Client: Ronson
Year: 2000
Design team: hollington
Our brief was to reinvigorate the flagging Ronson brand with some new ideas from lighters and wristwatches.
The core Ronson product was to be a new 21st Century cigarette lighter, inspired by the brand's heritage icon - the 1950's Ronson 'Variflame' lighter [shown].
By the 1980's, competition from the far east and declining design & build quality had eroded the Ronson brand equity and market share.
Our client, was the late Victor Kiam (the ultimate american salesman, best known for the 1970's TV ad catchline "I liked the (Remington) shaver so much I bought the company")
In 1999, Victor became chairman of Ronson and made a brave attempt to reposition the brand as being design-led.
