24.5" Tete Jumeau as Lady ~ Original Body and Clothes

Jumeau's Bebe Reclame Marketing Strategy

In 1892, the French doll trade was slowing. Jumeau found himself overstocked with dolls and needed a plan to move some quickly. He implemented a marketing strategy named Bebe Reclame. His plan was to wholesale his Tete model directly to shops who would then market and sell these dolls under their own brand name. He acid-etched the Tete Jumeau marking from the back of some doll heads specifically for purpose.

This marketing strategy was very successful and become a permanent part of the Jumeau sales package. During the next phase of Bebe Reclame, a certain number of Tete heads were deliberately left unmarked. This is why we find dolls today with no head or body markings, but obviously of Jumeau manufacture. There is no difference is quality between the marked and unmarked versions.

This doll is one of the first of the Bebe Reclame line with the acid-etched marking and marked Jumeau body. It is interesting to note that this version of a Jumeau lady body was introduced in 1891. The Bebe Reclame line was introduced in 1892, and her "Bee" marked shoes were also introduced in 1892. So it is very easy to specifically date this doll to that exact time period.                        Here is a typical acid-etched marking.