Decoding & Revitalizing a

Classic Brand : Parfums

Cacharel
CHETAN KOTHAVADE
ANURAG GANGULY
JASLEEN KAUR
SOHAM SAHA
 Market & Industry Background

Categories Companies
Global & Multi-sector P&G, Unilever, L'Oréal
 The perfume industry in 1996 was not just competitive but concentrated as well
Global Specialists Gillette, J&J, Colgate-Palmolive
Regional Specialists Revlon (USA), Schwarzkopf (Europe)

Types of Perfumes Relevant Brands

Prestige (Luxury) Segments Chanel, Dior, Cacharel, Gucci etc.
Mass-market Segments Vanderbilt , Revlon

 Luxury brands were getting diluted as an infiltration of imports resulted in price cuts; serving the mass-
market segments
Perfume Usage Patterns

 As a gift for special occasions only

 Connoisseurs purchase perfumes to feel more attractive

 An index to enhance self-realization

 As a measure of improving social status

 As a tool to embolden femininity

 Rive Gauche was promoted in a political connotation

 Adding a fresh & floral fragrance targeted towards the youth

Company Background

 Cacharel was first registered as a clothing brand & later diverified into
perfume business – 1962

 L’Oreal group visualized market into perfumes - Women were

encouraged to buy perfume, wear it and regard it as an everyday
pleasure

 L’Oreal group acquired fragrance brand of Cacharel – 1975

 Company aimed to design products that could sit alongside luxury

brands yet accessibly priced and distributed via traditional channels
Anais Anais & Loulou

 Anais Anais was the first perfume launched - 1978

 Targeted for young generation – floral fragrance which was ‘tender’ yet
‘sexy’
 It was priced 30% below classic brands, initially distributed via mid range
outlets like small dept stores
 Company soon attracted young customers to speciality stores via Anais
Anais & within 2 years it became leading perfume in Europe
 Loulou was launched as a successor to Anais Anais – 1987
 It was targeted at same young women also including free-fall partying
mood of 1980s with a sophisticated charm
 By end of 1980’s the two brands were one of the biggest selling products in
Europe
 Challenges

CK One by Calvin Klein

 American product; entered European market in 1994
 Worldwide success due to its advertising campaign
 Avoided segmenting market on gender
 TG: 15-25 year olds
 Captured cultural shift in youth due to societal changes and issues
 Unisex market achieved almost 1000% growth between 1994-1998
Eden by Cacharel
 Turnaround Product in a slowing Economy; launched in 1994
 Named lacked poetry; designed to suggest temptation and lust
 Similar pricing and distribution strategy; advertisement flopped
 Offered promotional schemes, supplementary products and gift products to increase sales
 Cut backs on media spending and bad campaigns hurt the brand identity
 What should be done by Katsachnias and
his Team ?

 Stop the decline in the sales by uncovering the root cause of it

 Re-build the brand so that it comes out of the maturity crisis

 Should focus on each brand individually and create an identity for its own rather
than creating an umbrella strategy for all the brands

 Clarify the brand identity of Cacharel which will provide the basis for developing
future market strategy

 Learn about the new sociological trends and the difference from the time of launch
of first product to now
 Brand identity decoding

 Represents values, services, ideas and personality of the brand from the brand
owner’s side
 Physique – Name of the perfumes, design and color of their bottles represent energetic,
active, innocence and sensuality
 Personality – show a real woman, inner-self of women, seductive power
 Relationship – inner instincts of women’s feelings
 Reflection – Young women
 Culture – Innocence, seduction, trendy, sophisticated
 Self-image – Modern but classic, free-fall partying mood retaining its sophisticated
charm

Innocence, Seduction, Sophisticated, Inner-Feelings, Tenderness

 Brand identity decoding

CACHERAL ANAIS ANAIS

• Freedom – for the first time women were • Delicate and tenderness but sexy
encouraged to buy perfumes for • Inner feelings of women as depicted by
themselves white bottle of the perfume
• Luxury brand at accessible price • Innocence
• Creative and innovative • Accessible luxury product at specialist
• Innocence and tenderness outlets

LOULOU
• Combination of tenderness and seduction as represented by
blue and red bottle
• Energetic, active for the partying mood but sophisticated at
the same time
• Luxury brand at accessible price
 Brand revitalization

 Major reason for the maturity crisis were the branding mistakes

 Brand which was launched on the creativity and accessibility, added the element of tenderness and innocence with Anais
Anais further adding seductive element with Loulou

 But all the brands were launched under same strategy, same distribution channel, same advertising face

 Brand’s core focus was on women’s inner feelings but it changed to mating by featuring a couple with the launch of
Eden , which proved to be against Cacheral

 Media spend is essential to make the brand remain LIVE, but cutting on it to increase on promotional spend made the
customers fading out

 Understanding of brand identity is essential as this is the first step to marketing. Before starting to deliver the message, it
is required to create an image of a brand

 By keeping in mind the brand identity, marketing campaigns can be designed to revitalize the brand
Exhibits

 Ads depicting the needs

 Attracting the opposite gender, seduction, etc
 Perfume companies’ mkt share

 Calvin Klein – best

 Drop in Cacharel
 Most cos – either stable or
loss
 Gain – only CK & few
Positioning of Feminine perfumes
 Seduction vs. self realization

 To enhance
 Femininity
 Social status
 Personality
 Confirm their natural self
Thank You !