Abstract

The case examines the effectiveness of the advertising strategy used by the Unilever brand Axe to enter and gain market share in the deodorant segment in India. The highly attention-grabbing, sexually-themed ads, accompanied by the high growth potential of the deodorant market proved very successful for Axe, initially. However, the controversial nature of the ads also offended many. With the entry of the new Indian deodorant brand FOGG, positioned as a value-for-money brand, Axe’s market share quickly started eroding. Axe’s failure to evolve appropriately its positioning to sustain its initial growth left it vulnerable to competition. In light of these developments it was time for the brand to take a step back and re-think its positioning strategy.

Learning Objectives

The key learning objectives of the case study are:
• To understand the importance of evolving a brand’s advertising strategy to reflect its changing brand objectives at various stages of a product’s life cycle.
• To better appreciate the potential downsides of using sexually-themed advertising
• To gain insights into the potential downsides of using celebrity-based advertising.