Information
Type of merchandise: cookies and chocolate
Country of manufacture: Belgium
Country of distribution: Belgium
Date: circa 1939
Manufacturer: De Beukelaer
Retail price: 1.35 Belgian franc
A marketing paradox
In 1869, the son of Eduard Jacobus De Beukelaer founded a cookie factory in Antwerp. Its signature product, the “Prince” cookie—named in honor of King Leopold II—remains a beloved treat to this day, now produced by LU.
When Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs took Belgium by storm in 1939, De Beukelaer released a variety of Snow White–themed cookies and chocolates to capitalize on the film’s success.
The wrappers teach us the different flavours available: “Heigh-Ho nuts”, orange, vanilla, rapsberry and cocoa, rapsberry cream, and even avocado.
To promote this collaboration, the company produced jigsaw puzzles, beautifully designed metal tins, and several collectible albums meant for pasting in images likely included with their products. Many of these promotional items remain relatively easy to find today, suggesting that the campaign was both highly popular and widely distributed.
Curiously, unlike brands such as Cadum or Palmolive that ran similar campaigns at the time, De Beukelaer does not appear to have invested in newspaper advertising, making it difficult to pinpoint the exact dates of this promotion.
However, the artwork style is strikingly similar to that used in Cadum’s promotion between August and November 1939. This strongly suggests not only that the same local artist may have been involved, but also that the two campaigns were likely launched around the same time.
In the following years, similar promotions with boxes and albums were made for the releases of Gulliver’s Travels, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Cinderella, Lady and the Tramp, etc. Incredibly, there still were Cinderella “Heigh-Ho nuts” chocolate bars.
The boxes
Treats were packaged in four different tin boxes, all manufactured by J. Schuybroek S.A. in Hoboken and Antwerp:
- One tin featured Snow White sitting in the grass, surrounded by animals, with the dwarfs’ cottage in the background depicted on the lid. The sides illustrated key scenes from the film: Snow White discovering the dwarfs at the foot of their bed, the musical entertainment sequence, the dwarfs showing their hands, and the iconic “Heigh-Ho” march. Individual portraits of the Queen, Doc, Happy, Sleepy, Bashful, Dopey, Sneezy, and Grumpy also adorned the sides.
- Another tin showed Snow White lying in her glass coffin on the lid, with the same series of scenes repeated around the sides.
- A third tin featured Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs alongside other beloved Disney characters, including Mickey Mouse and the Three Little Pigs—creating a more generalized Disney-themed design.
- Finally, a metal lunch basket was produced, with the musical entertainment scene on the lid. The sides showed Snow White bringing soup to the dwarfs, the Prince and Snow White riding off to a distant castle, Snow White sweeping the floor, and her wandering through the forest.
These richly illustrated tins added to the charm of the promotion and remain highly collectible today.
The albums
One hundred images depicting Snow White’s story could be found in the treats, and gathered in albums. The cover of which featured the same image found on the jigsaw puzzle, or an alternate drawing of the dwarfs around the table.
Likewise, the cover was either grey, brown or grey. The albums were published in two languages: French and Dutch.
