Aussie will be ringing in the New Year with a new look, as the Australian hair care brand introduces four new collections this January, along with repackaging and reformulations.
“The restaging of the brand recaptures what the Aussie spirit of beauty is about and drives awareness about it in the marketplace,” said Kenyatte Nelson, Aussie’s brand manager. “Aussie is seen as a local jewel [in Australia], but we see North America as a big opportunity for us.”
Acquired by Procter & Gamble in the Clairol deal five years ago, Aussie brought with it a loyal consumer base. However, company research showed that consumers were loyal to individual products rather than multiple items, not recognizing the benefits of complete collections.
“We saw that Aussie was difficult to shop. We want to make sure that we stress the importance of the entire lineup and benefits of the collection versus specific [stockkeeping units] when talking to customers,” said Nelson.
According to Information Resources Inc., Aussie sales increased 12.5 percent to about $70 million in sales in food, drug and mass stores — excluding Wal-Mart — for the 52-week period ended Oct. 8.
Nelson said the growth of Aussie over the last year can be attributed to a distribution increase of 35 percent, an increase in customer merchandising in stores in addition to introducing a more “consumer-centric” approach to media spending, leveraging alternative media vehicles such as interactive along with traditional media like television and print.
Aussie will relaunch 32 products and introduce 16 sku’s in four new collections. Sun Touched Shine, Catch the Wave, Hair Insurance and Sydney Smooth will be sold in food, drug and mass stores, including Wal-Mart, Target, Kmart, CVS, Walgreens and Eckerd. With products ranging in price from $2.99 to $4, each collection will contain its own floral or fruity fragrance, designed to offer different benefits. For instance, Sun Touched Shine is designed to deliver a radiant shine with ingredients such as guava, sea kelp and ginger, while Catch the Wave aims to enhance and maintain waves and curls with jojoba oil, sea kelp and jasmine. Along with offering a shampoo and conditioner, each collection will feature a different set of products, such as leave-in conditioners, hair spray, gel and antifrizz cream.
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The company also hopes to increase its product offering on retailers’ shelves, said Nelson.
“We want to make sure all of our retailers carry the breadth of our sku’s,” said Nelson. “Our customers are women who have a number of hair care issues and are looking for quick and simple solutions. We’re offering simple ‘shoppable’ solutions that deliver benefits.”
According to Nelson, Aussie has a 3 percent dollar market share across all hair care categories, including shampoo, conditioner and styling products. He added that over the next three to four years, the company plans to increase dollar share to 5 percent, growing Aussie’s overall business by 30 percent to 40 percent.
Although executives declined to comment, industry sources estimate that the brand, including the four new collections, will generate about $150 million in 2007.
A total of over $50 million has been slated for an advertising and promotional budget. Print and TV ads featuring the new products will break in January. Print advertising will appear in single- and double-page ads in 12 to 15 beauty, fashion and lifestyle books. For the first time, the company will be doing advertorials “to drive further awareness of products, so customers can get more product information,” said Nelson. The company will also have online advertising in addition to revamping its Web site.
Aussie also signed Australian celebrity hairstylist Frank Galasso as the brand’s spokesman in July and is currently in discussions to extend his contract. Galasso works on the West Coast where he manages two salons in Brentwood, Calif. — Frank Studio and Frank 18, a salon geared toward teens.