440. Brand Stories: BIGEN Hair Dye and Hair Coloring Products, 1905

BIGEN HAIR DYE, Japans #1 Hair Color Brand

Commercial hair dye products were known in the Philippines as early as the 1920s, but the one brand that was most popular was BIGEN Hair Dye.

 BIGEN was effective, economical and easy to use—all you need to do is to mix the powder with water, and it’s ready to use to put the black back in your hair. Since BIGEN does not contain hydrogen peroxide, it is also safe and gentle to the hair.

BIGEN, 1967 Ad

BIGEN was created by an unknown Japanese man who concocted the powder hair dye in Nagoya, back in 1905. Eventually, Hoyu Co. Ltd. took over its manufacture. Water-activated. BIGEN 美源, which means "origin of beauty,' became Japan's #1* hair color brand for men and women, and was recognized as an iconic brand in the 1950s.

BIGEN, 1966 Ad

In the early 60s, BIGEN became available in the Philippines, and quickly became a dominant name in the hair dye segment of the haircare market. BIGEN  came in small bottled in a carton package with the graphics of a Japanese woman in kimono—an enduring image for decades, and an iconic part of the brand’s long history.

BIGEN Shampoo-in Hair Color, 1974

The company made modest advertising investments, coming out with small, black and white small ads accompanied with illustrations and stock photographs of Japanese women,

 From basic hair dyes, BIGEN added  hair coloring products for men and women in the 1970s. This was made possible when BICO Industries, based in Valenzuela, Bulacan acquired the license from Hoyu Co. Ltd., to manufacture BIGEN products localy, under supervision by the Japanese company.

By 1975, the BIGEN product line in the Philippines included BIGEN Hair Color for women, in bottles; BIGEN Hair Pencils for retouching eyebrows, BIGEN Jade Shampoo, BIGEN Pink and Blue Lotion, BIGEN Medicated Pomade, and BIGEN Pure Vaseline medicated pomade in bottles and cans.

BIGEN Omnibus Product Ad, 1975

From the 60s thru the 70s, the company made modest advertising investments, coming out with small, black and white small ads accompanied with illustrations and stock photographs of Japanese women, as seen on this spread In the 2000s, BIGEN began advertising on TV,

 WATCH BIGEN TVC from 2017 HERE:

The brand continues to be available in the Philipines, represented to day by BIGEN Philippines, which oversees its sale, marketing and promotions. BIGEN products are available online and in traditional sales outlets such as drugstore, cosmetic, and department stores.

 SOURCES:

Bigen website: https://bigenorigins.com/pages/our-story

Bigen TVC, Biegn Philippines youtube channel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGjKTfb_klo

197. PRINT ADS FEATURING UNUSUAL CHRISTMAS GIFT IDEAS

The most surprising gift suggestions for Christmas can be found featured on print ads of yesteryears—from the strange, the surprising,  to downright weird. Take your pick!

********

Give a house of music:  AVEGON DREAMHOUSE RADIO, 1962

Be generous! Why not give a radio that comes with a house this Christmas? Yes, in 1962, AVEGON introduced new radio models imaginatively designed in the shape of houses. The little bungalows even  had small windows, ‘stone’ foundations and topped by a TV antenna! With this “gift of distinction”, you can now have your dreamhouse…and radio too! Amazing!

Dreaming of a black-haired Christmas: BIGEN HAIR DYE, 1975

For Christmas 1975, BIGEN offers a packaged line of hair products “to suit your holiday mood”. If black doesn’t suit you, there are also different shades of brown to tint your hair, so you can look your youthful best! As the famous hair coloring brand proclaims: “walang hindi pinagaganda…walang hinid pinababata ang BIGEN!”

For a blockbuster of a holiday: FREE MOVIES from DARI CREME, 1964

In 1964, DARI CRÈME ‘spread’ holiday cheer by giving the movie-watching public a special “Free Movie” treat! All one has to do was collect “Santa Claus” wrappers of DARI CRÈME that can be presented at movie houses like Lyric, Capitol, Dalisay, Cinerama, Ever, Avenue and other theaters, to watch the best Filipino and Hollywood movies!

Makulay na Pasko sa inyong lahat! YCO PAINTS, 1967

There’s a plus-side to giving cans of YCO PAINTS for Christmas. You don’t have to cram yourself in sardine-packed department store---you can just pick them up at your nearest crowdless hardware store. Brush on YCO PAINTS…for colors that stay Christmas, after Christmas, after Christmas!

Seasoning’s Greetings!  AJI-NO-MOTO GIFT PACK, 1971

Monosodium glutamate for Christmas? Why not? When you can greet your friends and loved ones with a special AJI-NO-MOTO Gift Pack that includes your favorite vetsin brand in a sprinkler bottle, in a plastic wrapper, with a free Kokeshi doll to match!  Oh what fun it is to  Tak-Tak-Tak all the way!

So Tender and Mild: SILENT NIGHT PERFUME & LOTION, 1962

Yes, Virginia, there is such a perfume brand called SILENT NIGHT, ‘ a perfume masterpiece made by Countess Maritza of New York, U.S.A.”. It was locally distributed in local stores in 1962. But wait,  there’s also a SILENT NIGHT Lotion to complement it. With a name like that, how can you miss? As the ad suggests—“it’s best to give on Christmas!”. One wonders what will happen if you give SILENT NIGHT on Valentine?