What was changed
Oreo O's cereal debuted in 1998 and ran for nearly a decade before Post split with Kraft in 2007 and the cereal disappeared. Fans never stopped asking for it, and the product kept selling in South Korea and online.
In June 2017, Post Holdings brought Oreo O's back to US shelves at $3.98 a box with the original cookie bits and crème coating. Walmart got a three-month exclusive, part of the retailer's push to bring back nostalgic products, while Post worked under license: Post owns the recipe and Mondelez owns the Oreo name.
The gamble was small and the payoff immediate: by Post's fiscal third quarter, Oreo O's and Honey Maid S'mores were cited as helping the cereal business, and the brand became a permanent part of Post's lineup.
What it achieved
Back on US shelves June 23, 2017, Oreo O's helped Post Consumer Brands' net sales in fiscal Q3 2017 and has stayed in the cereal lineup.
Why it worked
The license split let Post relaunch without owning the famous name.
Walmart's exclusive created distribution and buzz in one move.
Nostalgia gave the cereal a built-in audience of adults.
The recipe and packaging stayed faithful to what fans remembered.
What can be applied
A licensed nostalgia relaunch is a cheap way to test demand: Post owned the recipe and Mondelez owned the name, so the brand could come back without new manufacturing risk.
Aftermath
Within two months of launch, Post Consumer Brands cited Oreo O's as helping its net sales, evidence that the nostalgia relaunch was pulling its weight in a cereal category that was otherwise declining.
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