Kolynos is the name of the Oral Care product line created by Newwell Still Jenkins in 1908 . The rights to this brand were acquired by Colgate-Palmolive in 1995 .
| Kolynos | |
|---|---|
| Industry | Oral Care Products |
| Current owner | Colgate-palmolive company |
| Country of origin | USA |
| Start use | 1908 |
| Related Stamps | Sorriso |
| Former owners | Kolynos Company |
This trademark was popular in the thirties and forties. The company sponsored well-known radio programs, including “Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons. ”( Mr. Keen, Missing Agent ).
Despite the fact that products under the Kolynos brand are no longer available in the United States , the brand maintains a strong position in Latin America and Hungary . In Brazil, until recently, Kolynos was in second place after Colgate itself. Following the acquisition of the brand, fearing loss of customer loyalty, Colgate-Palmolive agreed to retain the name of toothpaste in Brazil for a few more years. However, soon, Colgate-Palmolive launched an analogue of this product in similar packaging and with a similar advertising campaign called Sorriso ( Portuguese smile ), which made it possible to seamlessly switch to a new brand without losing customer demand. The advertising jingle Kolynos was written in several languages. In Peru, the brand was so popular that its name became synonymous with toothpaste, and a broad smile is now called the Kolynos smile.
Content
Kolynos History
The founder of the Kolynos Company and the inventor of the Kolynos Dental Formula, Dr. Newwell Still Jenkins, was born December 29, 1840 , in Falmouth , Maine , USA . When Still was 5 years old, his family moved to Bangor , a city in the Penobscot county of Maine . At the age of 18, Jenkins gets a job as an assistant dentist, receiving a salary of $ 100 per year. After attending lectures at Jefferson Medical School, he enters the Baltimore College of Surgical Dentistry, USA . After receiving a dentist's diploma in 1863, he practices at the same place in Bangor . Since 1866 , Jenkins practiced in Germany for several years, in Dresden . At the end of the 19th century, Professor VD Miller came to the conclusion that bacteria in the oral cavity were the cause of dental caries . Inspired by this discovery, Jenkins plans to conduct a study based on the fact that it is necessary not only to brush your teeth, but also to fight bacteria in the oral cavity. Teaming up with Professor Miller, Jenkins continued to conduct experiments and clinical research, lasting 17 years, until 1908 .
Upon his return to the United States, he decides to test the results of his scientific discoveries in the chemical laboratory of Yale University . Jenkins developed the formula for his toothpaste back in Germany . In those days, most dentists prepared pasta by mixing the ingredients on their own, which was quite expensive, and the results of its effectiveness were inconsistent. While working as a doctor in Germany , Jenkins did not mix the composition of his paste, but only wrote out a prescription, but pharmacists could not accurately reproduce its formula. These problems led him to think that toothpaste should be produced on an industrial scale, which would make it accessible to everyone and improve the quality of its manufacture. The final version of the toothpaste formula was presented in 1908 at the congress of the US Dental Association in London .
Despite the fact that Jenkins did not want to do business, but wanted to remain a researcher, he really wanted the dentifrice he invented to come out of the walls of the laboratory and serve people. Therefore, he instructs his son, L. A. Jenkins, to organize the production of the product. The plant was founded in New Haven , Connecticut . The name Kolynos was composed of two Greek words kolyo and nosus, which means a means to give beauty and fight against ailments. The first batch of toothpaste went on sale on April 13, 1908 . The European branch of the company was located in Berlin , and a toothpaste factory in London was built a little later. The wave of popularity was amplified by the US Dental Association itself, glorifying the quality of this paste more than any other.
In July 1928, Kolynos became a division of American Home Product Corporation. Even before the entry of Kolynos American Home Products Corporation, the company held a leading position in the United States in terms of export share. By 1937 , the company's products were sold in 88 countries, in more than 20 of which its production was located. Kolynos oral hygiene products were advertised in 32 languages. The main points of distribution were pharmacies, but they could also be purchased at perfume stores, grocers, and markets. Millions of Americans also bought toothpaste in order to make their smile snow-white. An advertisement in those years read: "In three days, your teeth will become whiter by 3 tones."
By the end of the fifties, the company befalls a collapse. No one else tries to make the smile snow-white, everyone cares about the health of the teeth, about the prevention of caries. Kolynos lost without betting on fluoride paste. Soon interest in a snow-white smile reappeared, but it was too late, the company suffered losses. By 1968 , the American Home Product Corporation stopped selling Kolynos products in the United States due to a lack of customer interest. Despite this, the production and sale of dental products under the Kolynos brand in other countries continued.
Colgate-Palmolive Acquisition of Kolynos
The acquisition of Kolynos Business by Colgate-Palmolive attracted the attention of the Brazil Antitrust Committee. Prior to the merger, both companies held leading positions in the production of toothpaste, toothbrushes, dental floss, and tooth rinse. Nevertheless, the antimonopoly committee became interested only in toothpaste, the share of which, together with Colgate toothpaste, became 78% of the market. As a result of the merger was not approved, Colgate was offered three options to get out of the situation: immediate sale of the Kolynos brand, exclusive licensing of the brand for a twenty-year period or suspension of production of toothpaste under the Kolynos brand for up to four years, in order to free up market space for others manufacturers. Unwilling to make large investments, Colgate-Palmolive chose the latter option. Over the next four years, Colgate continued to sell toothbrushes, dental floss and mouthwash, but then this production of goods under the Kolynos brand in Brazil was curtailed and replaced with a similar product under the Sorriso brand. The Kolynos brand, which has existed in Brazil for 80 years, finally ceased to exist in 1999 . The disappearance of the brand resulted in the emergence of six new manufacturers of oral care products in the emerging market, which reduced the cost of toothpaste and related products by 10%. Sales of Kolynos products in other countries, including 12 countries in Latin America , continued.
Use in literature
The Kolynos brand was mentioned in the novel by the American writer Jerome Salinger "The Catcher in the Rye" ( 1951 ).
“Everyone was already sleeping or getting home for the weekend, and there was such silence in the corridor that it was really longing. There was a cardboard box under the Colinos toothpaste lying at the door of Leahy and Hoffman's room, and I kicked her on the way with a toe of slippers up to the stairs. ”
In Salman Rushdie’s novel , Children of the Midnight, one of the chapters is titled The Colinos Boy.