Twenty years after it was launched as Flutie Mania swept Western New York, the cereal bearing the former Bills quarterback’s name is making a comeback.
Flutie Flakes -- named, of course, for Doug Flutie -- are coming to a grocery store near you. And unlike when they were first introduced, they are also available online.
"We haven’t run Flutie Flakes in over 10 years,” said Ty Ballou, president of PLB Sports, which produces athlete-endorsed food products, including the first run of Flutie Flakes in 1998. “We did a 10th-year anniversary box and that’s the last time we did it.
“I said there would be an interest. I contacted Wegmans and they were on board almost immediately, and that’s kind of how it all got started,” he said.
Ballou said just as it did the first time around, sales from Flutie Flakes will benefit the Doug Flutie Jr. Foundation for Autism. The foundation is named in honor of Flutie’s son, who has autism.
“Doug has given away with his foundation over $14 million, so it’s been remarkable,” Ballou said. “And I say this, and I’ve said this for the last 21 years, I don’t think this ever would have happened anywhere but upstate New York, western New York and the Bills, there’s just something very unique and incredible about those fans.”
The former quarterback will be signing empty boxes of Flutie Flakes and T-shirts at Sunday’s Bills game against the Baltimore Ravens at New Era Field to benefit the foundation. The cereal will be also be available at Wegmans stores.
Ballou says a “significant portion” of the proceeds of this latest iteration of Flutie Flakes will go to the foundation.
