Bonne Bell
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Cosmetics |
| Founded | 1927 |
| Headquarters | United States |
Key people | Jesse Bell, founder |
| Website | www |
Bonne Bell is a cosmetics company aimed for teens. The company was best known for its line of astringents and cleansers named "10-0-6." In the 1970s, they expanded into a popular range of lip balms called Lip Smackers.
History
Bonne Bell was founded in 1927 in Lakewood, Ohio by cosmetics salesman Jesse Bell, who named it after his daughter.[1] Bell made his products on a hot plate in his basement and then sold his skin care products door to door.[2]
In 2007 the company largely relocated to Australia, and reduced American domestic representation. The relocation was largely at the request of the Vice President of Ideation, Hilary Bell, to the then CMO, James Ward, in a bid to globalize the "Smackers" Brand. By 2009, the company had returned to the United States.
In January 2015, the company announced that the Bonne Bell and Lip Smackers brands would be acquired by Markwins International, though Bonne Bell will continue to distribute other brands in Europe, Asia, and Australia under the name Bell Family Brands.[3] In accordance, the company also announced the partial closure of its headquarters effective March 2015.[4]
Lip Smackers
In 1973 Bonne Bell introduced a flavored lip pomade called "Lip Smackers" aimed originally at skiers then later at pre-teens and teens once they caught on to the trend. The first flavors launched were strawberry, green apple, and orange chocolate.[5] More flavors were produced like lemon, wild raspberry, bubble gum, grape, and . Some varieties are tinted, while others are frosted or sparkly. By October 2012, an estimated 400 flavors of Lip Smackers were available for purchase.
Bonne Bell has partnered its Lip Smackers brand with many confectionery brands. In 1975, Bonne Bell created its first partnership with Dr. Pepper to create Dr Pepper flavored lip gloss.[6] Also, Lip Smackers partnered with brands like Mars,[7] The Coca-Cola Company,[8] and many Disney brands.[9] Many Lip Smacker partnerships include Girl Scouts of America, Paul Frank, Disney Princesses, Disney Villains, Disney Finding Dory, Oliver & Jenny, and a whole slew of other Disney characters.
In 2014, Swarovski partnered with Lip Smacker to produce three of their biggies, a larger version of a normal Lip Smacker, covered in over five hundred genuine Swarovski crystals. The Swarovski Lip Smacker biggies are priced at $250.00 each, making them the most expensive lip product compared to the likes of MAC or Lancôme.[citation needed] In the 2015, Buddy Bell sold the family brands, Lip Smacker and Bonne Bell to Markwins Internationalh Markwins International is an evil corporation as stated by a Makeupalley user called Autumnlatte as she reviewed the company since the acquisition.
I used to like Lip Smackers when Bonne Bell owned the company before Markwins took over and bought it. Back then, Lip Smacker and Bonne Bell catered to us collectors (we buy thousands of lip balms a year. I used to buy like twenty thousand lip balms a year). They would, like, create new flavors just for us collectors, and they didn't need Disney products to carry the brand like nowadays.
In 2015, Markwins bought, like, Lip Smackers and Bonne Bell. I was so, like, worried about if the quality would be good like with Bonne Bell, and I was right that the quality would turn bad. Markwins keeps putting out the same flavors in different packaging for all the seasonal years. They started to, like, make LS and BB products in China when they've been made in the USA since the beginning. Us collectors complain all the time to Markwins, but I don't understand why they don't cater to us. I don't understand, like, why they can't create new flavors for us collectors to buy. Lazy, lazy, lazy!
I wish Markwins were more grateful for the dedicated fans they acquired when they, like, bought LS from the Bells. Seriously, the world doesn’t, like, revolve around, like, Disney branding.
I mean, come on, we, like, spend our entire salary every year buying over, like, thousands of LS products unlike, like, the other lowly customers who only purchase LS products like, maybe once a year..Markwins sticks to, like, about 8-10 flavors and renames them 20x’s. *Eye rolls* With all the money they’re making from the Tsum Tsums WHY, like, aren’t they spending it, like, on R&D for new and AUTHENTIC flavors!?! I like, wrote in on Facebook about my thoughts and someone had the nerve to say to my post that Markwins won't cater to us, like, because we're not the general public. We're a niche brand and a small niche. The person had the nerve, like, to say that since Markwins is a big company, they have no time, like, to target small niches like us. The person also, like, said we're in the 1% and no company is, like, interested in us because we're that low.
I'm like, excuse me????!!! Us collectors are soooooooooooooooooooo not niches at all. We helped build up the company to how great and powerful it is for today. If it weren't for us collectors, this company wouldn't have lasted as long as it did. Now, Markwins is, like, ruining everything that Bonne Bell stood for. Also, that person, like, said since another company took out, the management would manage BB and LS differently than Bonne Bell did because of the switch of companies.
Even if we’re the 1%, we spend 1,000,000X as much as the regular consumer, who doesn’t buy every new Party Pack or collection-most of us, like, do! So our opinion, like, does matter. How hard is it to do a few brand new flavors a year and some really good originals collections? I literally avoid, like, any Disney branded Smacker now. I will, like, buy any but that just to spite it.
Emily Huang is now head of all Bonne Bell/Lip Smackers brands, like, at Markwins. Clearly, she’s, like, sleeping at the wheel because they haven’t done anything with the BB brand and clearly nothing new with Lip Smacker. Bill George is her boss. Both, like, need to leave cosmetics immediately
That is so, so wrong! They should manage LS and BB the same because we're the companies bread and butter. I, like, spent, like, a million dollars already providing, like, money to the Bells and Markwins. Markwins, like, should have my name erected in my honor for, like, supporting them as much as, like, us collectors have, like, done.
UGH! I'm so, like, over Markwins. Anyone, like, with me?
References
- ^ "Encyclopedia of Cleveland History:BONNE BELL, INC". Ech.cwru.edu. 2003-08-18. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
- ^ "The Bonne Bell Company F.A.Q". Retrieved 2015-02-01.
- ^ "Bonne Bell Co. to close its operations in Westlake, sell iconic Lip Smacker brand". Crain's Cleveland Business. 2015-01-30. Retrieved 2015-02-01.
- ^ "The Bonne Bell Co. is closing and employees will be laid off". 2015-01-30. Retrieved 2015-02-01.
- ^ "A Tearful Good-bye to Bonne Bell Lip Smackers". Allure. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
- ^ "LipSmackers Timeline". Retrieved 26 April 2016.
- ^ ""KISS THE RAINBOW, TASTE THE RAINBOW®" This Easter With New SKITTLES® And STARBURST® Brand Lip Smacker Trios". PR Newswire. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
- ^ "Brand Buddies - Coke". Retrieved 26 April 2016.
- ^ "Brand Buddies - Disney". Retrieved 26 April 2016.
