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The “Premiere League”

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The “Premiere League”

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What do Sinalco, Ritter Sport, Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG and the STI Group have in common? They all feature alongside many other classics in the recently published 16th issue of the brand bible “Brands of the Century”. Being featured here means you play “in the premiere league”.

On over 600 pages the 2.8 kg volume pools profiles of 281 “outstanding products and services made in Germany” – which is the sub-heading of the book. Furthermore, the title is published in two special issues: in English and in Chinese. These special prints are designed to be distributed to guests of the German Pavilion at the Football World Cup in South Africa and at the World Exposition in Shanghai. Additionally, copies of this standard volume on German economic history are on display at all German embassies and Goethe Institutes around the globe.

The book published by Dr. Florian Langenscheidt at the Deutsche Standards publishing house is a synopsis of the products and objects that have become household names synonymous with a whole group of products or industries: Persil for washing powders, Aspirin for headache tablets, Nivea for skin cream or the STI Group for packaging.

Packaging

What would the finest pralines be worth if they were retailed in a brown paper bag? How attractive would toys be if they were hidden in non-transparent boxes on shelves? For this reason the STI Group was included in the “Brand Bible” this year as an exemplary protagonist for innovative packaging ideas. This company owned by the Stabernack family since its foundation in 1879 employs over 100 designers and developers worldwide in the conception of new packaging solutions. As early as in the 1950s the STI product “chrowell” revolutionised the packaging market: for the first time a single-faced corrugated board could be finished with a fine outer skin of offset printed carton. The result was a stable packaging with first-class printability. On top of this, STI was the first German producer of corrugated board packaging to be awarded the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) seal. Reason enough to convince the 8-person advisory council that the STI Group stands for packaging “Made in Germany” worldwide.

Printing Presses

The “black art” could neither be imagined without Gutenberg nor without the Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG today. For more than 150 years this printing press manufacturer has been synonymous with progress in the print media sector. While print shops only used to be commissioned to print on paper for a long time, today they offer their customers services along the entire supply chain of printed products. Since drupa 2008 this the world’s biggest print media solutions provider has presented a topical, revised product and corporate design. Its brand strategy focuses on clear placement as an umbrella brand and a consistent image across all the channels through which customers are addressed.
Insulation Materials

Also featured in the “Bible” is that famous, rigid white foam: styrofoam. A “centenary material” that was actually created by accident. Fritz Stastny, a nerd working at the “Badische Anilin- und Sodafabrik”, known as BASF today, had forgotten to remove a can with a clear solution designed for developing an effective cable sheathing from a heating cabinet. On the following morning this had turned into a rigid foam chord. After numerous experiments he succeeded in additionally reducing the originally high volumetric weight – until he was finally left with the foam material we now know as polystyrene. The special characteristic of this material: styrofoam is a polystyrene-based rigid foam material. Its white beads consist of 98% air making it lightweight and suitable for insulation. Furthermore, this foam boasts high compression strength, good impact dampening and resistance to moisture, acids and alkalis. 1951 saw BASF register “Styropor” as a brand and production started the same year. Incidentally: under the slogan “The Lightest Ship in the World“ the company gave away toy boats foamed with hot steam at the 1952 “K” trade fair Plastics & Rubber in Düsseldorf. In the 1960s “Styropor“ conquered the world market as an insulation and packaging material.

Quality in a Square.

Ritter Sport also made it into the book and is now one of the brands of the century. Shortly after Alfred and Clara Ritter got married in 1912 they established their joint firm. The idea of producing chocolate in an unconventional format has proved successful even until today. In 1976 the famous Ritter Sport snap-open pack was launched, an environment-friendly packaging unit that affords excellent protection for products thanks to its high impermeability. 2008 saw the launch of organic “squares”. Today, Ritter Sport is represented in over 90 countries and more than two and a half million of those colourful Ritter Sport “squares” are manufactured every day.

“Die Sinalco schmeckt”.

Sinalco tastes great – in almost 50 countries around the globe. This cult lemonade initially developed as a homeopathic essence under the name “Bilz-Brause” started its march to triumph at the beginning of the 20th century. To ward off copycats and plagiarism the brand name Sinalco was coined (derived from the Latin terms “sin alcohole”) and later also the logo with the white italics and the typical bottle shape. Sinalco is one of the first European soft drinks to also conquer the markets of the Orient, the Far East and South America. Sinalco became the epitome of the lemonade category.
This list goes on including brands such as the Nivea cream developed in 1911 and now the core of a giant family of products, or Penaten, which has been THE baby skin care product for millions of mothers for over 100 years now. However, there are also young brands that – in the eyes of the jury – counted among the “Brands of the Century” within no time. Examples include the smoothies “true fruits”, an absolute lifestyle product looking back on only a short history. High-quality, healthy and with packaging that combines clarity with truth: glass bottles with high-quality ceramic prints. Half a million smoothies are now sold every month. This entry was predominantly meant to reward the courage and imagination of a young trio of entrepreneurs.