His name is Bibendum or the Michelin Man and he is over 100 years old. Created by Marius Rossillon, Edouard and André Michelin, he is one of the world's oldest trademarks.
According to graphic design legend the creation of this great symbol almost didnt make it and came about through an incidental meeting:
"While attending the Universal and Colonial Exposition in Lyon in 1894, Edouard and André Michelin noticed a stack of tires that suggested to Edouard the figure of a man without arms. Four years later, André met French cartoonist Marius Rossillon, popularly known as O'Galop, who showed him a rejected image he had created for Munich brewery—a large, regal figure holding a huge glass of beer and quoting Horace's phrase "Nunc est bibendum". André immediately suggested replacing the man with a figure made from tires. Thus O'Galop transformed the earlier image into Michelin's symbol. Today, Bibendum is one of the world's most recognised trademarks, representing Michelin in over 150 countries." (Wikipedia 2011)
But surely he is testament to the leadership in the organisation to continually improve and refine this great symbol and be brave enough to carry on.
