Which company owns the Bic brand of pens and lighters?

Société Bic owns the BIC brand of pens and lighters. The French company, commonly known as BIC, makes and markets the brand internationally alongside products such as razors and stationery.

Marcel Bich and Édouard Buffard founded the company in France in 1945. Marcel Bich later acquired rights connected with László Bíró's ballpoint-pen design and developed an inexpensive, mass-produced writing instrument. The resulting BIC Cristal launched in 1950 and became one of the world's best-known ballpoint pens.

BIC expanded beyond pens as its low-cost, disposable-product strategy developed. The company entered the lighter market in the early 1970s, and BIC lighters became especially recognizable for their simple design and reliable ignition. Société Bic remains the corporate owner of the BIC brand; Parker, Paper Mate, and Lamy are separate writing-instrument brands.

A minor source of confusion is the spelling of the company name. “Bic” is the shortened commercial form of Société Bic, while “BIC” is the familiar brand styling. The name also reflects Marcel Bich's surname, with the final “h” omitted for easier pronunciation in English-speaking markets.