Carvel's Fudgie the Whale Transformed into a Father's Day Symbol
Carvel's vanilla and chocolate-flavored ice cream cake, originally developed as a Father's Day promotion in 1977, has become a popular fast food icon, earning a spot in the hall of recognizable fast food characters.
Fudgie the Whale wasn't initially intended to be Carvel's mascot. Its creation was aimed at filling the freezer cases developed for Carvel's shops. Ice cream cakes, first introduced in the mid-1950s, were selling rapidly, prompting Carvel to think of a Father's Day cake.
Fudgie was inspired by the phrase "whale of a dad," according to Carvel's Chief Brand Officer, Jim Salerno. To manufacture Fudgie, Carvel used a plastic, whale-shaped mold and topped it with fudge, one of their most popular toppings.
The production process involves placing soft-serve vanilla into the mold, followed by chocolate chip cookie pieces, then chocolate ice cream, freezing, and finally topping with hot fudge and more cookie pieces. A Fudgie cake typically costs around $30.
Fudgie significantly contributed to Father's Day being Carvel's busiest day for cake sales, Salerno said. "Dad wants to stay home on Father's Day, like watching TV or having a barbecue. It's a big holiday for bringing cake home," Salerno told CNN.
Beyond Father's Day, Fudgie's popularity extends to birthdays, anniversaries, and other occasions. Carvel sells approximately 100,000 Fudgies each year.
Fudgie also represents a dwindling piece of fast food culture, as mascots have largely become obsolete. mascots have been successful in reaching kids and families with a memorable character that can evoke nostalgia, according to David Henkes, a senior principal at Technomic, a food industry research and consulting firm.
Carvel could use a little boost. In recent years, its number of locations has decreased, and its sales trail behind competitors like Dairy Queen and Baskin Robbins, according to the firm's data. Carvel is owned by Go To Foods (formerly Focus Brands), which also owns Auntie Anne's, Jamba, and Cinnabon.
"For Carvel, Fudgie the Whale cakes evoke the same memories and nostalgia for consumers, particularly those from the East Coast. For a relatively small regional chain, Fudgie has made its way into pop culture and probably helps keep Carvel more top of mind for consumers," Henkes told CNN.
Sibling rivalry
Although Fudgie is Carvel's most famous treat, it has a lesser-known rivalry with Cookie Puss, a goofy-looking alien with a sugar cone as a nose. Cookie Puss was Carvel's first shaped cake, created about five years before Fudgie, to complement their ice cream sandwiches known as Flying Saucers.
"It's supposed to be an extra-terrestrial, but some say it resembles Tom [Carvel]," Salerno teased. "When Fudgie came along, Fudgie quickly surpassed Cookie Puss."
Cookie Puss and other shaped cakes like ice cream cones, bunny rabbits for Easter, and sports-themed cakes like basketball and baseball, are still available for purchase.
Fudgie's mold has a dual purpose, Salerno said, noting that Carvel's late founder "was very frugal" and turned it sideways to make a Santa Claus cake, which has been on sale for about four decades.
This year, Carvel introduced Fudgie Pops, mini Fudgie cake pops on a stick, and plans to introduce another new character cake later this year, but Salerno is keeping the shape a secret.
Fudgie fandom
Carvel has about 340 locations, with over half in New York, but Fudgie's fandom extends beyond the state.
Fudgie has been humorously discussed on several TV shows, including Family Guy, The Office, and The Simpsons. Last year, Kelly Ripa, a big Carvel fan, received a Fudgie cake on her nationally syndicated talk show "Live with Kelly and Mark" for her 53rd birthday.
Fudgie is hard to avoid: the Fudgie mascot has made appearances at New York Mets' and Yankees games, appeared in TV commercials, and was even turned into Fudgie the Beer in 2018 as part of a limited-time promotion.
For Carvel, celebrating its 90th year with a new logo and refreshed store designs to emphasize its soft-serve ice cream roots (Carvel claims that its founder has invented that, but others might disagree), Fudgie brings a sense of nostalgia for consumers.
"We as a brand made sure to keep him front and center," Salerno said. "It's amazing how well-known and well-loved he is."
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The declining sales of Carvel could benefit from leveraging the popularity of their iconic Fudgie the Whale cakes in new product offerings, such as Fudgie Pops or a new character cake.
In addition to being a Father's Day tradition, Fudgie the Whale is enjoyed during various celebrations like birthdays and anniversaries, showing its versatility as a food item in the business world.
