The man behind South Africa’s most iconic and popular 50 cent sweets

Chappies gum, a cherished South African classic for over 75 years, boasts a captivating history marked by innovation and incredibly savvy marketing.

The idea of South Africa’s market-leading gum, which sells billions of pieces annually, can be traced back to a talented marketer from Johannesburg, Arthur Ginsberg from the Chapelat-Humphries confectionery factory.

Ginsberg lived in Troyeville, a suburb near the Chapelat Sweets factory, known for its diverse range of confectionery—from premium chocolates to affordable toffees.

The Chapelat-Humphries confectionery story began in late 19th-century London, where twelve-year-old Frank Humphries, after losing his father, became a toffee maker.

Seeking a better life, he moved to South Africa in 1911 with his pregnant wife, Cissy. In 1914, he partnered with Oliver Humphries to establish Humphries Ltd., which quickly gained popularity.

In the mid-1930s, fresh out of high school and seeking employment, Ginsberg applied and landed a position as cost accountant at Chapelat-Humphries while pursuing a BCom degree at Wits University in the evenings.

It was around this time when Humphries partnered with Israel Blumberg, who became a key figure in the company’s growth.

Chapelat’s biggest customer was OK Bazaars. However, by the late 1940s, the retailer decided to go with another confectionery supplier and dropped Chapelat, as Ginsberg described in an interview with Lucille Davie, “like a hot coal”. 

This left Chapelat in a pickle, as they needed a new product and business. But when one door closes for a successful entrepreneur, they make sure that another opens.

Ginsberg looked around the market and “noticed that Wicks bubble gum was selling at a penny each [and] wondered about making a gum that sells two for a penny.”

He experimented with a bubble gum base sourced from the US, made entirely of synthetic materials that become malleable when heated, which arrived as a greyish, opaque mass.

After heating, it is mixed in a large metal container (similar to pizza dough machines), and flavourings, colourants, glucose, and sugar are added. The mixture was then extruded into long strips, which are cut and wrapped—at one point producing 1,200 individual pieces per minute.

The name “Chappies” was decided upon based on an abbreviation of “Chapelat.”

Launched in the late 1940s, the gum initially came in five flavors: lemon, orange, strawberry, cherry, and pineapple – all wrapped in a distinctive yellow wrapper with red and blue stripes.

By the early 1950s, Ginsberg had risen to head of marketing and sales at Chapelat.

“I was a great believer in advertising” to propel products, Ginsberg told Davie.

Firstly, he wanted to make the product attractive to children.

The company decided to include four Did you know? questions on the inside of each wrapper – which became the iconic staple of the brand.

The questions initially came from the Three Wise Men (Eric Rosenthal, Arthur Blexley and Dennis Glauber), the name of a popular quiz programme on Springbok Radio.

The company later asked for lists of questions from academics at Wits University.

Ginsberg estimated that there were around 5,000 to 6,000 questions generated in those first years.

This move was a huge success, but they knew that more needed to be done if he wanted to make it the household name that it ultimately became.

Kenneth Blumberg, the son of Israel Blumberg, stepped into a leadership role at Chapelat-Humphries in the 1970s after his father’s retirement.

Blumberg successfully continued the company’s legacy, overseeing the installation of new machinery, the computerisation of systems, the introduction of innovative products, and the spearheading marketing campaigns that would see Chappies take over the local market.

They then took advertising space in The Sunday Times in the form of a cartoon and every week a Chappies cartoon ran in the magazine, done by cartoonist Bob Connolly.

“The depictions were simple but effective,” recalled Davie, explaining that examples included a hot air balloon or a submarine sprung a leak and plugged with Chappies.

In time a cartoon chipmunk was inserted under “Chappies” on the wrapper so that people could distinguish the real Chappies from any substitutes on the market. The chipmunk remains at the forefront of the brand to-date.

Other marketing campaigns were launched, including competitions attracting hundreds of thousands of child participants.

One contest invited kids to demonstrate their love for Chappies by sending in wrappers, resulting in stunning cardboard panoramas adorned with them, he recalled, with exciting prizes including motorbikes, TVs, and radios.

Another tactic involved distributing free Chappies rulers, pencils, and notebooks in townships.

“We ordered one million pencils from Staedtler for distribution,” he noted. The rulers featured a catchy slogan: “Make Chappies your rule.”

Additionally, banner ads were placed at railway stations and other high-traffic areas in the townships.

By the late 1970s the brand had spread to Zambia, the Congo area, and Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), and held a local market share of 90%.

Once the five flavours were established in the market, others were introduced: spearmint, peppermint, herbal, and silver fruit (a mix of the five flavours).

“Chappies became the biggest volume seller in South Africa. Just like Coca-Cola was to be found in every nook and cranny, so Chappies was everywhere,” said Ginsberg.

Chappies even became the generic term for bubble gum in South Africa.

Under Kenneth’s management and the company’s savvy marketing, the business thrived, employing over 1,250 people and producing millions of sweets for local and international markets.

In 1989, faced with the absence of a family successor and an acquisition offer from Cadbury (which is currently under Mondelēz International), Kenneth (who was CEO at the time) decided to sell the company after overseeing its significant growth.

Ginsberg joked with Davie that mothers “never forgave” him for creating a “sticky currency.” If shopkeepers needed to give a half-penny change, a Chappies gum was given instead.

In 2019, Chappies turned 70, and Mondelēz South Africa category brand manager for gum, Trushann Thomas, said that “celebrating seven decades is an amazing milestone to reach done {through] the generations of consumers who still feel an incredibly strong connection to the brand.”

“The Chappies legacy continues to grow as those generations pass on their love for the bubblegum and the iconic ‘Did You Know?’ facts to the next – meaning that the brand remains as relevant as ever,” he added.

According to analysis by Wesgro, in terms of brand market share of gum, Chappies continues to be the top gum brand in South Africa, with an estimated retail value share of 29% in 2022, with several billion pieces sold each year.

The remaining flavours of spearmint, assorted fruit, watermelon, grape, and cool cherry now cost around 50 cents a piece and can still be found in pretty much every nook and cranny of South Africa.

Ginsberg lived in Killarney, Johannesburg, until his death in 2007, aged 89.

Chappies Gum’s journey from a local confectionery endeavour to a beloved South African icon is a testament to innovative marketing and entrepreneurial spirit.

Over 75 years later, the brand has remained a staple, continuing to resonate with new generations and prove that great ideas—and great gum—never go out of style.

*This article has been updated to reflect the impact that the Blumberg family had on the product.

Read: The man behind a R6.2 billion fast food empire in South Africa