M&M's

M&M's is a chocolate confectionery brand owned by Mars, Incorporated and sold in markets around the world. Its core product consists of chocolate or other fillings surrounded by a colored sugar shell, allowing the candy to be handled with less mess than uncoated chocolate. The brand is known for its bright color palette, the lowercase “m” printed on each piece, distinctive packaging, and a cast of anthropomorphic spokescandies used in advertising and entertainment. The product was introduced in the United States in 1941 by Forrest E. Mars Sr., working with William F. R. Murrie, whose father was a senior executive at Hershey. The commonly accepted origin story connects the candy’s sugar shell to chocolate observed being eaten by soldiers during the Spanish Civil War: the coating helped keep chocolate from melting in warm conditions. The partnership also provided access to chocolate manufacturing resources and technology. The name M&M's derives from the surnames Mars and Murrie. M&M's was initially associated with military rations during the Second World War, when its resistance to melting made it practical for soldiers. After the war, the product became available to the general public. Mars later acquired Murrie's interest, making M&M's wholly owned by Mars. In the 1950s, the brand began printing a small “m” on each candy as a mark of authenticity and supported the product with national advertising. Over time, the assortment expanded beyond the original milk-chocolate format to include peanut, almond, crispy, pretzel, caramel, peanut butter, dark-chocolate, seasonal, and other limited or market-specific variants. Marketing has been central to the brand’s development. M&M's built a recognizable personality system around characters including Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, Orange, Brown, and Purple. Each character is given a distinct voice and temperament, enabling the brand to use humor, dialogue, animation, packaging, retail experiences, digital content, and partnerships rather than relying only on product-focused advertising. The characters have also helped M&M's localize its communications and build recognition in markets where the product itself was less established. The brand’s business scope includes packaged chocolate candies, sharing bags, single-serve formats, seasonal products, gift assortments, customized candies, licensed merchandise, and branded retail experiences. A major example of experiential retail was the M&M's World store opened in London’s Leicester Square in 2011, the brand’s first such store outside the United States at that time. M&M's products are distributed through supermarkets, convenience stores, mass retailers, cinemas, travel retail, specialty confectionery channels, e-commerce, and company-operated or branded retail locations in selected markets. M&M's positions itself around fun, sharing, color, humor, and togetherness. Its campaigns have included cause-related marketing, large-scale television advertising, social media, sports and entertainment tie-ins, and global brand platforms. In 2022, the brand introduced “It's More Fun Together” around its eightieth anniversary, emphasizing shared enjoyment and human connection across more than 100 countries. In 2023, Mars temporarily paused public-facing use of several redesigned spokescandies after a political and cultural backlash surrounding the characters, illustrating both the reach of the brand’s character strategy and the risks of attaching social symbolism to mass-market advertising. M&M's remains an active flagship brand within Mars’s snacking portfolio. Mars’s private ownership means that brand-level revenue, valuation, headquarters, and stock-market information are not consistently disclosed publicly. The brand’s exact Japanese operating entity and local corporate address are not established by the supplied sources; therefore, the input country of Japan is not treated as the brand’s country of origin.

M&M's emerged from the collaboration between Forrest E. Mars Sr. and William F. R. Murrie. Mars brought the product concept and confectionery ambitions, while Murrie’s connection to Hershey provided access to ingredients, manufacturing knowledge, and commercial support. The partnership developed a chocolate candy encased in a sugar shell, a format associated with the need to protect chocolate from melting in warm environments. The product was introduced in the United States in 1941 and named from the partners’ initials. The early product benefited from wartime demand. Its shell made it convenient for military use and helped distinguish it from ordinary chocolate bars. Following the Second World War, M&M's moved more decisively into the civilian confectionery market. Mars eventually bought out Murrie’s interest and retained sole control of the brand. In 1950, the company added the small printed “m” that became an authentication mark and began supporting the candy through extensive national advertising. The brand expanded its relevance through product variety and visual identity. Peanut M&M's became an important extension of the original milk-chocolate product, while later decades brought nut, crispy, pretzel, caramel, peanut-butter, dark-chocolate, seasonal, and other formats. Packaging and color became as important as flavor: consumers could identify the product at a distance, and the colored pieces worked naturally in sharing, baking, party, and holiday occasions. A decisive marketing development was the creation and continued use of the spokescandies. Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, Orange, Brown, and later Purple were presented as personalities rather than simple mascots. Their banter and contrasting traits allowed M&M's to dramatize product benefits, social situations, and brand humor. In the United Kingdom, Mars used the characters as a central part of a growth strategy, pairing advertising with experiential retail. The M&M's World location in London’s Leicester Square opened in 2011 and was presented as the company’s first M&M's World store outside the United States at that time. M&M's campaigns increasingly combined mass media with digital engagement, retail displays, promotions, social platforms, customized products, and cause-related activity. The 2013 Better With M program used the proposition that ordinary occasions become more enjoyable with M&M's, including a Super Bowl advertisement and a Habitat for Humanity initiative. In 2022, the brand’s eightieth-anniversary platform, It's More Fun Together, shifted emphasis toward shared laughter, connection, and togetherness while retaining the characters’ comic style and broad international reach. The character strategy also created reputational exposure. In 2023, Mars paused public-facing use of redesigned characters after a highly publicized backlash, particularly around the styling and perceived symbolism of female and newly introduced characters. The episode became a case study in the difficulty of using familiar food mascots in culture-war environments. It did not end the M&M's brand or its broader marketing system, but it demonstrated that the same characters that provide recognition and engagement can also become the focus of controversy. Today, M&M's is managed within Mars’s global snacking business and is sold through multiple retail and food-service channels. Its portfolio spans core chocolate candies, filled and flavored variants, seasonal formats, customized products, gifts, merchandise, and experiential locations in selected markets. The brand continues to rely on color, shareability, humor, character storytelling, and frequent product or partnership activity. Because Mars is privately held and brand-level reporting is limited, detailed financial performance and the precise corporate structure of M&M's in every country are not established in the supplied material.

• 2023

  Character use temporarily paused

  [5]Backlash Or Marketing Savvy? M&Ms And The Perils Of Brands Playing The Culture Warsforbes.com

  Mars announced an indefinite pause in the public-facing use of several redesigned spokescandies following backlash.

• 2022

  It's More Fun Together launched globally

  [4]M&M's: It's More Fun Togetheradsoftheworld.com

  M&M's introduced a global platform centered on shared fun, humor, and connection for its eightieth anniversary.

• 2013

  Better With M campaign launched

  [2]M&M's Brand Launches Better With M Marketing Campaigncspdailynews.com

  Mars introduced an integrated campaign spanning television, digital, print, retail, social media, promotions, and a housing-related charitable initiative.

• 2011

  M&M's World opened in London

  [3]M&M's brand characters front UK pushmarketingweek.com

  The Leicester Square store became the brand’s first M&M's World location outside the United States and an important part of its United Kingdom marketing strategy.

• 1950

  The printed m was introduced

  [1]Forrest Marslemelson.mit.edu

  Mars began imprinting a small “m” on each candy and supporting the brand with national advertising.

• 1946

  Postwar public availability

  [1]Forrest Marslemelson.mit.edu

  After the Second World War, M&M's became available more broadly to the general public.

• 1941

  M&M's introduced in the United States

  [1]Forrest Marslemelson.mit.edu

  Forrest E. Mars Sr. and William F. R. Murrie introduced chocolate candies covered with a protective sugar shell.

Mass-market chocolate confectionery centered on colorful products, playful humor, sharing, and recognizable animated characters.

• Chocolate candy · 1941

  M&M's Milk Chocolate

  The original flagship format: milk chocolate pieces enclosed in a brightly colored sugar shell and marked with the brand’s characteristic “m.” It is sold in single-serve, sharing, seasonal, and gift-oriented packaging in many markets.

• Nut-filled chocolate candy

  M&M's Peanut

  A major extension of the original product, combining a whole peanut with chocolate and the familiar colored shell. The format broadens the brand’s texture and flavor appeal while retaining its recognizable appearance.

• Flavored and filled confectionery

  M&M's specialty and filled varieties

  The brand has developed numerous market-specific and limited varieties, including almond, crispy, pretzel, caramel, peanut butter, dark-chocolate, and seasonal products. Availability differs by country and period.

• Personalized confectionery and gifts

  M&M's customized and gift products

  M&M's also extends beyond standard bags through personalized colors, messages, packaging, assortments, and gift formats. These products support celebrations, events, promotional programs, and direct-to-consumer occasions where available.

• 2023

  Backlash over redesigned spokescandies

  Redesigned M&M's characters, including female characters and the newly introduced Purple character, became the subject of political and cultural criticism. Mars subsequently said it would pause the characters’ public-facing use, making the episode a prominent brand-reputation controversy.

  Source

Read more

• 2022It's More Fun Together

  Global

  Launched for the brand’s eightieth anniversary, this global platform used the spokescandies, humor, shared candy occasions, and human connection to reinforce the idea that enjoyment is better when shared.

  Outcome. The platform was rolled out across more than 100 countries and refreshed the brand’s global creative direction.

  Source
• 2013Better With M

  United States

  An integrated campaign presented everyday occasions as more enjoyable with M&M's. It included a Super Bowl XLVII television commercial, English- and Spanish-language advertising, retail displays, promotions, social activity, and a Habitat for Humanity-related initiative.

  Outcome. The campaign expanded the brand proposition across mass media, retail, social engagement, and cause-related marketing.

  Source
• 2011United Kingdom character-led brand-building campaign

  United Kingdom

  Mars placed the Red, Green, Yellow, Blue, and Orange characters at the center of a major United Kingdom program using television, digital content, experiential activity, and the Leicester Square M&M's World store.

  Outcome. The program was intended to increase character recognition and accelerate the brand’s United Kingdom growth.

  Source

• 2023

  Pause public-facing use of several redesigned charactersOther

  Background

  The updated character designs generated highly visible political and cultural backlash, creating a reputational issue for the parent company and brand.

  Action taken

  Mars announced an indefinite pause in the characters’ public-facing use and redirected attention toward other M&M's communications.

  Aftermath

  The controversy became an example of the risks associated with politicized interpretation of mascot design and inclusive marketing.

  Source

• 2022

  Adopt the It's More Fun Together global platformStrategy

  Background

  For its eightieth anniversary, M&M's sought to modernize its long-running humor and character system while emphasizing social connection and shared experiences.

  Action taken

  Mars introduced a global creative platform using the spokescandies and campaigns across multiple markets.

  Aftermath

  The platform extended the brand’s established fun-and-sharing positioning to a broad international audience.

  Source

• 2011

  Use character marketing and experiential retail to build the United Kingdom businessStrategy

  Background

  Mars sought to increase recognition for M&M's characters and strengthen the brand in a market where it was less established than in the United States.

  Action taken

  The company invested in character-led advertising, digital and experiential content, and opened an M&M's World store in London’s Leicester Square.

  Aftermath

  The store became a major physical expression of the brand and was positioned as a tool for accelerating United Kingdom growth.

  Source

1. 1Forrest Marslemelson.mit.edu
2. 2M&M's Brand Launches Better With M Marketing Campaigncspdailynews.com
3. 3M&M's brand characters front UK pushmarketingweek.com
4. 4M&M's: It's More Fun Togetheradsoftheworld.com
5. 5Backlash Or Marketing Savvy? M&Ms And The Perils Of Brands Playing The Culture Warsforbes.com