Porch Notes
That Famous Corn Muffin Mix Has Never Run a Single Ad
History and culture
Walk down any baking aisle in America and you’ll see those little blue-and-white boxes of “Jiffy” mix. They come from one place and one place only: the Chelsea Milling Company in Chelsea, Michigan — a family business that has been milling flour for over a century and has never, not once, spent money on advertising.
No TV commercials. No billboards. No coupons. No celebrity endorsements. As CEO Howdy Holmes — a former Indianapolis 500 driver and the great-grandson of the founder — puts it, advertising costs get baked into the price and passed to the customer, so skipping it keeps Jiffy cheap. A box still sells for around 60 cents, well below competitors. And the strategy works: by the company’s own count on jiffymix.com, “We actually have 92 percent of market share” of the U.S. corn muffin market.
The mix itself is a Michigan invention. Around 1930, Mabel White Holmes created what’s often called America’s first prepared baking mix, reportedly wanting to help a single dad bake for his kids during the Depression. During the busy season, the Chelsea plant ships out close to 1.6 million boxes a day — and still runs some machinery dating to World War II, because, as Holmes says, if it isn’t broke, why replace it?
Where to see it
The Chelsea Milling Company towers over downtown Chelsea, Michigan, with its blue-and-white grain silos right off Main Street. The company offered public factory tours for decades; check its website for current virtual tours and visiting info. (Bonus: Chelsea is also the hometown of actor Jeff Daniels and his Purple Rose Theatre.)