By Heather Taylor, Editor-in-Chief, PopIcon
Advertising has yet to determine how brand mascots can successfully retire, if they should retire at all.
On February 19, the Instagram account for Mr. Clean shared a Notes app post “written” by its spokesmascot. The announcement consisted of two sentences: the first confirming the rumors were true and the second that Mr. Veritably Clean was retiring.
Hmm.
https://www.instagram.com/mrclean/reel/DU5xPMSDr8S/?hl=en
Retirement makes sense for Mr. Clean when considering the specifics behind the character. He debuted in 1957, making him currently 68 going on 69 years young. That’s a long time to be plugging cleaning products.
But even though his retirement announcement has come with plenty of spot-on puns, like the mention he’s hanging up his whites, your esteemed writer has been down this road before with many brand mascots and spokescharacters. Some retire and stay retired, but many are brought back out again.
Want proof? I dug through our PopIcon archives to find the most well-known mascots that went into retirement and where they are now.
The Most Interesting Man in the World retired in 2016. A decade later in 2026, Dos Equis reeled him back into campaigns to encourage the next generation to “Stay Thirsty.”
Cheez-It’s Prince Cheddward retired in 2022. His retirement was depicted on social media as being largely unsatisfying with no bowl events (Citrus or otherwise) left to conquer. The brand enlisted him back into the college football scene again in 2025.
Across the pond, Aldi UK teased Kevin the Carrot’s retirement via tweets in 2021. However, these tweets were the work of Ebanana Scrooge who was trying to push a new tradition of bananas for the holidays instead of carrots.
The same year, Microsoft’s Clippy had new life breathed into him as an emoji.
The only mascot who retired and stayed retired, over the last 10 years, is AOL’s Yellow Running Man.
You can see why I don’t buy Mr. Clean’s retirement.
Brand mascots have long been advertising’s hardest working employees. Mr. Clean has been on the job since 1957 — a shorter stint reppin’ a brand than what other characters have put in. Crackle, and Pop have been serving up Rice Krispies since 1933. The Green Giant, upon his 1925 introduction, was orange.
If a brand has done its job well, we don’t feel happy when their mascot goes away. Consumers grow up trusting the character on a brand’s packaging and the products they’re marketing to us. Mr. Clean is a juggernaut in the household cleaning supplies aisle where only a few other mascots, like the Scrubbing Bubbles, reside.
The other issue I have with Mr. Clean’s retirement, AKA why I don’t think he’ll stay retired long, is its overall presentation.
The news broke over social media, not a press release.
There’s no succession plan laid out about who will become the new face of Mr. Clean. There would have to be someone, right? Even The Most Interesting Man in the World had a short-lived incarnation occupy its spokesperson role.
All this hasty social media posting leaves me to believe Mr. Clean might be retired for now, but forever? Nah. He’ll be back and probably sooner than you think once he’s done exploring other pursuits.
Maybe what needs to happen is reframing the language surrounding brand mascots taking a break. Retirement isn’t really it.
A sabbatical, on the other hand, could be just the ticket.
Image Credit: Mr. Clean
About the Author
Heather Taylor is the senior writer and editor-in-chief of PopIcon, Advertising Week’s blog about brand mascots. Got a pitch on brand mascots or want to wax nostalgic about characters? Drop her a line at howveryheather@gmail.com.
