Historical Figure
Marcel Bich
d. 1994
Co-founder of Bic (1914–1994)
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Biography
Marcel Bich, Baron Bich was an Italian-French manufacturer and co-founder of Bic, the world's leading producer of ballpoint pens, lighters and razors.
Timeline
The story of Marcel Bich, told in moments.
Bought a damaged factory in Clichy, outside Paris, for manufacturing parts. He'd been selling fountain pen barrels. The postwar economy was rebuilding, and everyone needed cheap writing instruments.
Licensed the ballpoint pen patent from Laszlo Biro and began mass-producing the Bic Cristal. Priced it at a fraction of competitors. Sold 100,000 pens a day. By year's end, the pen cost less than a newspaper.
Launched the Bic disposable lighter. Same philosophy as the pen. Cheap, reliable, everywhere. Then disposable razors in 1975. Bich had essentially three products and dominated all three global markets.
Challenged for the America's Cup with his yacht Baron Bich. Lost. Tried again in 1980. Lost again. He spent millions on sailing but couldn't buy his way past the Australians and Americans.
Artifacts (14)
Our Town, Narberth, PA (August 11, 1923) (IA OurTownNarberthPA19230811)
Narberth Civic Association
produce a sound that teens dig, and that can be applied to any theme.
major European tour, a reporter asked how he had felt about originating the surfing sound, to which he responded by saying he had aimed to "produce a sound that teens dig, and that can be applied to...
None of us had ever witnessed something like that.
enced a breakdown, sobbing uncontrollably due to stress over his recent marriage to Marilyn Rovell. Jardine recalled, "None of us had ever witnessed something like that." Wilson played the show in...
The Beatles invasion shook me up a lot. [...] So we stepped on the gas a little ...
who felt the Beach Boys' supremacy had been threatened by the British Invasion. Reflecting in 1966, he said, "The Beatles invasion shook me up a lot. [...] So we stepped on the gas a little bit." The...
When it wasn't received by the public the way he thought it would be received, i...
0. Wilson was "mortified" that his artistic growth had failed to translate into a number-one album. Marilyn stated, "When it wasn't received by the public the way he thought it would be received, it...
it just tore my head off. [...] You just come to grips with what you are, what y...
fe early in the year, Wilson took LSD for the first time under Schwartz's supervision. Wilson later said of the experience, "it just tore my head off. [...] You just come to grips with what you are,...
I explained to [the group], 'It's OK. It is only a temporary rift [...] I wanted...
t solo credit, sparking speculation about his potential departure from the Beach Boys. Wilson later said, "I explained to [the group], 'It's OK. It is only a temporary rift [...] I wanted to step out...
, released in March 1966, became Wilson's first solo credit, sparking speculatio...
"Caroline, No" "probably the best [song] I've ever written". The album's lead single, "Caroline, No", released in March 1966, became Wilson's first solo credit, sparking speculation about his...
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