Magazine B: Bic on the secrets to being a great, generation-spanning brand

Magazine B: Bic is a favorite of the reading-b.com staff. Most of the brands profiled at the magazine make expensive products. It’s great that Bic (and Mini, and UNIQLO, and Guinness, among others) are devoted to threading the needle between high quality and low cost. It’s the high value brand strategy. Not, of course, that the Chanel’s and the Porsche’s  don’t earn their value through impeccable and innovative design, production and performance, but its nice to know that reliable quality that’s always a notably distinct pleasure to use can come with pricing that’s an afterthought, not a family budget meeting.

An absolutely terrific profile of outgoing BIC CEO Gonzalve Bich in the current edition of Monocle Magazine (Magazine B Issue #60).

We love this particular quote, about how, during a challenging phase of the company’s history, Bichsel set about making the brand about more than just pens and lighters….

“We told our team, ‘You’re no longer just a maker and brand of pens. You’re a human expression company,’” he says. That meant diversifying, with forays into other products such as digital notebooks. “We opened up what we should be working on and what problems we should be solving for the consumer.”

It’s not surprising then to read this in the ‘Brand Story” Section of the Bic issue of Magazine B:

An advantageous position in the market helped BIC maintain its pricing policy and the company has thus secured a customer base with relatively weakerpurchasing power than before. While the market is seeing thousands of manufacturers cropping up to offer low-end products, BIC has managed to maintain its competitive edge by balancing affordability with high quality and as a result, the French company has established its unique brand value. Mario Guevara was quoted as follows — “When the economy slows down. people tend to look for value that have already been recognized. That’s the ideal time when brand power plays its crucial role, and BIC has that brand power.”

High quality products, even at a highly affordable price, help with both competitive and economic pressures. When customers need to be confident about the value of their purchases, they turn to brands like Bic, which has keeps a dual focus on quality and affordable prices.