32 THE LIPSTICK AND
THE AIRLINE

While many in marketing know the story of how Post-it notes came to be (see page 92), the story of another sticky innovation is equally engaging.

Wolfgang Zengerling, former Head Archivist at Henkel AG, says that the inspiration for the world’s first glue stick came from an airline flight.

The story goes that one of Henkel’s chemists, who was working in the adhesives business, was travelling to a meeting on a plane. Sitting next to him was a woman who, as they came into land, started to put on her make-up. The chemist was intrigued and watched her closely.

He was particularly fascinated by the way she applied her lipstick. He watched her twist the bottom of the tube to push the lipstick up and just over the top, letting her apply it easily to her lips. No fuss, no messy colour on her hands, and a nice, smooth, even finish.

The proverbial light bulb went off as he saw immediately how the application of glue could be made easier. How you could ensure you wouldn’t end up with glue on your hands or on any surfaces other than those you wished to stick, and how you would get a nice smooth application.

Pritt Stick, the world’s first glue stick, was launched in 1969 and is still going strong in 34 countries.

And the moral is that inspiration can strike at anytime, anywhere. Are you constantly curious, always attuned to looking for new ideas?