All over the world the name BIC stands for simple and reliable everyday items. That is precisely what makes the writing instruments and pocket lighters of the manufacturer, that has played a role on the haptic advertising scene for over 50 years in the form of BIC Graphic, ideal brand ambassadors. Especially since BIC is also a leading market player on the sustainability front.
It has looked exactly the same as today for over 70 years and it writes and writes and writes: When Marcel Bich brought the BIC® Cristal out onto the market in 1950, he not only revolutionised writing culture, he also democratised it. Namely, in contrast to preceding models like the ballpoint prototypes of the inventor, Laszlo Biro, whose patent the BIC® Cristal is based on, the latter worked reliably – thanks to the development work of the visionary, Marcel Bich, who was the first person to successfully overcome the problem of blotting ink. At the same time, the BIC® Cristal was the first ballpoint pen that everyone really could afford. Up to this very day, the writing instrument, which has long since made it into several design museums with its minimalist and unmistakable design language comprising of a hexagonal, transparent barrel and coloured cap, doesn’t even cost 50 cents in the retail trade.
Based on his first ballpoint pen, Marcel Bich founded his company that he called BIC, a version of his surname for the international market. From then on writing using a metal ball and refill took the world by storm, taking over from the pencil, fountain pen and other systems. Today, the BIC® Cristal is the most frequently sold writing instrument in the world, whereby BIC has added many more models to its line-up of writing instruments over the decades. For example, in 1970 the company introduced the BIC® 4 Colours, which unites no less than four differently coloured refills in one shaft. The BIC® 4 Colours, which has long since become a classic, is still one of the bestsellers in the product range.
The name “BIC” is often used as a synonym for “ballpoint pen” in many countries and the recognition level and market penetration of the brand – which has also been famous for making cigarette lighters and disposable razors since the 1970s – is that high in many countries that the respective populations often think BIC is a local manufacturer. This is not least due to the brand carrying out intensive and stringent marketing from the very beginning: For example, BIC vehicles made up part of the advertising convoy of the Tour de France in the 1950s already and the “BIC Boy” logo, which has been printed on every writing instrument through to today, was already introduced in 1961.
The classic which started it all: Today, the BIC® Cristal is available in a multitude of colour options.
In the meantime, BIC sells its products in 160 countries and maintains product sites all over the globe – 24 in total. Worldwide almost 16,000 people work for the group that made an overall turnover of 2.23 billion Euros in 2022. BIC has nine factories in Europe, the heart of the company’s B2B division, BIC Graphic Europe, beats in Tarragona, in Catalonia.
Autonomous, efficient and precise
Gonzalve Bich, the grandson of the company founder, manages the group in his capacity as CEO. “The Bich family owns 45% of the company shares as well as 61.6% of the voting rights in the BIC Group,” explained Marc Rugi, Vice Preside& General Manager Europe & MEA at BIC Graphic. “Hence, even today the family holds the reins of the company.” One of the biggest factories of the BIC Group is located in Marne-la-Vallée, near Paris. The location is one of six French production sites and mainly manufactures goods for the retail trade, as well as individual components for the B2B market. 300 workers are employed on 28,000 m² of space, alongside the BIC® Cristal, the BIC® 4 Colours and the BIC® M10 pens are produced there. In addition to this balls, tips, inks and refills are produced in Marne-la-Vallée, which are subsequently sent on to BIC factories all over the globe for further processing – among others to BIC Graphic in Tarragona. The figures are impressive: “We produce 8.5 million balls, 4 million refills, 8.5 million tips, 3 tons of ink and 2.5 million writing instruments a day in Marne-la-Vallée,” the Executive Assistant, Nadine Allen, stated.
What’s more, Marne-la-Vallée is a role model for the company’s autonomous way of operating, one of its key success factors: All of the working steps necessary for the production are bundled here under one roof – mould making, chemistry, metallurgy, furnaces for the production of the pellets, which the balls are subsequently made out of in several work steps, the machines that are used to cut the tips, the extrusion for producing the refills, injection moulding, assembly and dispatch. “The strength of our Global Supply Chain organisation allowed us to protect our business in the recent period of uncertainty,” reported Klaus Kuso, Sales Manager D-A-CH.
It takes around a week until a tungsten carbide mixture in powder form is turned into a ball and the precision that is necessary to mill the micrometre fine channels into the tiny brass tips, that later feed the ink to the balls, is impressive. The production of the ink is literally a science in itself as well. Because many of the chemical components don’t react with each other until after a long time it can take years before the mixture between the optimal colour and flow characteristics is determined.
The fact that the BIC products are extremely good value for money in spite of their elaborate manufacturing processes, is not least due to the fact that the company places immense importance on the greatest efficiency possible for all of the production steps, combined with a high degree of automation. “Many of the machines are in-house developments,” explained Allen. “The capacity and precision are constantly monitored and optimised.”
The heart of BIC Graphic Europe beats in Tarragona, where among others the entire customising is carried out.
For example the plastic granules necessary for the injection moulding are fed from the warehouse into the production line using vacuum conveyors, the packing capacity is monitored by robots to save freight costs and departments like the injection moulding, where 40 machines run 24 hours a day, seven days a week and the assembly are located right next to each other.
The integrated quality controls are organised just as meticulously as the overall production process: For instance every single ball is subjected to a control process, in total 70 control processes are carried out on every writing instrument before it leaves the factory. The result: A complaint rate of less than 1% and guaranteed reliability in all situations.
The lighters, where reliability and safety also play an essential role, are also tested 50 times before they reach the marketplace. Miguel García, Sales & Business Director Europe & MEA: “We haven’t heard of one of our lighters causing an accident to this very day – when used correctly.” “One mustn’t forget: Each product carries the family name, so we have to be very meticulous,” added Rugi. “Not only in terms of quality and product safety: We also bear huge responsibility regarding the ecological footprint of our products and the influence of our company on mankind and nature.”
Writing the future together
Sustainability is not a new trend for BIC. “Our first life cycle assessments go back to the 1990s and our commitment to sustainability is reflected in our values and seamlessly integrated into our daily operations and strategic deliberations,” commented Rugi.
The sustainability goals are part of an ambitious future programme that the group has summarised under the title “Writing the future together”. Here BIC orientates itself of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the UN (SDGs) and has defined clear tasks and goals that are to be achieved by 2025 and beyond: The promotion of sustainable product innovations, combatting the climate change, commitment to work safety, the proactive involvement of the suppliers as well as investments in educational programmes. “It is pivotal to emphasise the necessity of combatting greenwashing in all its forms and to avoid confining initiatives solely to product offerings,” explained Rugi. “Sustainability, from an environmental standpoint, touches upon everything we do, not just our final products. It also necessitates a strong focus on our factories.“
Spanning 28,000 m² of space, one of the biggest factories of the BIC Group is located in Marne-la-Vallée. Alongside balls, tips, inks and refills, the BIC® Cristal, the BIC® 4 Colours and other models are produced here.
An impressive degree of precision is necessary to mill the micrometre fine channels into the ball pen tips.
Whereas, in turn, BIC has the total control of implementing sustainable processes. 80% of the employees already work in production sites that are certified according to the environmental management standard ISO 14001 – including also the Marne-la-Vallée and Tarragona locations. 76% of the electricity consumed by the whole group comes from renewable sources and the target set is 100% by 2025, whereby BIC Graphic is powered exclusively by green energy today already. Over the course of the last 20 years, the consumption of electricity in Marne-la-Vallée was reduced by 20% and 75% of the waste is recycled. Rugi additionally reported that “between 2021 and 2022, we managed to decrease the water consumption per ton of production by 19% and the energy consumption per ton of production by 10.5%.”
The four Rs
Finally, the BIC sustainability strategy also applies for the products themselves. The company has defined its commitment towards more sustainable products in its “Four R Philosophy”, as Rugi explained: “Our Four R Philosophy is inspired by the principles of the circular economy to change the linear ‘take-make-dispose’ model into a new way of designing products to keep them in use and prevent them from becoming waste or generating pollution. Reducing the number of raw materials used to make our products, including as many Recycled or alternative materials as possible, making more Refillable products and improving the Recyclability of our products and packaging will contribute to making our economy more circular.”
50% of the plastic used is to be so-called nonvirgin plastic and is to originate from recycling or sustainable sources by 2030. What’s more, by 2025 100% of the packaging material implemented is to be recyclable, compostable or reusable To reduce its dependence on virgin plastic, BIC tested 34 alternative materials in 2022 alone, including 18 recycled plastics, 14 hybrid materials and two bio-based plastics.
On top of hundreds of freely combinable shades for the BIC® 4 Colours, there are special finishes like a metallic or wooden optic or the new Flags Collection with a metallic, glossy colour gradient effect.
Whether on writing instruments, BIC® or Djeep® lighters: BritePixTM enables true-to-detail, fullcolour 360° print motifs as well as haptic effects.
A further key factor is the durability of the BIC products: The BIC® Cristal has a writing capacity of 3 km, the BIC® 4 Colours a capacity of 8 km in total, the BIC Maxi Lighter can be lit 3,000 times on average. At the same time, all of the models are designed to achieve the greatest material efficiency: In this way, the BIC® Cristal only requires 2.9 g of raw material per km of writing capacity, whereas comparable products of other manufacturers require 6.6 g according to BIC.
“Moreover, some of our writing instruments have exchangeable refills and are thus reusable,” said García. “In the case of the lighters, however, we only offer disposable models, due to safety reasons: Most consumers aren’t aware of the fact that one is only allowed to fill lighters to 85% with gas to make sure they are not dangerous to use. This repeatedly leads to accidents. So, instead of offering reusable models, we prefer to opt for recycling.” For example, BIC is running a test in some areas which involve returning used lighters, which are subsequently fed back into the material cycle. García noted, “After spending more than seven years on research, we have developed a technology that enables us to mechanically separate the parts of used lighters.”
Discarded writing instruments on the other hand are recycled into outdoor furniture. Under the brand UbicuityTM and in cooperation with the companies TerraCycle, Govaplast and Plas Eco, which specialise in plastic recycling and reusage, outdoor furniture, such as tables or benches are designed. A bench can be produced from approx. 5,000 pens and a table from around 16,000 pens. “We hold a moral obligation to the consumers, who will ultimately be in possession of our products,” summed up Rugi. “Of course, this particularly applies for the promotional products market.”
Diversity and market proximity
Since 2020, BIC Graphic has been offering the Rocketbook: Via the related app, notes and drawings can be digitalised. The pages can be wiped clean and written on again.
The subsidiary BIC Graphic has been responsible for the latter since 1969 already. “Even in the early days of BIC large companies like Pernod or the French post office approached us, international enquiries followed, which led to us to creating a complementary business model,” remarked García. Today, BIC Graphic is one of the leading European promotional products providers, Europe is at the same time the largest market for the B2B unit.
Around 320 employees work for BIC Graphic, most of them in Tarragona, where all the activities are coordinated. “The BIC Graphic factory has a completely different business model to the retail unit,” Gerard Krief, Operations Director, explained. “Whereas for instance in Marne-la-Vallée made-to-stock items are produced, we manufacture on demand, based on regular order development predictions.”
Some of the writing instruments and lighters that are sold on the promotional products market are actually produced in Tarragona, individual models as well as all of the components, such as the refills for example, are sourced from other factories. The entire customising is carried out in Tarragona as well. “Everything is organised so that we can also react to last-minute enquiries and produce special designs of all kinds. As in all of the other BIC factories, the priority lies on efficiency and flexibility,” Krief added. “Furthermore, the production site is certified in accordance with the strictest product safety regulations so that we can deliver to every market.”
The B2B line-up comprises of several dozens of different writing instruments, in addition to ballpoint pens also (mechanical) pencils, highlighters and rollerballs as well as the sustainable seed pencils of the Danish brand, Sprout®. The lighters that are available in many executions are a classic on the promotional products market too. Whereby one must say their image has changed over the past few years – they are no longer merely considered to be a smoking accessory, but have meanwhile become a “friend for life” instead, as Kuso explained: “Lighters are no longer primarily associated with smoking today, but indeed with the many different fields of applications they are used for in everyday life.” In addition to their own lighters, BIC Graphic has also been selling the brand Djeep, which they acquired in 2020, on the promotional products market.
In the same year, the company purchased the start-up Rocketbook and has also been offering the notebooks of the same name since then too. The special feature about the Rocketbook: The related app allows notes and drawings to be digitalised and saved in the desired Cloud. Subsequently the pages can be wiped clean using a little water and can thus be written on again. “As such, the Rocketbook matches our writing instruments and our sustainability philosophy perfectly,” Kuso said happily.
There are a variety of configuration and customising options available to turn the BIC products into brand ambassadors. For example the classic BIC® 4 Colours offers twelve different, freely combinable colours for refills. There is a choice between hundreds of different shades for the barrel, which are also freely combinable according to the mix and match principle. On top of that there are special finishes like soft touch, glacé, metallic or a wooden optic or the new Flags Collection with a metallic, glossy colour gradient effect.
The individualising options are equally versatile: In addition to the trusted screen-printing technique, which delivers accurate colours and durable results, BIC Graphic also relies on digital printing: The company has developed a fullcolour printing technology under the brand name BritePixTM, which is unparalleled on the market regarding its versatility. Kuso declared, “BritePixTM convinces with its high printing accuracy and vivid colours and also enables true-todetail, full-colour 360° print motifs on coloured surfaces – even for small order volumes.” The technique not only offers many visual options like glossy, metallic or hologram effects, it is also suitable for haptic effects like relief structure, foam textures or rough, sand-like surfaces. “Personalisations are no problem either with BritePixTM,” Roehm added.
F.t.l.: Marc Rugi, Vice President & General Manager Europe & MEA, Klaus Kuso, Sales Manager D-A-CH, Agustina Campos, Communications Manager, Elke Roehm, Marketing Manager Europe, Gerard Krief, Operations Director, and Miguel García, Sales & Business Director Europe & MEA.
The sales team, which serves the whole of Europe close to customers and markets thanks to a mix of sales team and customer care in Tarragona and in the respective countries, guarantees that the customers throughout the continent are provided with the ideal individualisation and extensive and reliable customer service. The team speaks over a dozen languages, whereby the individual employees can be reached via telephone numbers with the respective country code. This enables a personal service. Each customer has a fixed contact person, all processes are transparently logged into the ERP to enable immediate further processing by a different staff member in case anyone is off sick. “We implemented the Sales Force software during the pandemic, which proved to be a milestone,” said Caroline Syer, Customer Care Manager. The back office is located directly next to the Graphic Department for reasons of efficiency: If there are any problems with a piece of artwork, they can be clarified with the customer within minutes and solved straight away.
Sales representatives and country managers all over Europe are responsible for the personal contact to the promotional products trade. Here, BIC also relies heavily on trade shows as a contact platform. “Live events are very important in a people’s business like the promotional products market. They help us show the wide range of our catalogue and the quality of our decorations, results of the state-of-the-art technology that BIC Graphic Europe has mastered for years. That is why there will be no getting around us in 2024 either,” announced Kuso. The decisive arguments for the brand are more plentiful than ever, whereby the emphasis lies on the brand promise that BIC has held for 70 years: Iconic, innovative, trusted and precisely because of that unmistakable products.
// Till Barth
Photos: Till Barth, WA Media (1); BIC Graphic (11); Franck Juery (1); Jeremy Lempin (2)
