We’re in the heart of pumpkin season, and companies have gone “pumpkins”! I made a trip to the grocery store over the weekend and was overwhelmed by the number of pumpkin products in the store: spreads, candles, cookies, lotions, and more. Bruce Horovitz agrees that the pumpkin is “everywhere these days” and says that the “number of pumpkin offerings domestically jumped nearly 19% last year.” The taste and smell of pumpkins are great, but why are so many companies trying to come up with pumpkin flavored and scented products?
2013 marks the 10th year
anniversary of Starbucks’s Pumpkin Spice Latte. In the past 10 years, Starbucks
has sold more than 20 million of these drinks, about 2 million annually. When
Fall comes around, Americans spend around $80 million total on the latte per
year. Micheline
Maynard says that Starbucks is evening
trying to make a vegan friendly version because of so many requests from
customers.
Because Starbucks has
gained immense popularity and profit from this drink, other companies have
tried to use pumpkin in their products. Starbucks’s Pumpkin Spice Latte fueled
the popularity of pumpkins. Pumpkins have been in the U.S. since the 1500s, but
why the popularity now (www.history.com)? I think that many Americans follow current trends. We're becoming nostalgic because we miss old customs and simplicities. Numerous trends from the past, like
scrunchies and black and white clothing, have come back with periods of popularity. So what is happening?
Are Americans
reminiscing on the past? Are we losing touch and just recycling ideas? Why are
trends from the past coming back? Why do Americans follow trends at all? Have
we all just gone “pumpkins”?
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