I, along with a handful of other gentle eccentrics, am often referred to as a media historian. From time-to-time people will ask me to describe some unusual moments in media and marketing history. Trying to avoid being even more breathtakingly boring than normal, I usually pass. Yet today, after a bit of prompting, I will tell two surprising stories from the past.
Way back in the 1970’s, I would go to London every 18 months or so. Once I ventured on to Jermyn Street, home of bespoke (made to measure) shirts and stepped into Turnbull & Asser, perhaps the most famous shop in that genre. There was a medallion stating that Turnbull was the shirtmaker to HRH Prince Charles. While I nervously made a purchase, I asked the somewhat snooty clerk if Charles actually visited the shop. He said, “the Prince of Wales has all of his shirtings made by us.” Shirtings was a new term for this lad from rural Rhode Island but I smiled and nodded. As I left, I wondered where appointment to this royal or that originated for so many products.
As best as I can tell here it is---
Josiah Wedgewood was a clever young potter in 18th century London who could have succeeded on Madison Avenue had he been born two centuries later. He teamed up with Thomas Whieldon, a highly regarded established potter at a young age and developed a green glaze that became very popular. At the same time, an emerging middle class and upper middle class began to take shape as the industrialization of the West began to get traction. Having some courage or chutzpah, Wedgewood sold young Queen Charlotte, wife of George III, some of his cream-colored dinnerware in 1765. She loved it and commissioned some wildly expensive gold leaf plates from Wedgwood and Bentley, the firm’s new name.
Wedgwood was off to the races. Upwardly mobile Brits wanted to have the Queen’s pottery in their homes as well. He dubbed his new product (not the gold leaf special order) “Queen’s Ware”. On his invoices he boldly had “Potter to Her Majesty” printed at the top of each bill of sale. At other times, he mentioned the then Duke of York as a client. He also sent agents to wealth pockets on the continent such as Leipzig and Lyons and their sales continued to boom. By 1770, they were so well known that Empress Catherine of Russia (aka Catherine the Great) ordered custom pottery for her court. That had real cache among the nouveau riche throughout Europe.
Wedgwood also impacted marketing in two big ways:
1) In West London, he built the first showroom. When the elite visited London, they could stop at his retail location and buy existing inventory or order custom products. Sales soared.
2) There is some dispute on this but many credit Wedgwood for creating direct mail. It was probably easy to get a list together by sending to the peerage, some high clerics, and members of Parliament. It worked splendidly and direct mail still does well today despite online options.
Okay. Now get set for a genuine surprise.
In 1878, Cardinal Pecci was elected pope and became Pope Leo XIII. After 30+ years of the controversial Pius IX, the college of cardinals elected the frail 68 year old Pecci as a transition pope. He fooled them all by living 25 years until 1903!
Pope Leo was a smooth diplomat and responsible for more writing via encyclicals than any pope in history. He also had a fondness for a wine called Vin Mariani. It was made by a French vintner named Angelo Mariani. Pope Leo liked it so much that he allegedly carried a hip flask containing it and took the rare step of giving Mariani a gold medal to “recognize the benefits received” by the product. So what? Well, Vin Mariani contained cocaine and was said to be popular with Queen Victoria, author Jules Verne, and in America, Thomas Edison. St. Pope Pius X, who succeeded Leo in 1903, was also said to be a Vin Mariani enthusiast. Some say that John Pemberton put a bit of cocaine in the original Coca-Cola formula and got the idea from Mariani. Hard to prove.
The story does not end there. Mariani used Leo XIII in print ads and quoted the Pontiff’s comments about the wine. There is no record if the Pope received residuals for his presence in the advertisements.
So, who knows? Maybe Pope Francis will pop up one day touting one of those high-altitude Malbecs from his native Argentina that I like so much .
If you would like to contact Don Cole directly, you may reach him at doncolemedia@gmail.com or leave a message on the blog.
