A brand reborn

During 2008, P&G took the decision to exit from the toilet tissue and kitchen towel markets in the UK, withdrawing its two brands, Charmin, and Bounty. A deal was struck with SCA to acquire the brand volumes in the UK, but in both cases SCA would not have the rights to use either the Charmin or Bounty brand names nor any of the brand devices. Dragonrouge was commissioned to develop a new brand name and positioning for Charmin, and to coordinate the development of a new brand alongside a team of designers and semoticians.

An emotional connection

Research showed that Charmin loyalists were fans of its product quality,but also had a strong emotional bond to the brand, represented by the bear brand character that P&G had used since launch. Dragon Rouge worked to develop a stronger emotional connection between the brand and its market. We chose a softer, more luxurious and feminine sounding name: Cushelle. We also identified a new mascot, the koala , which hits the same semiotics as the bear – just even softer and more loveable. To retain an emotional link the new brand retains Charmin’s purple signature colour. The new mascot has been developed into a more distinctive brand icon, which research has shown connects well with consumers, creating further standout and character for the brand. Koala and his quest for irresistible softness were amplified to generate a strong and warm personality for the brand. Consumers started to fall in love with Koala’s cute, irresistibly soft nature, creating an emotional tie.

Immediate results

Given that most brands suffer a 20% drop in market share following a re-brand, the results have been extremely pleasing. The packs launched in store in March 2011, backed by an active point of purchase campaign, and the brand saw value grow by 17.6% to a share of 5.1% and volume increase by 21.6% to a share of 4.6% in the first phase of migration. Cushelle won the IPM Award 'Bronze' in the Best New Product Launch/Re-launch category for delivery on brand recognition and product assurance. The recovery has maintained itself: “Recent sales results show an impressive and consistent increase, with 13.2% for value and 6.9% for volume over the last year”, said Cushelle brand manager, Julie Orange.