Terry F. Goins

“Mr. Pig has never been redesigned into something sleek and corporate. He looks like he looked. In a category where most logos get sanded down every eight years, that consistency is rare, and people respond to it.”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins noted that the Mr. Pig mascot has remained visually consistent over the years, which customers appreciate.

“The retro self-service design does very well, and honestly, anything involving the pig butt tends to move.”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins said T-shirts featuring the pig's face and backside are the best-selling merchandise.

“That's people wanting to be associated with something.”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins said the demand reflects people's desire to associate themselves with the Piggly Wiggly brand.

“resonates across all ages and demographics,”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins told Fox News Digital that the Piggly Wiggly brand appeals broadly across age groups.

“There are brand standards around how Mr. Pig and the logo are used — that mark is 110 years old, and we protect it — but within that, stores have latitude to [make] designs that speak to their town, their high school colors, their local events. That's why you'll find shirts in one store you won't find anywhere else.”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins explained that while the company protects the Mr. Pig mark, stores have latitude to create locally relevant designs.

“doesn't take itself too seriously,”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins said the Piggly Wiggly branding is warm and lighthearted.

“We had people lined up for over an hour — in August, at a state fair, with a thousand other things to do — for a temporary Mr. Pig tattoo,”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins described long lines at the Wisconsin State Fair for temporary Mr. Pig tattoos.

“Nobody has ever told us they own too many Pig shirts.”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins noted that no one has complained about owning too many Piggly Wiggly shirts.

“That's a big part of what makes this fun,”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins discussed how individual store locations create their own merchandise designs.

“What we see instead are lifts tied to moments: a new design drop, a seasonal item, a tie-in with something happening in the community,”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins described how merchandise demand spikes around specific events and product releases.

“Younger shoppers are drawn to exactly the qualities that make it retro: the hand-drawn feel, the humor, the fact that it's unmistakably regional and not from a national chain,”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins explained what draws younger shoppers to the retro Piggly Wiggly brand.

“Piggly Wiggly Midwest is a mix of franchise and corporate-owned stores across Wisconsin and Illinois, and our independent operators know their communities better than anyone at a corporate office does.”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins described the mix of franchise and corporate-owned Piggly Wiggly stores in Wisconsin and Illinois.

“People aren't buying a shirt because a grocery store put its logo on one. They're buying it because Mr. Pig means something to them, and wearing it is a way of saying where they're from.”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins said customers buy Piggly Wiggly shirts because the Mr. Pig mascot holds personal meaning for them.

“It's always personal and always tied to a specific place and a specific memory.”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins said every Piggly Wiggly story people share is personal and tied to a specific place and memory.

“For a lot of younger customers, it's less, 'I remember this' and more, 'This is where I'm from.'”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins described how younger customers relate to the brand as a marker of local identity rather than nostalgia.

“That's not a merchandise transaction,”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins said the enthusiasm for Piggly Wiggly reusable bags at the state fair went beyond a simple purchase.

“They'll pick up a shirt from a store they haven't been to before,”

Terry F. Goins · said date not stated · reported 2026-08-31

Goins compared some Piggly Wiggly merchandise collectors to ballpark or brewery souvenir collectors.