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Better Made Is Trading In Its Iconic Sign for a Newer Model

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The switch is happening next week

the original on the left has white background and says “great quality potato chips”; the one on the right is a red background with “special since 1930”
The original sign on the left will be replaced by a newer version seen in a rendering on the right.
Courtesy of Better Made
Brenna Houck is a Cities Manager for the Eater network. She previously edited Eater Detroit and reported for Eater. You can follow her on the internet at @brennahouck.

After close to 70 years of use, even the most well-made items are bound to start showing their age. Such is the story of Detroit potato chip maker Better Made’s iconic Gratiot Avenue sign, which is slated for retirement next week. The company announced today that it is switching out the original for a newer, brighter model on April 10.

Several decades of wear and tear have taken their toll on the landmark. The colors have faded and it no longer resembles the current labels featured on the company’s snack food packaging. Like that contemporary emblem, the updated sign will feature a red background with yellow lines and the “Better Made Special Since 1930” messaging. The bonnet-wearing woman featured on the original signage will still be there, but little more colorful.

While the septuagenarian sign will no longer be the face of Better Made’s facility at 10148 Gratiot Ave., it won’t be disappearing completely. The company plans to find a new home for it inside the factory.

“This is certainly a momentous occasion in Better Made’s history,” company president Mark Winkelman says in a release. “Just like the Vernors, Stroh’s, and Sanders signs I’m sure there are people with many memories of seeing that sign over the years, maybe using it as a waypoint as they traveled down Gratiot Avenue. We look forward to seeing it displayed in our facility.”

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