photo #8675127

Before it was used for bad breath, the original 1879 formula for Listerine was marketed to scrub floors and even as a treatment for gonorrhea.Developed in St. Louis by Dr. Joseph Lawrence and Jordan Wheat Lambert, it was first intended as a surgical antiseptic, inspired by new ideas about germs causing infection.For decades, it was a jack-of-all-trades product. The company promoted it as a general germicide, a cure for dandruff, and a treatment for diphtheria. It was a tough sell.By 1895, dentists were sold a version for oral care, but it still didn't catch on with the public. Most people just didn't see a need for a mouthwash. 😮That all changed in the 1920s when Gerald Lambert, the founder's son, came up with a new marketing strategy. He decided to sell not a product, but a solution to a problem.He took an obscure medical term, "halitosis," and turned it into a widespread social disease: chronic bad breath. Ads depicted lonely women and unpopular men whose only fault was their breath.The ads were a huge success. Listerine became the first over-the-counter mouthwash in the U.S., and its sales skyrocketed. People were terrified of being labeled with a condition they never knew existed. 🤔The original deal also meant that royalties were paid out for decades to the founder's heirs and even institutions like the Salvation Army and the Archdiocese of New York, who had acquired shares of the rights.