WWE Trades Ruthless Aggression For PG | Wrestling Timelines

January 8, 2013 | Fruity Pebbles

The Rock Fruity Pebbles
WWE.com

A line in a 2011 promo cut by the Rock, designed to mock John Cena’s garish array of merchandise, becomes a financially lucrative reality.

WWE initially struck a deal with Post Consumer Brands in 2012 for John Cena to appear at the top of Fruity Pebbles boxes. This is facilitated by WWE’s decades-long partnership with the Make A Wish Foundation, a non-profit organisation that helps make the dreams of terminally ill children come true. The charity’s branding also appears on the boxes.

Stephanie McMahon in her role as Chief Brand Officer will in 2015 infamously tweet “philanthropy is the future of marketing, it’s the way brands r going 2 win”. Obviously, WWE’s relationship with Make A Wish does WWE’s public image no harm whatsoever - but it should be stressed here that Cena holds the Guinness World Record for most wishes granted. He has gone above and beyond, not stopping at a far smaller number that would more than adequately position him as a good guy in the eyes of the public.

On January 8, 2013, WWE announces that, for a limited time, John Cena will replace Fred Flintstone on Fruity Pebbles boxes. This is not only a huge coup in and of itself. WWE is not merely attracting sponsors; the company’s marketing department is being very clever with it.

Cena’s name continues to penetrate the mainstream consciousness.

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick (Creative Writing BA Hons) is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over a decade of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential UK institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!