Kleenex

Kleenex logo

Unfolded tissue below a Kleenex pack. The Veltie brand is produced by Kimberly-Clark.

Kleenex is a brand name for a variety of products such as facial tissue, bathroom tissue, paper towels, and diapers. Kleenex is a registered trademark of Kimberly-Clark Worldwide, Inc. Often used as a genericized trademark, especially in the United States, "Kleenex" is in fact owned and used as a trademark by Kimberly-Clark. Kleenex products are manufactured in 30 countries and sold in more than 170.

History

The material from which Kleenex is made was originally called "Cellucotton," and was designed by Kimberly-Clark during World War I. It came to be used in gas mask filters during the war as a replacement for cotton, which was in high demand for use as a surgical dressing.

The Kimberly-Clark Corporation created the first Western facial tissue in 1924 (it had been in use for centuries before in Japan; see History of facial tissue for details) and originally marketed them as a way to remove cold cream or makeup remover. It was a disposable substitute for face towels. In 1925, the first Kleenex tissue ad was used in magazines showing "the new secret of keeping a pretty skin as used by famous movie starts..." A few years after the introduction of Kleenex, the company's head researcher tried to persuade the head of advertising to try to market the tissue for colds and hay fever. The admin declined the idea but then committed a small amount of ad space to mention of using Kleenex tissue as a handkerchief. By the 1930s, Kleenex was being marketed with the slogan “Don’t Carry a Cold in Your Pocket” and its utilization as a disposable handkerchief replacement became predominant.^[1]

In the USA, the Kleenex name has become, or as a legal matter nearly has become, genericized: the popularity of the product has led to the use of its name to refer to any facial tissue, regardless of the brand. Many dictionaries, including Merriam-Webster, and Oxford, now include definitions in their publications defining it as such.

References

External links

• Kleenex.com
• Kleenex History Timeline
• Gallery of vintage graphic design featuring Kleenex tissues