95 year old Shanghai time-honored brand is actually a "pirate"?! Beehive sandalwood soap can't sit still... Soap | Beehive | Shanghai
"When I was' buy buy buy 'in a certain live broadcast room, the host said that bee flowers do not produce soap, but we have bee flower sandalwood soap at home since childhood. Is bee flowers different from before?"
"I saw in a live broadcast room with the name 'Bee Blossom' that a netizen was cracking down on another 'Bee Blossom' live broadcast room. What's going on?"
"On the packaging of the newly purchased 'Bee Blossom' soap, the English translation is different from the old model. Can it be a 'pirated' version?"
Recently, some consumers have asked the Shanghai debunking platform: Is the time-honored bee flower fake?
On social media platforms, many netizens argue about "real and fake bee flowers"
The investigation found that this was a beautiful misunderstanding.
Two "bee flowers" blooming separately
Some consumers are not aware that there are two companies in Shanghai that own the "Bee Flower" trademark, namely state-owned enterprise Shanghai Saponin Factory Co., Ltd. and private enterprise Shanghai Bee Flower Daily Necessities Co., Ltd.
However, the registered trademark patterns of the two "bee flowers" are different, and the corresponding product categories of the two "bee flowers" also differ. Among them, Shanghai's "Bee Blossom" soap specializes in scented soap, liquid soap, detergents, etc., including the famous "Bee Blossom Sandalwood Soap"; Bee Flower Daily Necessities specializes in shampoo and hair care products, including well received affordable hair conditioners.
Some "bee flower" products produced by Shanghai soap making
Some "bee flower" products produced by bee flower daily necessities
Why can different companies have trademarks with the same name?
There are historical reasons inside.
According to data, "Bee Blossom Sandalwood Soap" is the origin of "Bee Blossom" and has a history of 95 years. In 1928, the Central Soap Factory founded and operated by Chinese people produced the first honeycomb sandalwood soap; In 1956, Bee Blossom Sandalwood Soap was merged with the Central Soap Factory into the Wuzhou Soap Factory, and in 1960, it was merged with the Wuzhou Soap Factory into the Shanghai Soap Factory, which is now known as Shanghai Soap Co., Ltd. For over 90 years, bee flower sandalwood soap has always been fragrant, and even the packaging has not undergone significant changes.
Old Bee Blossom Sandalwood Soap Advertisement
It can be seen that "Bee Blossom" is a fake national time-honored brand, and Bee Blossom Sandalwood Soap is a renowned classic domestic product. It not only has a loyal consumer group in China, but also has always been an "export star". At present, its classic brown packaging can be seen in more than 50 countries and regions around the world, and it has successfully entered overseas online channels such as Amazon North America Station, Japan Station, Wal Mart America Online Store, etc.
As for the "bee flower" of daily necessities, it was allowed to be used by the enterprise in 1985 for reasons such as expanding domestic brands. At that time, the relevant departments differentiated the product categories of the two "bee flowers", and the registration categories of the two "bee flower" trademarks were different, so they complied with the provisions of the Trademark Law.
According to the official website of the Trademark Office of the China National Intellectual Property Administration, both Shanghai Soap Making Co., Ltd. and Honeybee Daily Necessities Co., Ltd. hold the "Honeybee" trademark, which is applicable to different commodities
"Many time-honored brands have the same name but different entities, some have different trademark characters and images, while others have different trademarks but the same name. The reasons are complex and cannot be simply 'cracked down on' or 'incorporated'. According to insiders, some time-honored brands with the same name have different categories and are 'in peace' with each other."; But there are also similar categories that are at odds due to market competition. In recent years, there have been frequent cases of lawsuits against well-known brands with the same name. "This precisely indicates that there is a high level of attention from all sectors of society towards these brands, and their appeal is also strong. Various entities are unwilling to give up on these brands."
The person believes that the market encourages healthy competition. There is a strange phenomenon that honeybee sandalwood soap is cracked down on the Internet platform. On the one hand, it may be that some anchors and bloggers are not familiar with the history of time-honored brands and have misunderstandings. On the other hand, it cannot be ruled out that some salespeople intentionally mislead the public for their own interests. In this regard, consumers still need to be "discerning": the two "bee flowers" in Shanghai are both genuine.
"Bee flowers" are in full bloom, old trees and new flowers
"We have also noticed the questions from netizens and received their demand for verification." Wang Zhenming, the general manager of Shanghai Soap, believes that the reason why consumers are asking about "genuine and fake bee flowers" is also because in recent years, the innovation pace of time-honored brands has been increasing.
Another reason for being asked whether bee flower soap is genuine is that some consumers have found that on some bee flower products made in Shanghai, the English label translation is no longer "be&flower", but "FLAUHRA". At the same time, the variety of products has greatly increased, and the packaging and form of many products are completely different from those of honeycomb sandalwood soap.
The China-Chic series of honeybee sandalwood soap has been on the market for some time
"Can't we have new products?" - A playful message from an e-commerce operation editor representing a time-honored brand in Shanghai, to netizens. Wang Zhenming explained that using brand new text and English labels is to further break through tradition and give old brands more space for innovation.
He said that "FLAUHRA" is inspired by "FAUNA AND FLORA", which means "harmonious coexistence of animals and plants". It precisely corresponds to "bee flowers", echoing the scene atmosphere of "bees and flowers coexisting, wandering in traditional Chinese gardens" in the brand story, and reflecting the beauty of natural harmony. The font of the new label is carefully designed, incorporating sharp turning points of strokes into rounded corners and natural curves, creating a blend of modernity and tradition.
Along with the text labels, there are also changes to the product and packaging: the latest bee flower soap has three new fragrances, including pear aroma spring tea, Luoshen peony, and white sandalwood evening jade, which are refreshing and refreshing; The packaging corresponds to light green, light pink, and goose yellow tones respectively, decorated with Chinese tangled flowers, exuding a classical beauty and brightness. Equally fragrant is the price - the new product is consistent with the classic sandalwood soap, priced at less than 6 yuan per piece, which is affordable and down-to-earth.
New products of some bee flower scented soap and liquid soap
In addition, the fragrance liquid soap and amino acid fragrance liquid soap, which are dominated by the fragrance of plant essential oil, came on stage at the same time. Like perfume, they clearly marked top note, middle note and base note flavors. Product Director Qu Ruixue said, "The craftsmanship, fragrance, and user feel of these liquid soap products are all benchmarking against top tier fragrance brands. Although the price is far from traditional soap, it can be much cheaper than top tier fragrance brands because our goal is to create our own fragrance brand for Chinese people, allowing more people to have the opportunity to try it." Even if some consumers place orders with "half confidence", the sales and evaluation of the new products are very ideal. "Good quality, I can speak for myself."
New products of some bee flower scented soap and liquid soap
In fact, when a new product is misunderstood as a "fake bee flower", Wang Zhenming is relatively calm. "For consumers who know about 'bee flower', 'bee flower' is an old brand and a time-honored brand; but for younger consumers, 'bee flower' is likely a new brand. To win them, it is not through history, but through the product itself."
He said that in recent years, the consumption of "new domestic products" has been increasing, but relying solely on sales sentiment cannot go far. Even the common cross-border and color blocking marketing and design in "new domestic products" in recent years have made people aesthetically fatigued. "At this time, being able to make consumers feel like 'products that don't look like old brands' actually gives us confidence - indicating that old brands have broken through themselves and have the ability to participate in more intense market competition."
