MetLife is leaving its long relationship with Snoopy. The insurance giant is shedding its consumer life insurance business and so it’s breaking up with the pup who’s long been the people’s fave. The new MetLife will focus on group life and international operations and presumably won’t need the personal touch that the cartoon dog brought to the brand. A reworked MetLife brand hopes to appear more modern.
“We brought in Snoopy over 30 years ago to make our company more friendly and approachable during a time when insurance companies were seen as cold and distant, said Esther Lee, MetLife’s Chief Marketing Officer. Apparently someone passed a note to MetLife saying insurance companies were no longer viewed as cold and distant. We suspect it was Lucy. The estate of Charles Schulz, the Peanuts creator, probably won’t sweat it. The Peanuts brand is said to bring in more than $1 billion a year.
