Layer'r Shot Deo : Pure Fragrance, Nothing Else

Brand : Layer'r

Company : Adjavis Venture Ltd (AVL)

Brand Analysis Count : # 547

Layer'r was launched in 2013 by AVL which was founded by Mr Devandra Patil. Mr Patil was a co-founder of Paras Pharmaceuticals and later the brothers of Paras decided to start on their own after selling Paras to Reckitt.One of the brothers, Darshan Patel started the Fogg brand under the company Vini Cosmetics which recently became the market leader in the deo category. Devendra Patel entered the deo market with two brands- Layer'r Shot for men and Wottagirl for women.
In the highly cluttered market for deos, the key success factor lies in the differentiation. The market is hotting up with majors like ITC entering the market with its Engage brand which gobbled up around 6% share within a short span of time.
Taking a cue from the success of Fogg, Layer'r has put in some thought with regard to the differentiation. The brand has rightly decided to move away from the " seduction" theme and has gone for some rational approach.
Layer'r differentiation is on the packaging. For the first time in the deo category, the brand has gone in for a transparent packaging. While most of the fragrance products like perfumes comes in transparent bottles, its is the first time that a deo has chosen to be packaged in a clear bottle.
With the USP of transparency, Layer'r has decided to position itself on the bases of " Pure" attribute which is presented in the form of transparent bottle. The brand has adopted the tagline " Pure fragrance , Nothing Else"
Another interesting fact is that the brand calls it a fragrant body spray rather than a deo. Hence the brand is also trying to create a product category different from deo ( in a way) saying that  deo is old style. So the brand is saying to the consumers to ditch the deo and adopt fragrant body spray. Although body spray products are already there in the market, but it is the first time that a brand has pitched itself against the deos.

Along with the packaging, Layer'r has gone in for a celebrity endorsement by the bollywood star Imran Khan. The campaign featuring Imran Khan take a dig at brands like Fogg by saying that  one cannot know what is inside the bottle of deos since you cannot see it.
Watch the campaigns here : Layer'r 1, Layer'r 2
With regard to the USP of the brand, the transparency of the bottle cannot be sustained because anyone can come with a deo in a transparent bottle.
Another differentiator that Layer'r tries to bring is in terms of a  product category of fragrant body spray. But Layer'r is not trying to say why a fragrant body spray is different /better than the usual deo.
The transparent bottle seems to be a good proposition as far as the brand trials are concerned. The added strength of the celebrity endorser will help the brand get trials at the retailer end.
While the competition has almost killed the Axe's positioning of   " seduction" , the Fogg's proposition of  " No gas " bottles has become the next target. New deo brands are now targeting Fogg. Envy brand is already talking about 1000 sprays and now Layer'r talking about transparent perfumes.
Attaining Points of Difference  in the deo market has now become a herculean task for marketers. 

Park Avenue Beer Shampoo : Cheers to Man Hair

Brand : Park Avenue Beer Shampoo
Company : JK Helene Curtis
Brand Analysis Count : # 546

Park Avenue is a cash cow in the portfolio of JK Helene Curtis which owns the prestigious apparel brands like Raymonds , Color Plus, Parx etc. This brand has contributed half of the turnover of the apparel business of the company. Later the company decided to extend the brands to categories like men's grooming market.

According to Business Standard, men's grooming market is worth Rs 4000 crore growing at 25-30 % per annum. So for a company like JK Helene Curtis, it makes sense to extend a popular brand to this category. In September 2013, Park Avenue launched Park Avenue Beer shampoo in the Indian market.

According to ET, there is a research backup that beer is good for hair  and if Park Avenue has its way, then the most popular men's drink will find a new place - men's head ( sic).

Watch the launch ad : Park Avenue Beer Shampoo

The ad is clutter breaking and very funny. The ads were able to drive in the USP of the ingredient and isn't boring for repeated exposure. 

In this launch, the brand has done many things right. Firstly the brand has clearly differentiated itself  by its ingredient. Although other shampoo brands can launch their own version of beer shampoo, Park Avenue has virtually owned the ingredient through first mover advantage.The packaging reflects the brand's USP and the packaging is different and very smart. 

The brand has clearly communicated through its ads that men's hair is different and should be treated differently. The message is communicated through the tagline " Cheers to man hair " . The brand emphases Man Hair in the campaign to drive home the message that it needs special treatment.

So in a campaign perspective, Park Avenue has managed to break the clutter and was able to generate interest among the target group.

The challenge for the brand is to induce trial for the brand. The brand's proposition of a beer in a shampoo is intriguing and that may prompt many to try out this brand. 

Park Avenue has put this brand at the upper strata of the category by pricing it at a premium and beer justifies the premium :-)

Unlike the common practice of using celebrity, Park Avenue has gone for an Irish model Andrew Smith as the beer man ( Source ET) . 

Having said these good words, resemblance to the iconic Old Spice Mustafa campaign cannot go unnoticed. 

Last month, the brand launched its follow-up campaign  featuring the beer man. 

Watch the follow up campaign - Beer man

The second campaign however is not as good as the launch ad , may be the brand wants to take the women in the house into confidence because these purchases are often made by women. 

With many brands like Dove, Nivea, Garnier etc focusing their attention to men's grooming category, Park Avenue Beer shampoo has entered into a highly competitive market. It has done it with style . Now what has to be seen is how men reacts to beer in a shampoo .

He deodorant : Be Interesting

Brand : He
Company : Emami
Brand Analysis Count : # 545

Another deo hits the market with another big bang celebrity. This time, joining the brand-wagon is Emami with the new deo brand for men - He. He  is sort of interesting brand name which Emami chose to call its deo. Wondering how the company pulled off a generic name since it is very difficult to get trademark approval for generic names.

The Rs 2300 crore deo market is crowded but growing fast to accommodate new players. 

He deo has roped in none other than Hrithik Roshan as its brand ambassador . The brand is currently running its launch campaign in various markets. 

Watch the ad here : He Deo 

He deo wants to position as some thing different from the usual deo positioning of seduction. The ad tries to convey the message of the He deo user as a self assured confident and more importantly " Interesting" personality. 

Its interesting to see that it has become a norm that if one uses Hrithik Roshan , then he needs to perform super-human stunts. We have seen this playing out in ads featuring Hrithik. Here also the ad forces this stereotype on Hrithik. So instead of leaning forward and take his sunglasses, our hero chooses " Performed by experts under strict supervision " stunt to get his glasses - how is that for Being Interesting !

And as usual the ad shows " girls" being impressed . So despite trying very hard, He Deo also succumbs to the " Axe Temptation " .

The brand comes in Citrus, Oriental, Marine, Fougere, Woody and Musk fragrances and has managed to create a difference in its packaging which will help it boost trial at retailer end. With the market creator - Axe being sidelined and Fogg being crowned new leader, brands like He can now hope to be in that throne at some point in time only if it can continue to " Be Interesting " ! 

Marketing for Small Business : Marketing Department vs Marketing Function

In a recent study conducted over several SME s in my state, I found that over 70% of SMEs reported that they have a marketing department. But when enquired about certain critical functions like product development or branding, many reported that these activites are not performed.

It is important for small business to understand that mere existance of marketing deparment is not suffice, what is important is that critical marketing activties are performed. Several small business are still not aware about the importance of  having a systematic process of product development/ improvement,market intelligence , branding ,integrated marketing communication activites in their organisation.  Many business argue that they don't see a place for such activites in the current business set up, which is a myopic view. 

The first step would be to ensure that these activites are discussed at appropriate levels even if the business is small. That would help the firm develop a marketing DNA which would help it when it moves to a bigger league.

Brand Update - Axe gets further axed

Business Standard  reports that the woes of Axe continues unabated. In the quarter ended June 2014, Axe was relegated to third position,this time by WildStone . Fogg leads the market with 17% share followed by Wildstone with 6.9% and Axe with 6.8% share. The new entrant Engage from ITC has 6.5% share offers further headache for Axe.

Surprisingly Axe has been virtually silent atleast in Kerala market with virtually no promotions. If this trend continues, we are going to see this brand fading out from the Rs 2500 crore market which it created.

Brand Update : Now Alia Bhatt asks Why should boys have all the fun ?

Having tasted success as a women's only scooter, Hero Pleasure has set its sights on the younger ladies. The brand in its push to appeal to the younger crowd has roped in the latest bollywood star Alia Bhatt as the brand ambassador. 

Watch the new ad here : Hero Pleasure

Hero Pleasure was endorsed by Priyanka Chopra and with the change in the brand ambassador to a much younger actress, the brand is trying to bring in a much youthful persona to it. The positioning and the message from the brand remains much the same . Pleasure also has retained the tagline " why should boys have all the fun ". 

The theme of the new campaign is of nothing new and many things shown in the ad has been repeated by many brands. So as far as the new communication is concerned, the brand has taken the most- traveled route except for the new face. 

If one looks closely at the brand's logo in the TVC, the brand describes itself as a " Light and Zippy " scooter. The emphasis of light and zippy is aimed at the younger crowd. With the new push, Pleasure is also challenging TVS Scooty although later is a scooterette. According to newsreports, Pleasure sells around 25000 units per month. Together with Maestro and Pleasure, Hero Motocorp has around 19 % share in the Indian scooter market.