This profile is part of the Wellth 30, a curated recognition of the leaders building enduring brands, communities, and culture.
Maria Urista, Vice President, Chocolate USA, Mars
Extra Gum had spent decades talking about fresh breath.
Then Maria Urista’s team noticed something else: people were already using chewing gum as a tiny ritual to reset, focus or break up the monotony of the day.
The brand’s “Chew Into It” relaunch built around that behavior rather than inventing a new one. Marketing often starts with a product and asks consumers to want it differently. Urista’s team started with consumers and asked what they were already doing differently.
The campaign turned a 50-cent pack of gum into a story about focus, with Chewbert — a green wad of gum with a bite taken out of its head — appearing across murals and other executions.
Urista has recently moved into a new role at Mars to lead the US chocolate business.
The lesson travels with her: sometimes the best strategy isn’t creating a behavior. It’s noticing one before everyone else does.
