Geico’s Lizard Offers a New Message of Reassurance

New York Times, February 19, 2009 — FOR years, prosaic consumer products sought to puff up their appeal by boasting they contained “secret” ingredients that improved their performance. Colgate toothpaste had Gardol, for instance, while Dial soap had AT-7 and Certs breath mints had Retsyn.

Now, confronting consumer anxiety over the economy, the giant insurer Geico is for the first time rolling out a secret ingredient of its own: Warren E. Buffett. The financier controls Berkshire Hathaway, the company that has owned Geico for more than a decade.