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Charles H. DeMirjian DuPont Consumer Products Division records

Creation: 1956-1991
 Collection
Accession: 2566

Abstract

Charles H. DeMirjian (1925-) was a packaging design manager with E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company. Records are primarily related to the marketing success and issues realted to Corian, DuPont Car Care products, Zerex, as well as Duco and Lucite paints.

Dates

  • Creation: 1956-1991

Creator

Extent

1 Linear Foot

Biographical Note

Charles H. DeMirjian (1925-) was a packaging design manager with E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company. He attended a fine arts school in Philadelphia that is now part of the University of the Arts, followed by studies at the Charles Morris Price School of Advertising and Journalism that was housed in the Poor Richard Club. He was employed, from approximately 1951 to 1954, as Sales Promotion Manager of the Sun Ray Drug Company, then the largest drug store chain in Philadelphia.

Seeking a job with greater design responsibility, DeMirjian joined the Fabrics & Finishes Dept. of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company in July 1954, at a time when DuPont was placing greater emphasis on marketing to the consumer. In that role, DeMirjian worked primarily with the marketing of Duco® and Lucite® paint products. A new Consumer Products Division was formed within the department in 1963, and DeMirjian became Manager of Packaging Design. He was primarily a manager of designers, helping to establish design parameters and making the final selections from work submitted by subordinates and subcontractors. DeMirjian supervised an integrated approach that combined marketing research, advertising and package design.

DeMirjian began working with the Corian® line in the early 1980s and helped turn what had been a profit losing business into a profit making one through the enlistment of proper advertising and merchandising. Launched in 1967, Corian is widely used non-porous solid surface material that is stain resistant, repairable and even recyclable. It is largely used in bathroom and kitchen applications as countertops. Offered in a wide variety of colors, Corian can also be formed into any shape, making it a popular medium for use by designers.

Arrangement

Arrangement based on the creator's original order.

Scope and Content

Charles DeMirjian's DuPont Consumer Products Division records include literature, sales aids, and promotional items as well as marketing plans for a variety of DuPont consumer products from the second half of the twentieth century. Primarily related to Corian®, the collection also includes files on Car Care products such as Rain Dance Car Wax® and Zerex® antifreeze, and there is one file on Stainmaster™. These files detail DuPont’s promotional, advertising, and marketing efforts through catalogs, correspondence, as well as various trade exhibits. Also included is a file on DuPont paint products, Duco® and Lucite® Wall Paint, with accompanying paint charts.

Additionally, the collection includes DeMirjian’s various ‘idea’ files for the projects he worked on throughout his career at DuPont as well as his Creative Review files, correspondence, and production aids. This collection documents the rich hisotry of the Consumer Products Division at DuPont, which although accounted for a generally smaller percentage of sales than other divisions, kept the DuPont name in the good graces of the typical consumer.

Access Restrictions

No restrictions on access; this collection is open for research.

Related Material

Charles DeMirjian oral history interview transcript (Accession 2269), Manuscripts and Archives Department, Hagley Museum and Library.

Charles H. DeMirjian collection of DuPont Company records on STAINMASTER® (Accession 2563), Manuscripts and Archives Department, Hagley Museum and Library

Artifacts are housed in the Hagley Museum Division as Accessions 95.26, 2001.21 and 2002.15.

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Provenance

Gift of Charles H. DeMirjian, 2013

Addition to Collection

Addtion of July 2013 is located in Box 2 and Box 3. Items icluded are primarily related to packaging and DeMirjian's work on DuPont's care care products.

Separated Material

Charles H. DeMirjian collection of DuPont Consumer Products Division photographs and ephemera (Accession 1995.273), Audiovisual Collections and Digital Initiatives Department, Hagley Museum and Library.

Related Names

Subject

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title:
Charles H. DeMirjian DuPont Consumer Products Division records
Author:
Andrew D. Engel
Date:
2013
Description rules:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description:
English
Script of description:
Latin

Repository Details

Repository Details

Part of the Manuscripts and Archives Repository

Contact:
PO Box 3630
Wilmington Delaware 19807 USA
302-658-2400