The aim of the brand refresh is to appeal to younger consumers who have recently discovered the joy of gherkins, without alienating its core audience. The plan was to keep her recognisable. Empire Bespoke Foods senior brand manager Mat Moyes told the JC: “People empathised with this character — Mrs Elswood. Food marketing experts Brilliant Agency devised the latest incarnation. Its creative director, Laurra Davis, told the JC: “She has been through several iterations. In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people. As for the jar lid going from green to red, Mrs Davis said: “That works with the gherkins and really makes them pop.Harvested in the height of cucumber season (June-July), they are crunchy with a delicious fresh and full flavour. The first Mrs. Elswood was a model from an agency — a dark-haired woman in her early 20s who, frankly, looked like she crushed a lot of hearts in her Israel tour days. There isn’t not a touch of soft porn about the photo. This Mrs. Elswood was brief; the model sadly died young, and her family asked the owners to change the picture, as it was upsetting to see her smiling out from the supermarket shelves. But a couple of weeks ago, The Jewish Chronicle broke the big news. Mrs. Elswood was getting a rebrand. And they had evidence: Pictures of a new Mrs Elswood jar — with a new Mrs. Elswood. The designers didn’t want Mrs Elswood to lose any of her charm. Mrs Davis explained: “The most important thing was Mrs Elswood herself keeping her warmth, and her motherly qualities whilst bringing her up to date with a slightly more youthful face and hairstyle.”