The proliferation of new ranges fascinates college students, who always want more. But this popularity also leads to many thefts.
It is a traffic that is growing every day. However, its object is as unexpected as it is harmless: Bic’s emblematic four-colour pen. The precious tool, a must-have for schoolchildren’s kits for several generations (it is over 50 years old), is more jealous than ever in playgrounds. The key to its success? It is “particularly easy to use, affordable, high quality and above all reliable. You can write over 8 kilometers at a stretch before you run out of ink“, highlights the group’s communication department. But this renewed popularity, which is felt on sales, also causes its share of tensions and competition between comrades.
Read alsoWith the Canadian Inkbox, Bic gets into temporary tattooing
“A collector’s item”
Muriel, an English teacher in a college in the south of France, is on the front line in the face of this “four color maniawhich seems to affect a large part of the country’s secondary schools. “It seems anecdotal at first glance, but this pen creates a lot of problems between students. Thefts are legion in the classroomsshe reports. Indeed, the four-color is now seen as a collector’s item, a trophy to be obtained at all costs. Set of 15 pens in four different colors in the kit, “customization“, quest for the rare object, … “OYou might say it’s just a pen after all, but the four-color is often the only one students have in their kit. Having it stolen often represents a new expense of 2 or 3 euros each time, and for some families this can represent a significant cost.“says Muriel. “Moreover, some thefts are part of a much broader framework of harassment against certain students; who are specifically and systematically targeted by thievesshe concludes.
Read also“I saw only one solution, to end it”: at 14, Clara-Bella was the victim of school harassment in a large Parisian college
But where does this strong attraction of the youngest for this flagship product from Bic come from? Beyond this recent acceleration, the four-color pen has always enjoyed a certain popularity among the youngest. Founded in 1945 by Marcel Bich, Bic – whose capital was still 44.8% owned in 2019 by the founder’s family – capitalizes heavily on the popularity of its star product and does not hesitate to develop new ranges. “To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the four colors in 2010, we have decided to put on sale an edition with an apple green body and offering offbeat colors. Since then, we have multiplied the special editions with, for example, a four-color imitation wood or solidarity editions, the profits of which are often redistributed to associations.“, we explain. The multiplication ofstyles» of four different colors then naturally reinforces the attraction of the youngest for the pen. “Students want the most diverse set of four colors possiblesays Muriel. “The color blue, gold, pink and so on, it’s up to the one who will have the most original Bic“.
A “made in France” product
This trend observed in the playgrounds is fully reflected in the levels of sale of the pen. “We note, over five years, a 50% increase in sales of four colors in France and 20% between 2020 and 2021 alone.says the Bic Group. The reliability of the product for 50 years and the diversification of styles of four colors sold therefore seem to be paying off, and reflects the overall good health of the group. Indeed, Bic ranks as the world number 2 for all that is “writing instruments» [8% des parts de marché mondiales] thanks, in part, to the policy of diversification towards other product ranges [comme les briquets] and internationalization begun in the 1970s, which enabled it to compete with stationery giants such as Waterman and Reynolds.
Read alsoBic: net profit tripled and sales rebound in 2021, optimism for 2022
However, despite its global presence, the group remains strongly rooted in its country of origin, France. “The French market remains the most demanding of our products, and in particular of our four colorssays Bic. “Moreover, it is in France, and more precisely in the Bic factory in Montévrain located in Seine-et-Marne that most of the four colors sold in the world are manufactured.“. The Montévrain plant produces more than 240,000 four colors per day, or more than 7.2 million per month. A certain popularity and quality for a cult pen and “made in France“.
SEE ALSO – How to prepare for exams in an eco-responsible way?