Coccoina white adhesive paste glues paper, photos, and fabric with an easy-to-use brush perfect for collage work and scrapbooking.
The charming, vintage-style tin closes tightly to preserve the paste. Best of all (aside from its marvelous marzipan fragrance), it is water soluble and solvent free. Made in Italy.
Glue sold in glass jars was very popular in France in the early nineteenth century. Enter, the Italian businessman, Aldo Balma who (along with Mr. Andrea Capoduri) went one step further to vanquish his competitors: he invented an unbreakable aluminum packaging complete with a brush holder in the middle, and added a delicious scent of almond that immediately imprints itself onto the collective mind.
Potato starch and water are cooked in a double-boiler to produce it. Glycerin and almond essence are added once the mixture is softened. Then when the paste is ready, it is decanted for a month in the jars, after which it is ready for use.
People around the world, mostly Europe, know the glue, Coccoina…. a fantastic story of packaging, advertising and design. First manufactured in Italy in 1927, Coccoina glue is a product of many Europeans’ childhood. People remember from their school days, the classic aluminum can and brush with the scent that brings an avalanche of memories for those people born in the 40’s and 50’s right through today.
When Coccoina, the “solid white office glue” in the aluminum tin, was first introduced, Italian commercials promoted the trademark with this campaign: “It is not a drug, but a solid glue that amazes and arouses enthusiasm in all who use it.” The principle features of the glue was that, aside from its adhesive quality, it was solvent free, dried quickly, was reversible with water and would not wrinkle paper. Add in the enticing almond scent and users were completely smitten with the stuff. Those sentiments are still in place today.
A thin spread of the glue works well on paper, photos, clothes, labels, and any art project you can get your hands on, and perhaps the most welcome feature is the tiny brush that comes tucked away inside. Any surface where you need a smooth spread of paste can be achieved with this miniature aluminum paintbrush and its tiny bristles of pig hair.
Balma, Capoduri & C. is a concrete example of what it means to be “Made in Italy”. They are proud of this origin and the trademark conveys the excellence of their Coccoina line as well as their other division, Zenith (the much loved and very cool staplers). It is present on all their packaging and it certifies the quality, reliability and above all, the origin of their products. The tin container and brush, are manufactured in Italy in the company’s production plants in Voghera.
“Passion for manufacturing, innovation, efficiency, “made in Italy”, social responsibility and respect for the environment… These values have always been our landmarks”.
In keeping with Italian tradition Rossi is doing a private label program with Coccoina based on their historical advertising campaigns from as far back as the 1920’s. The managing director of Coccoina was kind enough to explain,
“We have known the Rossi Company for more than 30 years and we appreciate their creativity and their high quality products; just like Rossi, our company too, is among the ones which are most connected to the ideal of true ”Made in Italy”. We have recently had a collaboration with Rossi for the supply of all the paper products of our brand new line of Coccoina merchandise. (Notepads and notebooks).”
The brand new line of Coccoina paper products, which includes different sizes of notepads and notebooks, is finely crafted by Rossi1931 for Coccoina. The covers show beautiful and rare vintage pictures of the old famous Coccoina advertising campaigns, while the internal pages are imbued with the traditional almond fragrance of all Coccoina glues.
In order to help the introduction and gain visibility, the company has put together a point of sale display, which contains four pieces of each notebook in addition to four tins of Coccoina adhesive paste.
This initiative, which was presented as a preview at Paperworld 2015 in Frankfurt, is no doubt a means to strengthen the Coccoina trademark in the stationery market.
Use this glue on any paper-related task, from keeping photos together in an album to scrapbooking to pasting receipts for accounting records. Brush is 100% pig hair. Unchanged in recipe, design, and packaging since its launch in 1927, the product line now includes various sizes of liquid glue, stick and vinyl.
Below are some pictures of the famous advertising posters on which Rossi is basing their notebook covers…





“Coccoina is not simply a glue, but an icon here in Italy” as one admirer said.
For more information on Coccoina products or any products manufactured by Balma, Capoduri &C, go to www.balmacapoduri.it
They can also be found on their wonderful Facebook or on Instagram.
Although it is not sold through the manufacturer on-line, Coccoina can be found on Amazon or MOMA on line, as well as select high end stationery stores.
Balma, Capoduri & C. s.p.a.
Via Thomas A. Edison, 4
27058 – Voghera (PV)
Phone: 0383.212012 – Fax: 0383.41164
e-mail: info@zenithbc.com
www.zenithbc.com