291. Brand Names That Became Everyday Pinoy Words #7: SPRAY NET

MISS SPRAY NET, Non-stick spray, 1966

The company that gave us the brand name “spraynet” which Filipinos use to refer to hair spray was an invention of Helene Curtis. Founded back in 1927 by Gerald Gidwitz and Louis Stein as the National Mineral Company,  it was renamed as ‘Helene Curtis’, derived from the first names of Stein’s wife and son.

From manufacturing mud pack products for salons, the company shifted its focus to creating hair care products like shampoos and tonics. Suave hairdressing became their biggest flagship product.

HELEN CURTIS VINTAGE CAN, Source: gramho.com

When aerosol cans were invented after World War II,  Helene Curtis was one of the first companies to recognize its value, and in 1950 it first used the term “hairspray” for its new aerosol cosmetic hair styling product: SPRAY NET.

It was so-called because of its superior hold on hair, that allowed women to keep their 50s bouffant and beehive hairdo as if protected by a net-- higher and longer, with just a spray.

SPRAY NET became such a successful product that other beauty care products joined the hair spray bandwagon, like Aqua Net. It was said that SPRAY NET became so popular that it even outsold lipsticks!

Advertised in 1966 in the Philippines. SPRAY NET was a huge hit among modern Filipinas. As it becae a dominant brand in the market, everyone started calling other branded aerosol hair sprays as “SPRAY NET”.

By the late '60s, tastes in hairstyles changed, with celebrities like Twiggy and Mia Farrow popularizing simpler, shorter, and more natural hair styles. Sales for hair sprays declined slowly. This was further aggravated when it was discovered that aerosol products contained Chlorofluoro Carbons (CFCs), that harmed the environment . A pre-1970 ingredient, vinyl chloride, was found to cause cancer.

HELENE CURTIS, 1966 Print Ad

Aerosols continued to be widely used as safer alternative ingredients were used. Helene Curtis now produces Thermasilk Shape and Hold Spray and Salon Selectives Spray. Though the iconic product is long gone, baby boomers still call any hair spray by that name—SPRAY NET!

SOURCES:

Inset Photo: https://gramho.com/explore-hashtag/helenecurtis

Wikipedia: Helene Curtis Industries, Inc. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helene_Curtis_Industries,_Inc.

205. Brand Names that Became Everyday Pinoy Words #6: JACUZZI

JACUZZI PUMP AD. 1959. The water pumps were distributed by Shriro Phils. Inc.

In the 70s and 80s, “JACUZZI” became a word associated with the lifestyles of the rich and famous in the Philippines.  To have a hot tub with whirlpool and bubble in one’s spacious bath was a status symbol, and soon, every rich and nouveau riche seemed to want one for their home. 

Soon, the term JACUZZI came to be associated  with hot tubs and whirlpool jetted bath, regardless of the maker.

JACUZZI has a long history that began with a company founded by the Italian Jacuzzi brothers who emigrated to the U.S. Settling in California, they began manufactured  aviation parts like propellers in 1915,  and later, cabin planes. They also toyed with designing water pumps, which they would also manufacture.

Exported worldwide, they became a huge success. These pumps became available in the Philippines by 1959, exclusively distributed by Shriro (Philippines) Inc. 

 

PUMP UP THE VOLUME. Jacuzzi water pump, from "History of Jacuzzi"

The pumps would  further be developed into the hydrotherapy pump in 1956. It was created to ease a family member’s  arthritis pain. The J-300, a portable pump that could be installed in bath tubs, was sold to hospitals and schools. The hydromassage one could get was soothing and relaxing. The next step was to manufacture these for the home, a JACUZZI family spa. The idea took off and the rest is history.  

 

JACUZZI SPA IN A TUB. Courtesy of www.jacuzzi.co.uk

JACUZZI today, is a registered trademark of Jacuzzi Inc. as of September 5, 1978. But the name JACUZZI has stuck;  in the minds of Filipinos—and in many parts of the world— any hot tub with massaging jets of water no matter who the maker is-- is called a JACUZZI!

SOURCES:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacuzzi

History of Jacuzzi:

https://www.jacuzzi.co.uk/jacuzzi-world/history

Jacuzzi youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnEF0WwOY6U

193. Brand Names That Became Everyday Pinoy Words #6: VETSIN

VE-TSIN, as a brand name was first used by Tien Chu Ve-Tsin Mfg. Co. Ltd. in 1923

Monosodium glutamate was discovered by Kikunae Ikeda, a Japanese inventor, who isolated the natural flavor-enhancing substance found in seaweed.

MSG, as it is called, is the sodium salt of glutamic acid, also naturally occurring in molasses, cheese, mushrooms, grapes and other fruits. First commercially produced in 1908 by the Suzuki Pharmaceutical Co. in Japan as “Aji-No-Moto”, it was next introduced in Taiwan and China.

Tien Chu Ve-Tsin Mfg. Co. Ltd., based in Shanghai and Hong Kong, was a well-known manufacturer of honey by-products,  food chemicals and additives. It also became a pioneering maker of MSG in China in 1923.

MSG in Mandarin was called “wèijīng” ( 味精), transposed into the Romanized version as “ve-tsin”. Tien Chun’s vet-sin product became so popular that the product was sold abroad as Ve-tsin Gourmet Powder—with just a sprinkling enough to bring out the flavor of food. The product was even awarded a Gold Prize at the 1933 World's Fair in Chicago, U.S.A.

VE-TSIN Print Ad, Graphic Magazine, 1936

Chinese stores in Manila began carrying the Tien Chu Vet-Sin brand as early as the 1930s. One Chinese  store along Calle Poblete-- Ow Yong Pun Shek—carried the brand and advertised it on leading magazines of the day.  Filipinos took to using the flavor enhancer which became a kitchen staple in almost every home.

VE-TSIN MARKA MANOK, 1957

In the early 50s, other Vet-Sin brands became available, like “Markang Manok” (Hen Brand), a more affordable powder seasoning that came in bottles, bowls and trial size sachets. It was packaged and distributed by Agricom Devpt. Co. Inc.

VE-TSIN MARKANG MANOK (Hen Brand Food Seasoning), 1962

In 1958, Aji-No-Moto, the original MSG set up its operations in the Philippines and in  a few years, became a dominant MSG leader, practically wiping out competition and practically monopolizing the market.

Though Aji-No-Moto never used “ve-tsin” in its product descriptor (it used “food seasoning” and “glutamic acid” at the height of the MSG heath controversy), majority of Filipino consumers always refer to the popular Aji brand as “vetsin,  betsin or bitsin”—a legacy left by Tien-Chu Ve-Tsin Mfg. Co.--the first to use that term in their product brand name. 

SOURCES:

Tien Chu Ve-Tsin: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tien_Chu_Ve-Tsin

Monosodium Glutamate: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monosodium_glutamate

Photo of old Ve-Tsin bottle: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kattebelletje/2812928241

, uploaded by kattebelleje.

Delicious Living: https://www.deliciousliving.com/health/nutrition/brief-and-interesting-history-msg/

178. Brand Names that Became Everyday Pinoy Words #5: KLEENEX TISSUES

KLEENEX IS TISSUE, TISSUE IS KLEENEX. Early Philippine ad. 1953.

To many Filipinos growing up in the 1960s and 70s, facial tissue was KLEENEX and KLEENEX was facial tissue. But the soft, gentle tissue actually began as crepe paper that was developed by Kimberly-Clark as a filter for gas masks during the first World War. This absorbent paper was refined for use in the company’s first consumer product—Kotex feminine napkins in 1920.

VINTAGE KLEENEX,www.kleenex.co.uk/history

Next, the paper was made thinner, more supple and softer, and introduced a new tissue product called KLEENEX in 1924, because it was meant to remove cold cream on a woman’s face, leaving it clean. The –EX was appended so that the brand name will be aligned to the Kimberly-Clark family of products that already includes Kotex. In fact, the early ads of KLEENEX showed movie stars wiping off theatrical make up with the tissue.

But by 1926, consumers were finding new usage for KLEENEX Tissue—as alternative disposable handkerchiefs for blowing noses, and even some, as wipes for the toilet. Thus Kimberly-Clark had to address this larger market, introducing innovations through the years such as multi-ply, printed tissues, packaging novelties, scented/ unscented versions, quilted, large sizes.

SOFT..STRONG..KLEENEX. 1962

KLEENEX was introduced in the  country in the 1950s, and the first print ads appeared in local magazines in 1953. Kimberly-Clark Philippines Inc., which began its Philippine operations in 1964, took over the manufacture and manufacturing of its consumer products that include KLEENEX.  

MAN-SIZE KLEENEX TISSUES. 1966

By then, KLEENEX had gained top-of-mind awareness in the local market, just like in other countries where it was marketed. You would hear Filipinos asking for “KLEENEX!”at stores,  when they need tissues. Today, KLEENEX still enjoys a high brand awareness, even if cheaper, lower quality tissues abound in the market. Though not a market leader , KLEENEX is one of the top leading professional brands of Kimberly-Clark for enhancing health, hygiene and well-being.

DESIGNER KLEENEX, 1968

SOURCES:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facial_tissue

The Kleenex Story: https://www.kleenex.co.uk/history/