Catalyst is fortunate to have a varied and immensely interesting client base. Here is an example of how the involved, hands-on service we provide turns into fascinating, exciting experiences.
A recent find at the Kansas Underground Salt Museum caught our attention: a pile of trash left by miners in the 1950s. We consider it delightful, not because we have a fascination with trash, but because of the well preserved stories it tells about brands of that era.
As you're probably aware, access to the mine has always been by one small hoist. That limited entrance space, and obviously the same for exiting, means virtually anything taken down into the mine has stayed there. This includes vehicles, machinery, boxes and, yes, even their trash. When something being used by the miners was no longer needed, it was just easier to leave it in a mined out area; after all, who was ever going to see it anyway?
As a communications major in college we learned about the different aspects of branding. The most interesting part to me was the historical perspective: how well-known brands change over time. Looking at the trash pile was like looking at vintage snapshots of several long-established and still-used brands. There were cans of Campbell's soup, boxes of Arm & Hammer baking soda, projector lamp light bulbs and boxes from Westinghouse Electric Supply, tins of Velvet pipe and cigarette tobacco, and even pages from a 1953 Raybestos-Manhattan calendar. (In case you're not familiar with the name, Raybestos-Manhattan was a major producer of automotive parts such as brake linings and clutch facings as well as industrial rubber products.)
Through research, we have found that Raybestos-Manhatten had also been an asbestos producer. That, of course, was before it was known that asbestos caused lung cancer, mesothelioma, and various other fatal conditions. Asbestos was once seen as a marvel of technology, and was used in the manufacturing of numerous products.
The Westinghouse Electric Corporation acquired CBS in 1995 and adopted its name to become CBS corporation. However, the Westinghouse Electric brand lives again, after BNFL acquired the commercial nuclear power businesses of CBS in 1999 and restored the name. (Now the Westinghouse Electric Company is owned by Toshiba Corp.)
A recent find at the Kansas Underground Salt Museum caught our attention: a pile of trash left by miners in the 1950s. We consider it delightful, not because we have a fascination with trash, but because of the well preserved stories it tells about brands of that era.
As you're probably aware, access to the mine has always been by one small hoist. That limited entrance space, and obviously the same for exiting, means virtually anything taken down into the mine has stayed there. This includes vehicles, machinery, boxes and, yes, even their trash. When something being used by the miners was no longer needed, it was just easier to leave it in a mined out area; after all, who was ever going to see it anyway?
As a communications major in college we learned about the different aspects of branding. The most interesting part to me was the historical perspective: how well-known brands change over time. Looking at the trash pile was like looking at vintage snapshots of several long-established and still-used brands. There were cans of Campbell's soup, boxes of Arm & Hammer baking soda, projector lamp light bulbs and boxes from Westinghouse Electric Supply, tins of Velvet pipe and cigarette tobacco, and even pages from a 1953 Raybestos-Manhattan calendar. (In case you're not familiar with the name, Raybestos-Manhattan was a major producer of automotive parts such as brake linings and clutch facings as well as industrial rubber products.)
Through research, we have found that Raybestos-Manhatten had also been an asbestos producer. That, of course, was before it was known that asbestos caused lung cancer, mesothelioma, and various other fatal conditions. Asbestos was once seen as a marvel of technology, and was used in the manufacturing of numerous products.
The Westinghouse Electric Corporation acquired CBS in 1995 and adopted its name to become CBS corporation. However, the Westinghouse Electric brand lives again, after BNFL acquired the commercial nuclear power businesses of CBS in 1999 and restored the name. (Now the Westinghouse Electric Company is owned by Toshiba Corp.)
Velvet pipe and cigarette tobacco was produced by a company called Liggett & Myers Tobacco Company. A man named Christopher Foulks owned a snuff mill in New Egypt, New Jersey in the early 1800s and his business gradually evolved into the fourth largest tobacco company in the United States. In 1996-1997, they had become the first tobacco company to settle smoking related litigation brought by the Attorneys General of several states. In 1998 Liggett signed tobacco litigation Master Settlement Agreement and 1999 saw the formation of Vector Tobacco, Inc. Liggett Vector Brands, Inc. then sold L&M, Lark and Chesterfield brands to Phillip Morris Companies, Inc.
Today's branding and packaging of Arm & Hammer baking soda is virtually unchanged. The same goes for Campbell's soup. Talk about consistency...and success. Both are still popularly recognized, used, and relevant 60 years later. May the same be said for Catalyst in 2038!
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