Cinthol : Get Ready, Get Close

Brand : Cinthol
Company: Godrej consumer products ltd
Agency ; Orchard Advertising

Cinthol is a 54 year old soap brand from Godrej Consumer products ltd. This brand features in the Interbrand;s Super Brand 2004-05. This is a brand that has withstood the so-called MNC onslaught. This very own Indian brand has been carefully nurtured by the company and owns a special place in the Indian consumer’s mind.

Cinthol was launched in the year 1952. The original Cinthol comes with a red pack (still the old Cinthol is available in the market) and the unique Fougere perfume became a big hit during its launch itself. Cinthol have a market share of about 2.5% in value terms. The brand is contemporary and positioned as a masculine soap with USP of protection from body odor.


Godrej have always tried to experiment with this product, trying out new things and coming out with different variants. This has enabled the product be in tune with the changing consumer trends.

Cinthol heavily promoted the product using celebrities of the likes of Vinod Khanna and Imran Khan in 1986 . In 1989 Cinthol tried to catch the lime freshness trend using Cinthol Lime which was a big hit. During 1992 it came out with Cologne. The brand went for a major overhaul in 1993-1995 with a new pack. But there was a customer outcry for the old Cinthol. Eventually the company had to relaunch the original Cinthol and the new range was branded as Cinthol International.

Original Cinthol have the usp of deo + complexion is said to be the first of its kind in India. Cinthol is also made of vegetable oils and not animal fats and was popular for this quality. Cinthol name is derived from SYNTHetic + phenol ( SYNTHOL)
In 2004, the brand embarked on a new positioning of “ Get Ready ,Get Close” The brand also have extensions like Talcum powder and Deo but these extensions were not as successful as this brand.

Cinthol was promoted using smart ads and the product quality was perceived to be excellent. But now Cinthol is lying low with virtually no advertisements. This is a great brand with huge potential. I feel that Cinthol Deo if promoted heavily can easily beat the likes of AXE. But these products are seldom available in the stores.

Cinthol have to Get Ready to Get Close with the new Generation.

Brand Update : Cinthol

Cinthol , the flagship brand of Godrej Consumer Products Ltd is set for a makeover. The brand has roped in Hrithik Roshan as the brand ambassador. The new campaign is on air featuring Hrithik performing out -of- the- world stunts.

Watch the TVC here : Cinthol

Cinthol interestingly is the only masculine soap brand available in the Indian market. Ever after Lifebuoy repositioned itself targeting family, there has been no soap except Cinthol targeting male. The reason may be that marketers felt that soaps are usually bought for the family and used by multiple members . The decision of the soap brand usually is taken by the lady in the house. And moreover, soaps were never considered to be a part of the male grooming product category.

But things are different now. There is a marked shift in the consumer interest towards male grooming products. The category has expanded from shaving products, deo etc to face wash , hair care , face creams etc. The shift is also a result of the emergence of Metrosexual male and also of the Urban Nuclear Family where every individual members have the freedom to use individual products. So typically a modern household may see husband and wife using two different brand of soaps.

In this context , the relevance of Cinthol as a masculine brand achieves paramount importance for Godrej. Even without much promotion, Cinthol has a share of over 2 %. While Business Standards pegs the brand size to be around Rs 80 crore, Businessline puts the brand's size to be Rs 200 crore.

More than the new users, Cinthol's strength has been a strong brand loyal customers. This is both a strength and weakness. The prime challenge for Cinthol is to be relevant to the new Male.

The new campaign features a new look for Cinthol and a new slogan. The last ad of Cinthol featured the slogan " Get Ready Get Close " .
The new slogan for Cinthol is " Don't Stop" . The brand promise is
24 hour confidence &
Long lasting freshness.
Although the slogan has been changed, the positioning has been in a consistent line. Cinthol has long been positioned on the basis of the properties of Deo, freshness and confidence.
The new slogan tells the audience to have confidence to do what ever he likes. The execution of the concept is little out of the world but interesting to watch.

Regarding the choice of the celebrity , Cinthol has pulled off a coup by roping in Hrithik. But what I have seen is that Hrithik has not been exploited as a brand ambassador. Brands like Acer and even Coke was not able to fully exploit this celebrity.
My first impression about the ad is positive but the ad is not enough to raise the brand to a level of an icon. Having said that the slogan " Don't Stop " with core brand values of Freshness and Confidence give the brand lot of power to move ahead.

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Cinthol