Life, 1923-04-05 · page 40 of 40
Life — April 5, 1923 — page 40: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **full-page advertisement**, not political satire. It promotes Michelin pneumatic tires by emphasizing the company's specialization strategy. The central image shows the iconic **Michelin Man** (Bibendum)—a mascot made of stacked tire rings—depicted with smaller figures for scale, highlighting the product's size and prominence. **The advertising argument:** Michelin claims competitive advantage through specialization. While competitors manufacture diverse rubber goods (hot water bottles, boots, hoses), Michelin dedicated all resources exclusively to tire-making since inventing the pneumatic automobile tire in 1895. This focused expertise allegedly explains why Michelin Cords represent "the finest embodiment of tire quality." **The sales pitch** also addresses a likely consumer concern: superior products cost more. The ad explicitly states Michelin tires cost no more than ordinary tires—removing price as a purchasing barrier. This reflects early-20th-century marketing emphasizing industrial specialization as a mark of quality and efficiency.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
If you have been kept from buying Michelin Cords because you have thought that tires $0 universally recog. nized as superior must be high priced —then ask your Michelin Dealer for compara- tive prices. You'll find Michelins costno more than ordinary tires. MICHELIN invention and production have been | the result of men giving up their lives to one thing and mastering it. It remained for Michelin to become the great specialist of the pneumatic tire industry. Other rubber manufacturers make not only tires but also hot water bottles, boots, garden hose and a host of other articles. But from the time when Michelin introduced the world’s first pneumatic automobile tire in 1895, Michelin abandoned the idea of doing many things and dedicated all the Michelin resources to just one—to make the world’s best tire. That is, no doubt, one reason why Michelin Cords have always been accepted as the finest embodiment of tire quality. MICHELIN TIRE COMPANY, MILLTOWN, N. J. Branches in 30 cities Dealers everywhere NNIA SIT04vaNNIA comicbooks.com