Axe Analysis Essay

The environment Axe was inspired by another Unilever’s brand, Impulse. Like Axe, Impulse was a fragranced deodorant body spray for women that promised wearers male attention. Thanks to Axe’ success in France, Unilever decided to launch the brand in other European countries from 1985. However, in United Kingdom, the brand was renamed Lynx. Then, Axe encountered the same success in Latin America but it was less important in Asia and Africa. In 2000, the brand has been launched in the USA and Canada and encounters an important success. Since 1983, Axe is offering new fragrances every year. Therefore, from 1983 to 1989, the variant name was a description of fragrance inside. From 1990 to 1996, the names were geographic names like Africa, Alaska and Inca. Then it uses abstract names like Apollo and Gravity. Since 2003, Axe’s deodorants give the possibility for the men to attract many women. Its last launching was in 2008: Dark Temptation. It is a smelling chocolate smelling fragrance; thanks to chocolate, the women will find Axe users irresistible. Axe also launches limited edition variants like Recover and Shock in 2008. However, Axe encountered many controversies like its sexist and depraving advertisement and its deodorants include ingredients tested on animals. The industry Axe is a one of the European leader of the male grooming products thanks especially to the marketing of it lead product: the deodorant body spray. However, several competitors with the same product exist in the market. On one hand, direct competitors who have or will have an important place in the market (TAG Fragrance Company, Old Spice and RGX) and on the other hand, competitors like Adidas and Power Stick, who are â€Å"weaker† and less known than others on the market. I will focus here on the serious competitors of Axe and especially on their marketing and their packaging. First of all, I will insist on the TAG Fragrance Company who dominates the European body spray market with Axe. TAG Fragrance Company was a subsidiary of Global Gillette when his lead product, TAG Body Spray, was released in 2005. Then, in 2007, Procter and Gamble bought Gillette and dissolved this company. {draw:a} As you can see, the packaging is very similar from Axe. Also, the advertising for TAG Body Spray looks alike Axe: this product helps boys getting women. Actually, TAG’s advertising campaign shows that having this body spray will attract women in a way that they will want to attack him. Secondly, we’ll focus on the brand Old Spice who is the American leader of deodorant stick and body wash brand. His product is also manufactured by Procter and Gamble who bought the brand in 1990 from the Shulton Company. {draw:a} Here, the packaging of the product is developed around a colonial theme. Therefore, sailing ships are used as a trademark. Over the years, those various ships have become a valuable trademark for Old Spice male product. Old Spice managed to advertise his products in famous movies (for example, E. T. ) or in commercials with famous actors like Neil Patrick Harris in 2008. Thus, Old Spice is using a different kind of advertising than Axe and it works in the American market. Now, I will describe the main new entrant in the market – the brand RGX – and how the brand tries to break into the body spray market. RGX is owned by Dial and was launched in January 2007. As a new entrant, the main difficulty for the RGX’s product is to enter a body spray market with an excellent marketing strategy. First, the RGX’s product is mainly directed at older men that is to say customers who don’t actually use a competitor product. Secondly, the brand tries to create buzz on Internet via a website called RGX Life but also he tries to do commercials and online banners with a famous actress Rachel Specter. Men’s magazines are also a part of the advertising campaign. The advertising will also be like Axe and TAG (how boy can get girls) but will be more focused on mature men (what a girl wants in a man and what separates a man from a boy). {draw:a} The packaging is also an appeal to maturity. Instead of the black plastic of Axe (which suggests affairs), the RGX’s packaging will be modified as an â€Å"updated aerosol can† more futuristic and made in aluminum. Axe’s lead product is a deodorant body spray which has a specific smell that s to say it mixes a deodorant and a perfume. So, substitute products might be a simple deodorant (for example, Narta Deodorant), a perfume or Cologne. In this market, a simple deodorant will please consumers who don’t like the smell of Axe’s or TAG’s body spray. Actually, despite the high sales of the Axe’s product, a lot of consumers aren’t satisfied about the strong smell of it. In case of the perfume, consumers could prefer a lighter smell than Axe’s product.