Skittles is a globally recognised brand of small, brightly coloured, fruit-flavoured chewy candies. Owned by Mars, Incorporated and marketed within its confectionery business, Skittles is particularly known for its multicoloured pieces, distinctive fruit flavours, playful advertising, and the slogan “Taste the Rainbow.”

Mars states that Skittles was originally produced in the U.K., was first imported into the United States in 1974, and began U.S. manufacturing in 1981.

Origins

Skittles originated in the United Kingdom as a fruit-flavoured confection. The brand subsequently expanded internationally, eventually becoming one of the major candy brands associated with Mars.

The U.S. market became particularly important to the brand. According to Mars’s corporate history, Skittles first entered the United States through imports in 1974. U.S. production began in 1981, helping establish the candy as a major American confectionery product.

Ownership

Skittles is part of the Mars confectionery portfolio. Mars is the privately held multinational company behind brands including M&M’s, Snickers, Twix, Milky Way and other food and pet-care businesses.

In 2009, Skittles was transferred to Wrigley, another major confectionery business that had become part of Mars.

Today, the Skittles website identifies the brand as an affiliate of Mars, Incorporated.

Traditional Skittles are small, roughly round candies consisting of a hard outer shell surrounding a chewy centre. Their most recognisable characteristic is their assortment of bright colours.

The classic U.S. Original variety currently lists five primary flavours:

• 🍓 Strawberry
• 🍊 Orange
• 🍋 Lemon
• 🍇 Grape
• 🍏 Lime

The official product description identifies these as the flavours of the current Original Fruity Candy.[1]

The precise flavour lineup has changed over Skittles’ history and can vary by country and product variety.

One of Skittles’ strongest brand assets is its rainbow of colours. Individual candies are typically associated with particular flavours, making the visual assortment an important part of the eating experience.

The Skittles name is printed on the candy itself, generally using a stylised “S”. Packaging similarly emphasises bright colours and rainbow imagery.

The concept of the rainbow became inseparable from the brand’s identity and eventually produced its famous marketing line:

“Taste the Rainbow.”

The phrase has become one of the most recognisable slogans in confectionery advertising.

“Taste the Rainbow” is much more than a product slogan: it functions as the central concept of Skittles’ brand identity.

The idea connects several characteristics of the product:

Rainbow → colours → different flavours → variety → fun

Rather than positioning Skittles simply as a conventional fruit candy, the brand has historically used surreal, humorous and sometimes deliberately strange advertising to create a distinctive personality.

Skittles’ official website continues to organise much of its branding around the idea of the rainbow.

Skittles has expanded substantially beyond its original chewy candy.

Original

The classic product consists of the familiar hard-coated, chewy fruit candies. The current U.S. Original variety contains strawberry, lime, grape, lemon and orange flavours.[1]

Sour Skittles

Sour Skittles add a pronounced sour component to the traditional fruity candy format. They became one of the brand’s best-known extensions.

Wild Berry

Wild Berry varieties use berry-oriented flavours rather than the standard Original lineup.

Tropical

Tropical varieties explore fruit flavours associated with tropical fruits and provide an alternative to the Original assortment.

Gummies

Skittles has also moved into the gummy category. SKITTLES Original Gummies use a softer texture while retaining the colourful fruit-candy concept. The current U.S. product includes strawberry, orange, grape, lemon and green-apple flavours.

The brand’s current product catalogue contains numerous variations and package formats, illustrating how Skittles has developed from one core candy into a broader product family.

Although formulations vary according to product, market and variety, conventional Skittles generally contain ingredients such as sugar, corn syrup, modified starch, acids, flavourings, colour additives and glazing agents.

For example, the current U.S. Original product lists sugar and corn syrup among its principal ingredients and uses various colour additives and carnauba wax.[1]

Skittles also notes that product formulations can change and that packaging may temporarily differ from the latest formulation while older packaging remains in circulation.

Because recipes differ among countries and varieties, the ingredient list on the package is the appropriate source for a particular product.

Skittles are primarily a sugar-based confectionery, rather than a significant source of protein, fibre, vitamins or minerals.

For example, the current U.S. Original single-pack listing gives a serving of 61.5 g as 250 calories, with 45 g of total sugars and 56 g of carbohydrates.[1]

The nutritional values differ depending on serving size and variety.

Skittles has developed a reputation for unconventional advertising.

Rather than relying exclusively on traditional candy advertising—such as simply showing people eating the product—the brand has frequently used:

• Surreal humour
• Absurd situations
• Bright colours
• Fantasy and exaggerated imagery
• Strange or unexpected characters
• Interactive campaigns
• Social-media-oriented marketing
• The recurring rainbow concept

This approach helped distinguish Skittles from other mainstream candy brands.

The result is a brand identity that is often characterised as playful, weird, colourful and irreverent.

A useful way to understand Skittles’ positioning is that the product itself is relatively simple, while the brand world surrounding it is intentionally imaginative.

Its personality can be summarised as:

Colourful + playful + humorous + unconventional + youthful

The rainbow serves as the visual foundation, while humour provides much of the brand’s personality.

Skittles is sold in numerous markets around the world, although flavours, formulations, packaging and available varieties differ by country.

This localisation is common in the confectionery industry. A flavour that is popular in one market may not be offered in another, and regulatory requirements can also influence ingredients and labelling.

Consequently, “Skittles” is best understood as a global brand family rather than a single completely standardised product.

Skittles is significant in the candy industry because it transformed a relatively straightforward fruit-flavoured candy into a highly recognisable lifestyle and entertainment-oriented brand.

Several elements contribute to its recognition:

1. The rainbow — an immediately recognisable visual identity.
2. The “S” candy mark — makes individual pieces identifiable.
3. “Taste the Rainbow” — one of the brand’s defining slogans.
4. Multiple flavours — creates variety within a single package.
5. Distinctive advertising — gives the brand a personality beyond the candy itself.
6. Product extensions — allow the brand to enter formats such as gummies and sour candy.

Skittles belongs to Mars, one of the world’s largest privately held food and confectionery companies. Mars’s corporate history specifically records Skittles’ U.K. origins, its 1974 U.S. introduction, its 1981 start of U.S. manufacturing and its 2009 transfer to Wrigley.

The relationship with Mars places Skittles alongside some of the most recognisable confectionery brands in the world.

The brand’s official website provides its current product catalogue, brand information, nutritional information and customer resources:

Official Skittles website skittles.com

1. Our Fruity Candy Products | SKITTLES®