An iconic candy that\u2019s made in the Lehigh Valley will be coming to life on a screen near you.<\/p>\n
Just Born Quality Confections has teamed up with Emmy-nominated actor and comedian Kenan Thompson for the We Got\u2019chew campaign featuring Mike and Ike fruit-flavored candy.<\/p>\n
The national marketing campaign will introduce Mike and Ike as live character personalities for the first time.<\/p>\n
In a news release, Bethlehem-based Just Born said the campaign will position Mike and Ike \u201cas the candy companion for life\u2019s everyday little dramas.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thompson, who is best known for his 23 seasons on \u201cSaturday Night Live,\u201d will make his commercial directorial debut making four humor-driven hero spots \u2014 30-to-60 second commercials designed to anchor a major campaign \u2014 along with behind-the-scenes footage.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe best comedy comes from situations people instantly recognize,\u201d Thompson said. \u201cWhat I loved about this campaign is that it takes those everyday moments we\u2019ve all experienced and looks at them through the perspective of Mike and Ike. They\u2019re funny, a little ridiculous and surprisingly relatable, which made them a lot of fun to bring to life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thompson said the We Got\u2019chew project was the perfect way to make his debut as a director.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat drew me to Mike and Ike is that the brand already has a playful personality,\u201d he said. \u201cThe creative gave us permission to have fun, make big comedy choices, and not take ourselves too seriously. As someone who\u2019s spent a career making people laugh, that felt like a pretty great place to start.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was the right project to step into directing because the team was willing to be creative, take chances, and really lean into the humor,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Meenakshi Trehan, chief growth officer for Mike and Ike said, said the campaign is \u201cone of the most exciting things we\u2019ve ever done as a brand.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor more than 80 years, Mike and Ike have been iconic names, but fans have never actually had the chance to meet them,\u201d Trehan said. \u201cNow they have personalities, opinions and a unique way of looking at the world. They\u2019re funny, a little absurd and always ready to help people chew through life\u2019s little dramas.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe see them becoming an extension of the brand\u2019s playful spirit and a way to engage with consumers far beyond the candy aisle.\u201d<\/p>\n
Just Born appears to be riding a rising wave as the entire candy industry grows.<\/p>\n
The National Confectioners Association reported a record $55 billion in sales in 2025. Sales are expected to rise another $7.3 billion by 2030, according to the NCA\u2019s 2026 State of Treating report.<\/p>\n
The report said chocolate represented 51.7% of confectionery sales, but nonchocolate candy gained ground, growing from one-third of market share in 2015 to 40.9% in 2025.<\/p>\n
Boomers prefer traditional milk and dark chocolate, while Generation Z and millennials favor gummy, chewy and freeze-dried candies, the report said.<\/p>\n
Trehan said reaching out to younger generations was an important part of the campaign.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese audiences were incredibly influential in our creative direction because they\u2019re constantly navigating culture, content and conversations in real time,\u201d he said. \u201cThey appreciate humor, relatability and brands that don\u2019t feel overly polished or self-important. That\u2019s why the campaign focuses on everyday micro-dramas and uses character-driven comedy to connect with people in a way that feels entertaining rather than promotional.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wanted Mike and Ike to show up the same way a friend might, whether that\u2019s with a joke, a different perspective or a reminder to laugh at the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Morning Call reporter Evan Jones can be reached at ejones@mcall.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"An iconic candy that\u2019s made in the Lehigh Valley will be coming to life on a screen near…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":256260,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[153,155,154,1391,60,19166,157,182,139,434,28,432],"class_list":["post-256259","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem-headlines","tag-bethlehem-news","tag-bethlehem-area","tag-business","tag-just-born","tag-lehigh-valley","tag-local-news","tag-news","tag-northampton-county","tag-pennsylvania","tag-top-stories-tmc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/256259","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=256259"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/256259\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/256260"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=256259"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=256259"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=256259"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}