Wonder Bread Returns To Shelves After Rising From The Ashes Of Hostess Bankruptcy
Like some kind of squishy, white phoenix flying on wings made totally of carbohydrates, Wonder Bread is the latest brand to rise from the ashes of the old Hostess’ bankruptcy. It’s even got a new look, which is of course based on the vintage look of Wonder Bread, which makes it new-but-old. And now we’re confused, but hey, bread!
Flowers Foods bought the Wonder Bread brand from Hostess earlier this year and is returning it and hree other brands to grocery stores across the country, including Merita, Home Pride and Butternut bread brands.
Now what about that burning question we all want, nay, demand to have answered: Will it taste the same as the smushy white stuff of memory?
“We are using the same recipes and paying close attention to quality and freshness. We want these breads to be great from the very first taste,” says Keith Aldredge, Flowers Foods’ vice president of marketing in a press release.
The only bad news is that not everyone will have access to Wonder Bread right away, explains Aldredge, as Flowers doesn’t have national distribution yet.
“Where ever these brands were available before within our market area—they are returning,” he says. Those cities include: Baltimore, Boston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Memphis, Miami, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Richmond, St. Louis, San Diego, San Francisco and Tulsa.
As for that retro packaging, Aldredge says the company did a deep dive into the archives to hunt up packaging designs from days of yore.
“We’re bringing back the classic Wonder and Merita logos and colors,” he says. “We hope the nostalgic look creates happy memories for many and attracts new consumers with its retro appeal.”
My first memory of Wonder Bread involves removing the crust, rolling it up into a ball and squishing it together as small as it would go before sticking chocolate chips in it and heating it in the microwave. I was a weird kid.
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