Cremora, a staple in South African households, has survived changing owners, a changing South Africa, and several generations of coffee drinkers. The brand's iconic phrase "It's not inside, it's on top" from a 1985 television advert has outlived the advert itself, becoming part of the language. For generations of South Africans, these six words need neither a brand name nor an explanation. The phrase was used as recently as 2025 when Lactalis South Africa, the brand's new owner, welcomed it using the hashtag #ItsNotInsideItsOnTop.
The origins of Cremora are shrouded in mystery, with its age being a topic of debate. Nestlé said in 2012 that Cremora was first launched in South Africa in 1966, which would make the brand 60 this year. However, when Lactalis acquired the business, it described Cremora as having been a staple of South African households for nearly 80 years. Other material surrounding the transaction put the figure at 77 years. Cremora's .co.za website lists that age, stating that the brand is "widely cherished by coffee and tea drinkers."
The original "Mrs Cremora" commercial appeared in 1985, when Cremora belonged to US food company Borden. The advert proved difficult to leave behind, with Nestlé remaking it in 1998 for a new South Africa. The basic joke remained, but the couple was now black, and the wife was Thandi rather than Helen. Nestlé explained that it wanted to introduce the advert to a younger generation while making it more representative of the country that had emerged after the first democratic election.
In 2021, Cremora went back to the fridge yet again, with Nestlé producing five versions of the familiar story featuring South Africans who it said were under-represented in mainstream media. The cast changed, but the phrase remained. The line became sufficiently embedded in advertising history that writer Khanya Mtshali used it as the title of her 2021 book, It's Not Inside It's on Top: Memorable Moments in South African Advertising.
Cremora's impact extends beyond advertising, with the brand becoming an integral part of South African popular culture. The phrase continues appearing in everyday conversation and retrospectives of memorable South African advertising decades after the original commercial disappeared from television. South Africans have also found uses for Cremora that its hapless television husband had never contemplated, with the powder making its way out of coffee cups and into cooking and baking.
Cremora's manufacturing capacity has also undergone significant changes over the years. By 2012, demand for coffee creamer was strong enough for Nestlé to spend R106 million buying and upgrading Specialised Protein Products in Potchefstroom. The deal brought as many as 120 employees into Nestlé and created additional Cremora manufacturing capacity. Potchefstroom became Nestlé's 10th manufacturing facility in South Africa.
Today, Cremora remains a beloved brand in South Africa, with Lactalis South Africa intending to build on its heritage. The brand's legacy spans at least six decades, three owners, several versions of the same advert, and one rather confused birth certificate. Yet the remarkable part of Cremora's story may be much simpler: in 1985, a man couldn't find a tub of coffee creamer, his wife told him where it was, and South Africa never quite stopped repeating her.
Key points
- Cremora's iconic phrase "It's not inside, it's on top" has become an integral part of South African popular culture.
- The brand's age is a topic of debate, with different owners citing different launch dates.
- Cremora has undergone significant changes in ownership and manufacturing capacity over the years.
