Monterey Jack's was a short-lived rebranding of Jack in the Box in the mid-1980s, designed to appeal to a more upscale, "yuppie" demographic. Although the company had intended to rebrand all 845 Jack in the Box locations, those plans did not survive an initial test period. At its peak, only 60 locations were converted to Monterey Jack's.[1][2]
History[]
The rebranding was a continuation of Jack in the Box's efforts to pivot away from its customer base of families with young children towards a more affluent, mature demographic,[3] which was dramatically symbolized in a 1980 ad campaign featuring the chain's clown mascot Jack being destroyed in various ways, including being strapped with dynamite and blown up. Richard A. Pearce, vice president of marketing, stated that the reason for the change was because "our former name didn't match our concept and it didn't describe our food."[4] Research had shown that the name "Jack in the Box" conjured images of screaming children.[5]
The name "Monterey Jack's" previously belonged to several sit-down restaurants owned by Jack in the Box's parent company Foodmaker, Inc.[6] It was chosen from a list of 20 potential candidates, with the company hoping to keep the word "Jack" in the new name.[7] Other proposed names included J.B.'s, Jack & Company, and Jack's.[8]
The new name was initially rolled out to test market locations in Albuquerque, New Mexico and Beaumont, Texas in October 1984, before spreading to Seattle, Washington the following month and St. Louis, Missouri in May 1985.[4][6] A press release announcing the change heralded it as "one of the most ambitious identity changes ever attempted in the fast food industry."[9] Ahead of the rebranding, Jack in the Box employees were given T-shirts featuring a clown with a slash against its body on one side, and the slogan "No more clownin' around" on the other.[6]
In May 1985, company president Jack Goodall suggested the name change would be applied chainwide, citing satisfactory results from the test locations.[7] However, the company changed course and announced in March 1986 that all Monterey Jack's locations would be reverted back to Jack in the Box, after the rebrand "failed to spark sales or attendance."[2]
Among the reasons cited for the failure of Monterey Jack's was that people did not realize Jack in the Box had changed its name, or simply continued to refer to it by its old name.[2] Another potential factor was a change in management: during this period, Foodmaker, Inc. was sold off by its parent company Ralston Purina to a private group.[10][3]
Foodmaker's trademark for Monterey Jack's was cancelled in 1992.[11]
[]
In contrast to Jack in the Box's shiny red color scheme, Monterey Jack's featured a blue color scheme with a wood-and-brass décor.[12] The logo was blue and white with yellow and red accents, while restaurant interiors featured bentwood chairs and brass rails.[13][6]
Monterey Jack's still served much of Jack in the Box's menu, including burgers and fries.[12] Its signature cheeseburger was the Monterey Jack Burger, which was simultaneously sold at Jack in the Box locations that hadn't undergone the namechange.[14] The burger caught the ire of cheesemaker David Viviani, who claimed the cheese used on the burger could not be legally designated as Monterey Jack cheese and threatened legal action against the company. [15]
Advertising[]
An early commercial for Monterey Jack's featured Pearce walking up to a podium and explaining why Jack in the Box was changing its name by winding up an actual jack-in-the-box toy.
Later commercials depicted exploding Jack in the Box signs, in an echo of the 1980 campaign, and featured musician Ray Charles singing "Monterey Jack's" to the tune of his hit song "Hit the Road Jack." After announcing the brand would reverted back to Jack in the Box, a Foodmaker executive confirmed that the company had "no plans to blow up Ray Charles" as they had done to Jack.[2][16]
Another commercial starred actress Rita Wilson in one of her early roles.[17]
After the company backtracked, a commercial featured Jack in the Box ad spokesman Dan Gilvezan issuing an apology to consumers.
Legacy[]
A Daily Meal listicle called Monterey Jack's "a PR disaster of epic proportions," while fast food expert Bill Oakley deemed it "one of the biggest fiascos in American business history."[18][19] However, blogger Steve Lovelace opined that the "campaign was so short-lived that it barely had time to make a dent of the collective memory of civilization."[16] The fact that the rebranding was limited to four test markets may have saved it from reaching national awareness, in contrast to more well-known unsuccessful product launches from the era such as New Coke.
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ "California Fast-Food Chain Invading Utah." The Richfield Reaper. April 12, 1986.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Stroud, Jerri. "Jack Back in Box." St. Louis Post-Dispatch. March 28, 1986.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Covell, Jeffrey L. "Foodmaker, Inc." International Directory of Company Histories. . Encyclopedia.com. November 15, 2023.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Sypher, Richard. "Jack-in-the-Box springs a name change." The Tacoma News Tribune. November 8, 1984.
- ↑ Day, Kathleen. "IMAGE : Corporations in Search of an Identity Turn to Outside Consultants for Help : A New Look Can Reshape Perception." Los Angeles Times. June 16, 1985.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Stroud, Jerri. "Jack In The Box: The Name Is About To Vanish." St. Louis Post-Dispatch. May 16, 1985.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 United Press International. "Jack trading 'In The Box' for 'Monterey.'" The Modesto Bee. May 8, 1985.
- ↑ Frazier, George. "The Game of the Name." Florida Magazine (The Orlando Sentinel). November 17, 1985.
- ↑ Darnton, Jack. "Jack in the Box is Monterey Jack's." Longview Daily News. November 15, 1984.
- ↑ Ritter, Bill. "Ralston Purina Agrees to Sell Fast-Food Unit : Management Will Buy Jack in the Box’s Parent." Los Angeles Times. May 1, 1985.
- ↑ United States Patent and Trademark Office.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Boone, Brian. "The Rise, Fall, And Resurgence Of Jack In The Box." Mashed. October 16, 2023.
- ↑ "Jack Of A Different Color." St. Louis Post-Dispatch. May 21, 1985.
- ↑ Jack in the Box newspaper advertisement. The Honolulu Advertiser. January 23, 1986.
- ↑ LeBaron, Gaye. "Go to the freezer, get funny cheese." The Press Democrat. February 3, 1986.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Lovelace, Steve. "Rebranding Failures." Steve Lovelace. September 23, 2011.
- ↑ Wilson, Rita (@RitaWilson). "Found this gem from back in my commercial acting days! Anyone else remember Monterey Jack’s? #TBT. @JackBox." Twitter. February 17, 2022.
- ↑ Myers, Dan. "11 Things You Didn't Know About Jack In The Box Gallery." The Daily Meal. June 22, 2018.
- ↑ Oakley, Bill (@thatbilloakley). "In 1985 Jack in the Box tried to completely rebrand as Monterey Jack's, 'an upscale fast-food outlet aimed at young adults', and it was one of the biggest fiascos in American business history and they ended up apologizing to the public." Twitter. November 8, 2023.