Drastic Change on Milky Commercial After 71 Years

Background of the new commercial filled with cuteness

“Whenever I feel tired or have a hard time in my daily life, I feel a little cheered up and healed when I eat some milky. Milky has such power! That is why we created a new commercial based on the concept of “healing.”

 

“We chose Ms. Kamishiraishi as the brand character because she is the perfect actress for the keyword “healing”. Her gentleness, transparency, and reassuring presence are very much in line with the image of the Milky brand. I think Milky has that kind of appeal.” Miki Dobashi of Fujiya’s Public Relations Office said.

 

Back-hugging Kamishiraishi…

 

Everyone knows the phrase “Milky tastes like mama~♪”. But in the new commercial, a man’s gentle voice sings “Milky for you who work hard~♪” and “There are many things, but one mood can change the world~♪” and the main character, Peko-chan, does not appear.

 

“Instead, Kamishiraishi is joined by “Milky Spirit,” a slightly milk-colored character with a soft, fluffy body and a tongue that sticks out just like Peko-chan’s. The character is a little milk-colored character with a fluffy body and a floppy tongue just like Peko-chan’s. The character is so cute that we can’t help but wonder, is this character too cute?”

 

“He is a fairy with the concept of healing. The idea was to visually express the feeling of being healed by eating milky in an easy-to-understand way. The gentle shape and coloring were intended to evoke a ‘milky’ feeling.” (Ms. Dobashi)

In its 71-year history

This year marks the 71st year since the release of “Milky,” the soft candy familiar to all of us as “Peko-chan”. It is a super long-selling product that everyone knows. The annual consumption of the 120-gram bag of Milky, the main product, is approximately 7.77 million bags per year. In terms of the number of grains, it is said to be as much as 240 million grains.

 

Milky is a product that has been around for a long time and has “the same delicious taste,” but the truth is that over the past 71 years, improvements have been made and the taste has continued to change. Akari Aoki of the Product Planning Department’s Candy Section, who handles the development of Milky, says proudly, “It’s really just been a little by little…”

 

Since the beginning of the 2000s, we have added milk and cream as well as condensed milk to give it a more ‘milky’ taste.

In 2021, the 70th anniversary after its launch, two new products were also introduced: “Katchikochi Milky,” which became harder, and “Squishy Milky,” which became squishy soft, as its name suggests. The new products were made with the unique thoughts of the Corona disaster in mind.

 

“I think there is a growing need for sweets and other familiar things to make people feel a little happier and more relaxed amidst the inconveniences and stresses of life,” said Mr. Katsikochi.

 

“Katchikochi Milky is hard, so it takes time to eat. In other words, the time it takes to eat it = the time it takes to be happy lasts longer. In order to keep the happy time longer, you have to chew it and keep it from cracking! (laughs).”

 

“For this ‘Squishy Milky,” we were able to successfully apply the technology of making something that is hard to crack that Milky has cultivated with ‘Chitose Ame’,” says Ms. Aoki of the Candy Section.

 

Milky Chitose Ame has a large share of the industry market and is a very important product for Fujiya.

 

Chitose Ame is a product that is the child’s first contact with Milky. The concept of Milky has remained unchanged since its launch: “Milky has a gentle taste that parents can give to their children with peace of mind,” says Aoki.

 

“This is my second year in the candy section. I was happy to be involved with Milky, which I have many memories of since I was a child.”

 

“We are developing a variety of new products, but our concept from the beginning has been to create a taste that is safe to give to children and that makes them feel the love of their parents. That will never change. In addition, we would like to take the product in a new direction that is not limited to the candy category, such as ‘Drink Milky’. Of course, we would like to make the candy more exciting, but we would also like to create milky treats that have never existed before.” 

 

Ms. Aoki, who belongs to the Candy Section of the Product Development Department, said with sparkling eyes. Even within Fujiya, “Milky” is a somewhat special product.

 

“Milky” is supported by longtime fans and sparkling eyes like these.

At the reception desk at Fujiya’s headquarters in Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, of course!　From left, Peko-chan, Ms. Dobashi, Ms. Aoki, and Poco

Photos of past stores, including the now-defunct Ginza store, were on display. Various Peko-chan dolls and nostalgic product photos!