Why Heinz "57" exists even though they have around 70 products

[goolia_27]

Although the company had more than 60 products in 1892, the number 57 was chosen because the numbers "5" and "7" held special significance to Henry J. Heinz. The number "5" was Henry Heinz's lucky number; the number "7" was his wife's lucky number.[

[cochrane]

When commenting on a column, it's helpful to include a link for everyone's convenience. I assume this is the column you're referring to?

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/...y-57-varieties

[naita]

Originally Posted by goolia_27

Although the company had more than 60 products in 1892, the number 57 was chosen because the numbers "5" and "7" held special significance to Henry J. Heinz. The number "5" was Henry Heinz's lucky number; the number "7" was his wife's lucky number.[

According Cecil's article Heinz' boigrapher cites "occult reasons" for sticking with 57. What are your sources that trumph the biographer's?

[goolia_27]

Originally Posted by naita

According Cecil's article Heinz' boigrapher cites "occult reasons" for sticking with 57. What are your sources that trumph the biographer's?

I have never posted stuff before so I'm new

I got my info off of wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinz_57


Hopefully this helps you naita

[goolia_27]

Originally Posted by cochrane

When commenting on a column, it's helpful to include a link for everyone's convenience. I assume this is the column you're referring to?

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/...y-57-varieties

Sorry~I'm new at this but yes that is the article

[jjimm]

The Wikipedia article cites an NYT article with no attribution. I've googled "Heinz" and "lucky number" and just find this assertion repeated over and over again with no source attached.

It might indeed be that the biographer condensed 'lucky numbers' down to 'occult' but in the absence of any other evidence, I'll stick with the biography rather than Wikipedia.

[jjimm]

The official Heinz website says:

Henry thought 57 was a lucky number.

Which doesn't contradict his and his wife's lucky numbers combined, but doesn't directly support it either.

Suspect it's one of those things that has been mythologised so much that nobody will ever know the truth.

[Irishman]

Heinz trivia page says

What does the "57" stand for in Heinz’s famous slogan, "57 Varieties?"

While riding a train in New York City in 1896, Henry Heinz saw a sign advertising 21 styles of shoes, which he thought was clever. Although Heinz was manufacturing more than 60 products at the time, Henry thought 57 was a lucky number. So, he began using the slogan "57 Varieties" in all his advertising. Today the company has more than 5,700 products around the globe, but still uses the magic number of "57."

http://www.heinz.com/our-company/press-room/trivia.aspx

"Heinzitup" says

http://www.heinzitup.com/images/funfact_5.gifIn 1896 Henry Heinz was inspired by an advertisement he saw for "21 styles of shoes". Using what he considered to be a magic lucky number, Henry came up with the slogan, "57 Varieties", despite the fact that the company offered more than 60 products. Heinz today offers more than 5,700 quality products and is still known for its "57 Varieties".

http://www.heinzitup.com/funfacts.asp

Not sure if Heinz official press pages trump a biographer. Not sure how "lucky numbers" and "occult reasons" differ. They sound like the same thing to me.