By Garland Pollard
What happened to home perm maker Toni and those famous Toni twins?
Toni was synonymous with home permanents, and their advertising was all over game shows in the early TV era. Like Doublemint, Toni had twins in their advertising. An old ad from www.Old-Time.com tells the story of the brand, and the twins. (Note, the girls started looking hotter as the U.S. moved out of the radio era.)
Toni was purchased by Gillette in 1948 for $12 million from founders Neison and Irving Harris. Toni is still around a bit; the Toni Silkwave product is still sold at Walgreens. But its product line is no longer big and Gillette is now part of Proctor & Gamble.
But what happened to the other Toni products, including Toni shampoo? And then there was Tonette, the hair permanent for kids?
Gillette sold the remnants of Toni (what it called its White Rain line of hair care products) to Tampa-based Diamond Products Company in April of 2000, including a Gillette factory in St. Paul. According to The New York Times report, the White Rain line
generated sales of $110 million in 1999 and then included brands like:
- Adorn. At writing, still available at Walgreens.com.
- Dippity-Do. Still available at Amazon.com.
- Mink Difference
- Tame
- Lightwaves
- Lilt Home Perm
- Toni Epic Waves
- Dry Look (Gotta love those groovy Dry Look bottles!)
- Toni brands
- White Rain (still around)
Here is the problem. Toni was part of the brand for all of these products. While some survived, they could not survive on their own. It would have been like trying to sell a Triscuit without the Nabisco in the corner.
BrandlandUSA Rule: Company Brands Are Important
There are product name brands. And then there are company brand names. Brand managers often disconnect the two. Often, a brand has been sold WITH the company name. Sometimes a company brand can become a product brand, or vice versa. This happened with Condé Nast Traveler. When Harold Evans started up the distinguished travel monthly, they picked the company name to give credibility to the new venture. These connections are decades old, and consumers only trust a certain product with a certain company name. Branding guys — you have to keep the company brand or things start screwing up.
- Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes
- Speed Stick by Mennen
- Gillette Trac 2
- Alberto VO5
- Vogue and Vanity Fair by Conde Nast
- Old Spice by Shulton (a Moosic, Pa. division of American Cynamid)
- Lucky Charms and General Mills
- Jell-O and General Foods.
Want to know more about company brands and product brands? Read our post from last year, Nabisco Brand Advice Corner.
17 responses so far ↓
1 Cali Girl // Oct 3, 2009 at 5:30 am
I’m glad you feel the Toni twins got hotter as the years went on. I knew the last two Toni twins and they would appreciate that!
2 linda todd (Duff) // Oct 27, 2009 at 8:32 am
my twin sister (Sandra) and I were the 1985 Toni Twins
3 tishylee // Apr 3, 2010 at 6:21 pm
June & Fran Drew are doing well. In their 80s & sharp as ever.
4 Garland Pollard // Apr 15, 2010 at 7:30 pm
We heard a bit about the actual twins pictured above from Bill Dorrance:
Wanted to let you know that I am the son of Rita Simen and that is her in the picture with her sister (my aunt) on your website (not sure which is which, but others in my family and her sister know).
There are four surviving kids in our family, and four in her sisters.
5 Gina // Aug 1, 2010 at 9:47 pm
Helene and Kathy Mevo were related to me and they have both passed. I have been trying to find pictures if anyone knows where…
6 Terry Yellig // Aug 25, 2010 at 9:10 pm
My aunts Kathleen and Katheren Ring were Toni Twins in the 1940′s after World War II. Both have unfortuantely passed away, but I have a small billboard-style “Which Twin has the Toni” advertisement that my mother gave me before she died two years ago. It was my understanding that my aunts were the first “Toni Twins” but I don’t know that for a fact. I would like to know if they were the first.
7 Barbara Haeusser // Sep 26, 2010 at 6:02 pm
My twin sister and I were born on New Year’s Day in 1956. We were the only twin girls born on New Year’s Day in the state of Ohio. My parents won the Toni Home Perm Contest, which you had to have twin girl’s born within the hours of 12:00 am and 8:00 am on New year’s day. There were 23 sets in the US born on that day. As far as I know, we still are the only set born on NYD in Ohio since 1956. I would like to hear from Toni Home Perm Co. .. We will be turning 55 yrs young, this New Years Day 2011.
8 Nancy Miller // Nov 9, 2010 at 10:04 pm
This is not about the twins, but there was an obituary in today’s Contra Costa Times (Walnut Creek, CA, Bay Area News Group) for Toni Laurance Finger. The obituary claims that Toni was named after her “after the inventor met the young Toni at a family dinner.” This was probably near Milwaukee WI, based on the information in the obituary about her hometown. I have absolutely no idea if the above is true or just a charming family story.
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/contracostatimes/obituary.aspx?n=toni-finger&pid=146521896
9 Garland Pollard // Feb 1, 2011 at 3:14 pm
A note from a BrandlandUSA Reader:
I was looking at Toni Twins on the ‘net, and came across your question as to the Ring twins, Kathleen and katheren(?)
I think that I worked with their father, Leonard Ring who was the roundhouse clerk for the Illinois Central RR in Cherokee, iowa about that time. He had two very beautiful daughters and I do believe that their names were Kathleen and Katherine (?), and I do know that he was very proud of them and the fact that they were Toni Twins.
Just thought I would answer a part of your request.
C. J. Lyman
10 Tracy Runko // Mar 2, 2011 at 7:36 am
My mom and her twin sister (Pat and Mary Donovan) were the Toni Twins from Elizabeth, NJ back in the early 50′s. They looked great back then and look just as great today!
11 Jennifer N // Mar 26, 2011 at 5:38 pm
I was told that my grandmother and her twin sister were the first Toni twins. Their names are Beverly and Barbara Dahm. They even had their own comic strip.
12 Lynn K // Jun 2, 2011 at 12:09 pm
My mom and my aunt (Camille & Dolores) were the Toni Twins from San Francisco in the 40′s. They are both still healthy and we talk about this from time to time. They haven’t changed a bit.
13 george. // Nov 21, 2011 at 1:34 pm
my wife and I meet one of the Toni twins once a week in Dartford UK, This week both turned up, They are very good friends,
14 Catherine // Dec 9, 2011 at 1:10 pm
My Mother, Jeanne Fulstone Corfee, and my Aunt, Eleanor Fulstone Killebrew, were the original Toni Twins! They still look fab and are doing great. I would like to post a pic of them!!! They both exercise, play tennis, bridge, are social and so fun!!!! Someone really needs to do a follow up on them. They are 82 and gorgeous!!!!!
We do not have ads and creative contests like we use to. What a historic marketing event, and so unique!!!
Two cowgirls from the tiniest ranching community of Smith, Nevada…make it big. A friend of their parents submitted their picture!!! They did not even know!!!
Catherine Corfee
15 Forrest // Dec 23, 2011 at 3:32 pm
I have interviewed a gentleman who says that his doctor was Mary Fulstone and her twin daughters were the original Toni Twins. His senior citizen story will appear in the Humboldt Sun newspaper of Winnemucca, NV on Jan. 20, 2012.
16 irvso // Feb 11, 2012 at 1:26 pm
i married lucille dubin half of toni twin ad sister wasw fran dsookenwhen i went out on a date each one on my arm evetone called them my book ends lucille wasw voted one of the best looking girls in he model industries my grand daughter is growing up with her looks but wants to be a scietist both twins passed but the memories linger on
17 Karen Steinhaus // Apr 5, 2012 at 5:22 pm
My mother (still living) and her sister were Toni Twins right after WWII. Bernadette and Francis Hanson. Put Toni Twins into google and you’ll find more information. They toured with several other original twins including the Anderson and Ring twins.
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