Axe - Lynx: Getting dirty boys clean

Axe - Lynx: Getting dirty boys clean

Axe faced plateauing growth in its core shower and deodorant categories. To unlock new growth, Unilever developed a new shower range with added functional benefits. To sell these benefits they needed to create a need for them among young men with minimal interest in benefits, such as moisturising or exfoliating. The Axe promise of seduction had enduring appeal, but shower gels lacked relevance at the big moment. The strategic breakthrough was to create a role for Axe shower gels when preparing for and recovering from success in the mating game. Exfoliation meant little to men, but recovering from a filthy night did. This campaign helped generate sales of £37m in 2000/2005, doubling Axe's shower business, and helped Axe to discover the key to successful brand extension