Maxwell next?
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Lois Beckett, "Perky Maxwell House viral ad takes on housing crisis as ‘Maxwell Apartment’", The Guardian 10/1/2025:
Housing in the US has become so unaffordable that a coffee company has based a viral marketing campaign on the idea that almost nobody can afford to buy a house.
Maxwell House coffee, a 133-year-old brand, recently launched a marketing campaign rebranding themselves as “Maxwell Apartment coffee”.
“Maxwell House? In this economy?” a narrator asks in a video ad, promising that Maxwell Apartment is “the same affordable coffee you love, now with an even more affordable name”.
The ad's audio:
You can see the video here. And a link to the press release, which offers a 12-month coffee lease:
Beginning on National Coffee Day (Sept. 29), Maxwell House’s 12-month “lease” offer of Maxwell Apartment coffee is available on Amazon.com, while supplies last. For under \$40, fans can stock their pantry with a full year of coffee – designed to save coffee enthusiasts more than \$1,000 annually, compared to daily café runs,2 which on average can add up to more than \$90 per month. Along with the rebranded canisters, the year-long supply of coffee will come with an official Maxwell Apartment “lease” to sign.
…which quickly sold out.
The name "Maxwell House" originated with a fancy hotel in Nashville, suggesting other down-market lodging choices as possible next steps. Among the many (mostly negative) comments, this was my favorite:
Maxwell Apartment? How about Maxwell Mom's Basement?
— Scrappy Sue (@scrappy_momma) October 1, 2025
J.W. Brewer said,
October 3, 2025 @ 11:20 am
Perhaps Maxwell Rowhouse, for the Philadelphia-area market? I see that there is an existing business with two Philly locations named "Rowhome Coffee." Rowhome sounds unidiomatic to my ear, but I've been away from the Delaware Valley for a long time now, and maybe it's gentrifier-speak?
KevinM said,
October 3, 2025 @ 11:35 am
Maxwell Hovel?
David Marjanović said,
October 3, 2025 @ 12:20 pm
Coffee in a blue container?
Mark Liberman said,
October 3, 2025 @ 1:16 pm
@David Marjanović "Coffee in a blue container?":
That's true of standard Maxwell House, and apparently has been true for a while.
rpsms said,
October 3, 2025 @ 1:26 pm
In Philly, "rowhome" is not a synonym for affordable.
Jonathan Smith said,
October 3, 2025 @ 2:01 pm
Minpoorly RV?
cameron said,
October 3, 2025 @ 8:38 pm
@David Marjanović – yeah, Maxwell House has done blue cans and canisters as long as I can remember – it's a long-established part of their brand identity
Bob Ladd said,
October 4, 2025 @ 5:40 am
What Cameron said, and I imagine there's a good chance "as long as I can remember" is longer for me than for him.
But @David Marjanović: why not blue? Am I missing some universal colour symbolism here?
bks said,
October 4, 2025 @ 6:19 am
Maxwell Dorm Room : one third instant coffee, one third purloined cafeteria sugar, one third hot tap water. Goes well with Camel Straights.
wgj said,
October 4, 2025 @ 8:31 am
Damn, that's some effective marketing. Shows that while it's generally quite dangerous to apply political humor in mass market setting, it can be done if it's done really skillfully.
DDeden said,
October 4, 2025 @ 11:56 am
Coming soon: Maxwell Pod
[(myl) Already here …]
J.W. Brewer said,
October 4, 2025 @ 4:17 pm
This source suggests that MH has used blue for labeling back to 1927. https://1000logos.net/maxwell-house-logo/ Although this wiki article has MH-sponsored haggadot in other colors. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maxwell_House_Haggadah
Chris Button said,
October 6, 2025 @ 7:05 am
Very clever. There's so much "humor for the sake of it" in advertising nowadays that has nothing to do with the brand or its positioning. This is refreshingly good.