The History of Percy Pigs

Percy Pigs were first sold at Marks & Spencer (M&S) in the UK in 1992. Consumers were initially confused by the product, which was shaped like a pig but was sweet (the original flavorings were berry and grape) rather than pork-flavored. M&S began giving out tasting samples to reluctant customers to boost interest and the gambit worked — the gummy candies steadily gained popularity. Percy Pig himself was designed by Julia Catton, but before the product ever hit store shelves, it was almost scrapped due to issues with the technical starch molding process, which initially produced pock-marked pig faces. Bill Davies, an M&S Senior Buyer at the time, even recalled that the managing director of the German supplier who helped launch Percy Pigs didn’t believe that a pig design would ever catch on with consumers. However, Percy Pigs did catch on! In fact, the candies became so popular that they were added to British Vogue’s 2008 “hot list." The candy's unique texture and packaging were designed to appeal to both children and adults, further boosting its popularity, and it wasn't long before the character of Percy Pig became a beloved icon. In 2019, M&S announced that the original Percy Pigs and various spin-off treats would all remain vegetarian, which set them apart from other confections (the entire line was later made vegan in 2022). In 2020, Percy Pigs saw another large jump in popularity; production was ramped up to keep pace and over 20 Percy Pig products were launched that year. Today, Percy Pigs and related product lines such as Percy Pig Phizzy Pigtails are a favorite at M&S stores in the UK but are now also sold in other parts of the world, including the United States, where they have steadily been gaining popularity in recent years.