Case Study: Nerds becomes a $500M cultural phenomenon with Zeus Jones

Nerds tops $500M annual revenue with Zeus Jones

The customer, Nestlé Sweets Portfolio (brand: Nerds), faced a severe challenge as their Nerds candy brand was recommended for divestment by a major consultancy and was struggling for relevance. The vendor, Zeus Jones, partnered with the portfolio's leadership who believed in the brand's dormant potential, seeking a turnaround through brand strategy and product innovation.

Zeus Jones modernized the Nerds brand by aligning it with the contemporary, aspirational "nerd" culture. Their solution involved creating a culturally relevant brand narrative and a pipeline of innovative product concepts, which directly led to the creation of the hit product Nerds Gummy Clusters. As a result, Zeus Jones helped transform Nerds into a cultural phenomenon, achieving over $500 million in annual revenue and outpacing major competitors like Skittles.