|
|
|
|
|
Reckitt Benckiser is dusting off Chaplin humour to help revive its shoe-shine brand, Cherry Blossom. Will it work? By Amanpreet Singh It was grainy. It was black and white. It was ages ago. But it doesn't take much dusting off, actually, to recall in all its vivid glory. Who can forget Cherry Charlie on Doordarshan? If you can't, there's a good chance you won't miss Cherry Blossom's latest ad campaign. The man with the funny walk is back on TV, urging you to keep that shine on your shoes. "It is about reviving an old property," explains Aditya Sehgal, Marketing Manager Home Care Reckitt Benckiser, "this commercial was extremely popular till about 1993." Why ever was it discontinued? It was another bunch of decision-makers who did it, says Sehgal. "They thought that there were better ways to depict the brand," he adds, in faint justification, "as the Charlie format was long and not product centric." Taking 90 seconds to get across was okay in the old days, but now 30 seconds is all one gets. Luckily, the very sight of Charlie Chaplin is a clutter-buster. In complete accord with Sehgal is Harminder Kaur of Euro RSCG, the agency that handles the account. The challenge, to her mind, is twofold: to revive the entire category and to sell Cherry Blossom as a brand. Shoe-polishing has fallen into neglect, a chore that's so low-involvement that one may wonder what the fuss is all about anyway. But to Reckitt Benckiser, it's too important a brand to let flounder. It was once generic to the category, and the staple of all shoeshine boys with or without stockmarket opinions, but has since faced competition from Kiwi. Cherry Blossom suffered, but has made its way back up, according to Sehgal. Cherry Wax Polish now claims a market share of 70 per cent, compared to Kiwi's 15 per cent. What the new campaign can do it consolidate the market share, while drawing new attention to the very act of shoe-polishing. This could help expand the market---which still needs a lot of work, despite the decades and decades the product has been around. Expecting too much involvement would be unrealistic, given how things have changed. It's a high-paced world, now. But even so, just getting people to think about it would be a reflection of the brand's success.
|
|
Issue Contents Write to us Subscription Syndication INDIA TODAY |
INDIA TODAY PLUS © Living Media India Ltd |
 |
