Fun fact: SNICKERS chocolate bar derived its name from an adorable horse 

There are ordinary chocolates and then there are some that you can never get tired of. SNICKERS, the rich, gooey, melt-in-the-mouth candy bar filled with nougat, peanuts, and caramel falls in the second category for most of you, isn’t it? Well, starting off with a rather humble origin in the USA, the much-loved chocolate bar has an interesting nomenclature. Believe it or not, it derives the name from a horse that the founders loved so much! Surprised? So were we while stumbling upon this piece of information. Here we take you through the history, timeline, ingredients and varieties of the chocolate in its modern-day avatars. Read on to know more.

An adorable horse called SNICKERS!

Much like any of us who had a favourite toy, book, cartoon show or pet whom we loved so much during our childhood, an American husband-wife duo named Frank and Ethel Mars had a favourite horse. The beloved horse was known as Snickers. Sadly, the horse met his unfortunate demise right before the Mars couple’s peanut candy bar could go into production. So to pay tribute to their adorable horse, they decided to name the peanut candy bar after him. The chocolate bar is believed to have included white sugar, milk chocolate, corn syrup, peanuts, nougat and egg whites as its primary ingredients in 1930.

Sweet success after the failure
Like most first-time businesses, the Mars family also met with some failure before figuring out their sweet way to impending worldwide fame and success soon. Frank and Ethel had tried setting up a wholesale candy factory in 1911 in the US, which turned out to be a debacle. Nine years later, they founded Mars Inc., originally called Mar-O-Bar Company and sort of hit the jackpot. A star was created when they introduced the Milky Way bar a few years later. Thanks to this success, Frank and Ethel were able to launch a full production facility in Bakersfield, California. In 1930, the SNICKERS bar was first introduced from there.

Marathon: A runner’s best friend
Manufactured in Chicago, USA and sold for a mere five cents in 1930, SNICKERS was changed to Marathon Bar some 60 years later in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was called so as it provided runners with instant energy. There was another reason behind the name change though. SNICKERS rhymed with the word for women's underwear, knickers. As you might have guessed, it didn’t go down well with the public at that time. Hence, the need for a name change was necessitated. Around 2014, the name was again modified to the original SNICKERS as the parent company Mars Wrigley wanted consistent names across all markets for their flagship brands. Needless to say, their early products, including the SNICKERS bar, provided the triumph that allowed them to become the iconic company they are today. 

SNICKERS! A sweet success story
The different product ranges available under this brand are SNICKERS Originals, SNICKERS Brownie, SNICKERS Ice-Cream, sweet and salty SNICKERS Popcorn, SNICKERS Peanut Butter candy, SNICKERS Almond candy bars and minis. Here are a few of the the milestones that SNICKERS has achieved so far.

• 1968: The company introduced Fun Size SNICKERS.
• 1984: SNICKERS became a recognised sponsor of the Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
• 1989: The SNICKERS Ice Cream Bar was first introduced.
• 2010: The "You're not you when you're hungry" campaign by BBDO New York, which has won numerous awards, was launched. This campaign was celebrated during Super Bowl XLIV with a commercial starring American actress Betty White.
• 2013: SNICKERS sales in the US surpassed $1 billion.
• 2021: SNICKERS Brownie flavours first appeared.