Marcel Louis Michel Antoine Bich, baron Bich (; 29 July 1914 – 30 May 1994) was an Italian-born, French manufacturer and co-founder of Bic, the world's leading producer of

ballpoint pen A ballpoint pen, also known as a biro (British English), ball pen (Hong Kong, Indian and Philippine English), or dot pen ( Nepali) is a pen that dispenses ink (usually in paste form) over a metal ball at its point, i.e. over a "ball point". ...

lighters A lighter is a portable device which creates a flame, and can be used to ignite a variety of items, such as cigarettes, gas lighter, fireworks, candles or campfires. It consists of a metal or plastic container filled with a flammable liquid or ...

, and

razors A razor is a bladed tool primarily used in the removal of body hair through the act of shaving. Kinds of razors include straight razors, safety razors, disposable razors, and electric razors. While the razor has been in existence since before t ...

Early years

Bich was born in Turin, Italy on 29 July 1914 to Aimé-Mario Bich (1882–1955) and Marie Muffat de Saint-Amour de Chanaz (1886–1967). His family moved to Spain and then to France where Bich was naturalised as a French citizen in 1932 and later studied law at the

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

. He served in the French Air Force at the outset of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The Bich family originated at Châtillon, and earlier in the

Valtournenche Valtournenche (local Valdôtain: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Aosta Valley region of north-western Italy, above the sea level. It is named after and covers most of the ''Valtournenche'', a valley on the left side of the Dora Baltea, from C ...

valley, in the

Aosta Valley , Valdostan or Valdotainian it, Valdostano (man) it, Valdostana (woman)french: Valdôtain (man)french: Valdôtaine (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = Official languages , population_blank1 = Italian French ...

. King

Charles Albert of Sardinia Charles Albert (; 2 October 1798 – 28 July 1849) was the King of Sardinia from 27 April 1831 until 23 March 1849. His name is bound up with the first Italian constitution, the Albertine Statute, and with the First Italian War of Independence ...

granted Emmanuel Bich, mayor of Aosta, the title of baron in 1841. Emmanuel's grandson Aimé-Mario Bich, the father of Marcel Bich, was an engineer who moved to France after failing to gain commercial success in Italy.

Business success

In 1944, Marcel Bich and his partner, Édouard Buffard, bought an empty factory in the Paris suburb of Clichy, where they began the production of inexpensive pen holders and pencil cases. Bich was originally a skeptic of ballpoint pens, which at the time were unreliable and leaked. In 1946, however, by observing the channel made by the wheel of his wheelbarrow in the ground, he understood the USP of the ballpoint pen. Just as the wheel made transporting items easier, the ball could allow the hand to be free from the constraints of the pen nib and make writing more fluid. Marcel Bich bought the

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A p ...

for the ballpoint pen for US $2 million from Hungarian

László Bíró László József Bíró (; born László József Schweiger; 29 September 1899 – 24 October 1985), Hispanicized as Ladislao José Biro, was a Hungarian-Argentine inventor who patented the first commercially successful modern ballpoint pen. The ...

who had been producing such pens since 1943 in Argentina. Using Swiss watchmaking tools, he devised a manufacturing process that produced stainless-steel balls for the tip of the pen, and the

Bic Cristal The BIC Cristal (stylised as BiC Cristal and also known as the Bic pen) is an inexpensive, disposable ballpoint pen mass-produced and sold by Société Bic of Clichy, Hauts-de-Seine, France. It was introduced in December 1950 and is the best-se ...

ballpoint pen became his first product in 1950. The Bic Cristal ballpoint pen went on to become a worldwide best-seller, and the design remains mostly unchanged today. Bich formed Société Bic in 1953. Bich partnered with poster designer

Raymond Savignac Raymond Savignac, often just abbreviated to "Savignac", was a French graphic artist famous for his commercial posters. He was born on November 6, 1907 in Paris, and died on October 30, 2002 in Trouville-sur-Mer (Calvados), aged 94. His work is d ...

to create the company’s advertisements, who created the Bic Boy that later became part of the company’s official logo. Bic won the first French Oscar for advertising, sponsored the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...

, and became an essential item and a household name. Between 1950 and the 1970s, Bic expanded globally, into Italy, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland and Spain, followed by South America and North America. In 1973, Bic introduced a disposable pocket lighter that could provide 3,000 lights before wearing out. In 1975, the brand released the one-piece polystyrene razor, the first single-piece disposable razor with an integrated blade and a lightweight plastic handle. The company formed by Bich still exists as the

Société Bic Société Bic S.A., commonly called Bic and stylized as BiC, is a French manufacturing corporation based in Clichy, Hauts-de-Seine. It sells a world-leading brand of lighters and pens since its founding by Marcel Bich (1914–1994) in 1945, an ...

Group and is listed on the

Paris Stock Exchange Euronext Paris is France's securities market, formerly known as the Paris Bourse, which merged with the Amsterdam, Lisbon, and Brussels exchanges in September 2000 to form Euronext NV. As of 2022, the 795 companies listed had a combined market ...

and majority-owned by his family. Bich stepped down as Chairman of Societe Bic in 1993. He was succeeded by his son, Bruno, who served as Chairman for 25 years, 15 of which also as CEO. Marcel’s grandson Gonzalve Bich has been CEO since 2018.

Yacht racing and sailing

Bich was a keen

sailor A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. The profession of the s ...

. He funded four campaigns to compete in the trials to select a challenger for the

America's Cup The America's Cup, informally known as the Auld Mug, is a trophy awarded in the sport of sailing. It is the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one f ...

in 1970, 1974, 1977 and 1980, and was inducted, posthumously, into the

America's Cup Hall of Fame The America's Cup Hall of Fame, located at the Herreshoff Marine Museum of Bristol, Rhode Island, USA, honors individuals for outstanding achievement in the America's Cup sailing competition. Candidates eligible for consideration include skippers, ...

in 1998.

Personal

Bich was one of three children, he had a sister Marie Thérèse Louise Antoinette Léandra Bich (1913–1970) and brother Albert Bich (1916–1989). He was married to Louise Chamussy in 1937. After her death in 1950 he went on to marry Jacqueline de Dufourq (1911–2007, divorced) and, in 1956, Laurence Courier de Mère (1932–). He had 11 children.

Death

He died on 30 May 1994 in Paris, aged 79. His first wife, Louise Chamussy, died in 1950. He was survived by his wife, Laurence Courier de Mere, 11 children and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

References

External links

BIC Corporate History
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bich, Marcel 1914 births 1994 deaths 20th-century French businesspeople 1970 America's Cup sailors French male sailors (sport) Italian emigrants to France University of Paris alumni 1974 America's Cup sailors 1977 America's Cup sailors 1980 America's Cup sailors French Air Force personnel of World War II