Pepsodent

Pepsodent is a historic toothpaste brand introduced in the United States in 1915 by the Pepsodent Company of Chicago. It became associated with mint-flavored toothpaste, highly memorable advertising, and claims centered on removing tooth film, preventing decay, and making teeth appear whiter. The original formula reportedly contained pepsin, a digestive enzyme that the company presented as helping break down food deposits on the teeth; this ingredient was the basis for the Pepsodent name. The brand grew through an unusually ambitious advertising program for its era. Its campaigns focused on the idea that a removable film made teeth look dull or yellow, giving rise to the long-running advertising line, “You’ll wonder where the yellow went, when you brush your teeth with Pepsodent!” Pepsodent also used radio sponsorship extensively. In the 1930s and 1940s it sponsored Amos ’n’ Andy and The Pepsodent Show Starring Bob Hope, an NBC program that ran for approximately a decade beginning in 1938. The Bob Hope program used celebrity appearances, comedy, music, and wartime broadcasts to associate the toothpaste with mass entertainment and national popular culture. Pepsodent maintained a prominent physical advertising presence in New York. From 1930 until late 1933, a large animated neon sign depicting a young girl on a swing was displayed on West 47th Street in Times Square. The sign later gained renewed public recognition when a version of it was recreated for the climax of the 2005 film King Kong. Unilever acquired the Pepsodent Company during the Second World War. Sources differ on the precise year of the transaction, describing the acquisition as occurring in 1942 or 1944; in either case, the brand became part of Unilever’s international personal-care portfolio. In the United Kingdom, Pepsodent sales more than doubled between 1944 and 1950. Production subsequently moved from the brand’s original Park Royal factory to the Leeds factory of Joseph Watson and Sons, another Unilever-owned toiletry manufacturer, in 1951. The brand’s competitive position weakened from the mid-1950s. Pepsodent’s owners were slower than important rivals to add fluoride, while Crest and Gleem from Procter & Gamble and Colgate’s flagship toothpaste received strong promotion around newer cavity-prevention claims. Pepsodent sales declined substantially as the market shifted toward fluoride toothpaste and more technically differentiated oral-care products. Unilever later transferred the North American rights. In 2003, Church & Dwight acquired the rights to use the Pepsodent brand in the United States and Canada, while Unilever retained ownership and marketing control in other markets. The brand continues to be sold internationally as a value-oriented toothpaste, particularly through mass retail and discount channels. In Vietnam, the product is known as P/S. Its international portfolio has included whitening, cavity-care, and general daily-cleaning variants, although exact products and formulas vary by country. Pepsodent therefore occupies a different position from premium dental brands: it trades on broad recognition, affordability, mint flavor, and accessible everyday oral hygiene rather than advanced clinical specialization.

Pepsodent originated in the United States in 1915, when the Pepsodent Company of Chicago introduced a toothpaste whose early formula contained pepsin. The company presented pepsin as a digestive agent that could help break down food deposits on teeth, providing the conceptual basis for the Pepsodent name. The product was also associated with a mint flavor described as being derived from sassafras. The brand’s early growth depended heavily on advertising rather than on a narrowly clinical identity. Its communications taught consumers to think of a film on the teeth as a source of yellow or dull appearance and positioned brushing as a way to remove that film. This approach produced the famous line, “You’ll wonder where the yellow went, when you brush your teeth with Pepsodent!” Advertising also referred to ingredients called “Irium” and “IMP.” Later commentary identified Irium as a marketing name for sodium lauryl sulfate rather than a distinct ingredient, while IMP was described as insoluble metaphosphate. These claims illustrate the promotional language used by toothpaste companies during the period, when cosmetic whitening and cleanliness were important selling points. Pepsodent was an early major consumer-product sponsor of radio entertainment. It supported Amos ’n’ Andy and, beginning in 1938, The Pepsodent Show Starring Bob Hope on NBC. The latter combined Hope’s comedy with music and appearances by prominent performers and actors. During the Second World War, the program also broadcast live for U.S. troops, extending the brand’s reach beyond conventional product advertising. At the same time, Pepsodent maintained a large animated neon sign in Times Square from 1930 through late 1933. The sign, which showed a young girl on a swing, became a notable example of interwar outdoor advertising and was later recreated for the 2005 film King Kong. Unilever acquired the Pepsodent Company during the 1940s. The commonly cited dates are 1942 and 1944, and the available reference account does not resolve the discrepancy. Under Unilever, Pepsodent expanded in the United Kingdom: sales reportedly more than doubled between 1944 and 1950. Production moved from the original Park Royal site to the Leeds factory of Joseph Watson and Sons in 1951, reflecting the integration of the brand into Unilever’s wider toiletry-manufacturing network. Pepsodent’s market position deteriorated after the middle of the 1950s. Its owners were slow to introduce fluoride, while competing products from Procter & Gamble and Colgate benefited from strong promotion around cavity protection and newer formulation claims. Crest and Gleem became important competitors, and Colgate’s own branded toothpaste strengthened the competitive pressure. Pepsodent’s sales subsequently fell and the brand shifted toward a lower-priced, mass-market role. The ownership structure became geographically divided in 2003, when Church & Dwight acquired the rights to Pepsodent in the United States and Canada. Unilever retained the brand outside those markets. Pepsodent remains available in a number of international markets, commonly as an affordable daily toothpaste. In Vietnam it is known as P/S. Country-specific products and formulas vary, but the brand’s broad identity continues to combine mint freshness, cleaning, whitening-oriented communication, and basic oral-health care. Pepsodent’s long history gives it substantial recognition, while its present positioning is generally closer to a value brand than to a premium specialist dental-care line.

1. 2005Historical sign appears in King Kong

   A recreation of the old Times Square Pepsodent sign is used in the film King Kong.

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2. 2003North American rights transfer to Church & Dwight

   Church & Dwight acquires the rights to Pepsodent in the United States and Canada, while Unilever retains the brand elsewhere.

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3. 1976Pepsodent returns to South Africa

   The brand is relaunched in South Africa with new whitening-oriented advertising and celebrity endorsers.

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4. 1974Pepsodent is discontinued in South Africa

   The brand is withdrawn from the South African market.

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5. 1951Manufacturing moves to Leeds

   U.K. production moves from Park Royal to Joseph Watson and Sons’ Leeds factory.

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6. 1944Alternative reported Unilever acquisition date

   The same historical reference also describes the acquisition as occurring in 1944; the precise year needs verification.

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7. 1942Reported Unilever acquisition date

   One historical account dates Unilever’s purchase of the Pepsodent Company to 1942.

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8. 1938The Pepsodent Show Starring Bob Hope begins

   The sponsored NBC radio program begins a run of approximately ten years.

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9. 1933Times Square sign is removed

   The prominent Pepsodent neon display remains in place until late 1933.

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10. 1930Animated neon sign appears in Times Square

    Pepsodent installs a large animated sign featuring a girl on a swing on West 47th Street in New York’s Times Square.

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11. 1915Pepsodent is introduced in the United States

    The Pepsodent Company of Chicago launches the toothpaste in the U.S. market. The original product is associated with pepsin and claims about helping remove deposits from teeth.

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Mass-market, value-oriented oral-care brand emphasizing everyday cleaning, freshness, whitening, and accessible cavity protection.

• Pepsodent toothpasteToothpaste1915

  The core Pepsodent product is a mint-flavored toothpaste sold for routine brushing and general oral hygiene. Historically, its marketing emphasized the removal of a yellow or dull film from teeth and used the brand’s distinctive pepsin-based origin story. Current formulations and claims vary by market.

• Pepsodent whitening toothpasteWhitening toothpaste

  Whitening-oriented Pepsodent products build on the brand’s long-standing advertising focus on removing visible dullness and yellow appearance. South African advertising in the 1970s used whitening language and celebrity endorsements. Exact formulations, names, and availability are market-specific.

• Pepsodent cavity-care toothpastePreventive oral care

  Cavity-care variants represent the brand’s adaptation to the modern toothpaste market, where fluoride and preventive dental claims became central. The historical source notes that Pepsodent was slower than major competitors to add fluoride, while later products have been marketed for everyday dental protection in selected markets.

• P/SLocalized toothpaste brand name

  In Vietnam, Pepsodent is marketed under the name P/S. It represents a localized expression of the brand within Unilever’s international oral-care portfolio, although product ranges and packaging differ from those used in other countries.

• 1976South African whitening relaunch

  South Africa

  After being discontinued in South Africa in 1974, Pepsodent was revived in 1976 with the advertising line “Gets Your Teeth Their Whitest.” Celebrity endorsers included Rita Moreno and Steve Lawrence, and a localized version of the yellow-to-dullness slogan was also used.

  Outcome. The campaign supported the brand’s return to the South African market and reinforced its cosmetic-whitening positioning.

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• 1940Amos ’n’ Andy sponsorship

  United States

  Pepsodent sponsored the popular radio program Amos ’n’ Andy during the 1930s and 1940s, using a mass-audience entertainment property to promote the toothpaste.

  Outcome. The sponsorship broadened the brand’s reach during radio’s formative period as a national advertising medium.

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• 1938The Pepsodent Show Starring Bob Hope

  United States

  Pepsodent sponsored an NBC radio comedy and variety program hosted by Bob Hope. The show featured regular performers, musical acts, and numerous Hollywood guests, and later included live broadcasts for U.S. troops during World War II.

  Outcome. The program connected Pepsodent with national entertainment culture and helped establish the brand as an early large-scale radio advertiser.

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• 1930Times Square animated neon sign

  United States

  Pepsodent used a large animated neon display of a girl on a swing to create a highly visible outdoor presence in Times Square. The sign remained in place until late 1933 and became part of the brand’s advertising history.

  Outcome. The sign became a notable historical example of branded outdoor advertising and was later recreated in the 2005 film King Kong.

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• 2003Transfer of U.S. and Canadian brand rightsM&A

  Unilever continued to own and operate Pepsodent in international markets but changed the North American rights structure.

  What changed. Unilever sold the rights to the Pepsodent name in the United States and Canada to Church & Dwight.

  Aftermath. Pepsodent became a geographically split brand: Church & Dwight controls North American rights, while Unilever retains the brand outside the United States and Canada.

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• 1951Consolidation of U.K. manufacturingStrategy

  Strong postwar sales growth in the United Kingdom caused Pepsodent to outgrow its original Park Royal factory.

  What changed. Manufacturing was transferred to Joseph Watson and Sons’ Unilever-owned facility in Leeds.

  Aftermath. The move integrated Pepsodent production into Unilever’s broader toiletry manufacturing network.

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• 1942Unilever acquisition of the Pepsodent CompanyM&A

  Pepsodent had developed into a recognized toothpaste brand in the United States and was expanding through mass advertising and international distribution.

  What changed. Unilever acquired the Pepsodent Company, according to one date given in the historical reference.

  Aftermath. The brand became part of Unilever’s toiletry and personal-care portfolio. The reference also gives 1944 as the acquisition year, so the exact date remains unresolved.

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• 1994FCC criticism of the Irium advertising claimControversy

  In a speech, FCC chairman Reed Hundt stated that the “Irium” named in Pepsodent advertising did not exist as an independent ingredient. Reference material identifies Irium as another name used for sodium lauryl sulfate. This was a criticism of advertising terminology rather than a reported product-safety scandal.

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• 2005Pepsodent’s historical Times Square sign is recreated in King Kong

  A recreation of the former Pepsodent neon sign appeared in the climax of the 2005 film King Kong, renewing attention to the brand’s early outdoor advertising.

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• 2003Church & Dwight acquires North American Pepsodent rights

  Unilever sold the rights to the Pepsodent brand in the United States and Canada to Church & Dwight. Unilever continued to own and market the brand in other countries.

  M&A
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• 1951Pepsodent production moves to Leeds

  After sales growth in the United Kingdom outgrew the original Park Royal factory, manufacturing moved to the Leeds facility of Joseph Watson and Sons, another Unilever-owned toiletry manufacturer.

  Other
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• 1942Unilever acquires the Pepsodent business

  Reference material identifies 1942 as the year Unilever purchased the Pepsodent brand. The historical account also gives 1944 as the acquisition year, so the precise transaction date requires further verification.

  M&A
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• 1938The Pepsodent Show Starring Bob Hope begins on NBC

  Pepsodent sponsored a Bob Hope radio program that ran for approximately ten years and used comedy, music, celebrity guests, and wartime broadcasts as part of the brand’s mass-market advertising strategy.

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• 1930Pepsodent launches a major Times Square neon advertisement

  A large animated neon advertisement featuring a girl on a swing was installed on West 47th Street in Times Square. It remained there until late 1933 and became one of the brand’s most recognizable historical advertising displays.

  Campaign
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• 1915Pepsodent Company introduces toothpaste in the United States

  The Pepsodent Company of Chicago introduced Pepsodent toothpaste to the U.S. market. Its early identity was linked to a formula containing pepsin and to claims about breaking down deposits on teeth.

  Product launch
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1. Pepsodent