The Story Behind The Number ’57’ on Heinz Ketchup Bottles

Have you ever wondered what the number "57" stands for on Heinz Ketchup bottles?

If you've ever asked yourself what the number means on the bottles, you aren't the only one to ever ask yourself that question.

I recently came across an article that explained where the history of the number "57" on the branded ketchup bottles, and it is quite entertaining.

It all started when Henry J. Heinz, the founder of the H.J. Heinz Company, was on a train and he saw the number 21 in an ad. This was in the 1890s.

The Smithsonian says that Heinz saw an ad in the train car for "21" style of shoes and he immediately knew the impact of a number in an ad or on a product.

According to the historical report, the number "5" was the lucky number for Heinz, and "7" was his wife's lucky number. So, he put the two numbers together, and "57" would be the number used to brand or market the product.

Through some great marketing strategies, the Heinz Company made you believe that by tapping on the number 57, which is visible on the bottles of ketchup, you'd get a quicker and easier flow of ketchup.

Well, that is not so, but it does fall into the marketing ploy of Henry J Heinz.

He wanted those consuming the product to feel it and he knew if the consumer touched the bottle of ketchup, a relationship would be formed.

So, he used the number 57 to get you and me to touch the bottle, and thus create that connection between the consumer and the product.

Some in the early days of the product and company thought that the number 57 represented the number of products the company would produce, but that too was a myth.

Heinz currently has more than just 57 products they produce for consumption.

In all, you can't deny the success of the number 57 attached to the Heinz brand. For generations, many have asked why that number, and still to this day many speculate what it could mean. Well, now you know.

So if you love ketchup and if you love the Heinz brand keep tapping the the 57 on the bottles and when you do, just remember the connection has been made by a number that represents luck from its original founder.