Gillette Case Study

Companies find opportunities in product innovation by providing new products and services to customers. This keeps current customers interested in doing business with the company and has the potential to attract new customers. Sometimes this is done by creating new products, greatly changing an existing product or by just changing the way the current product is presented. Another form of product innovation is branding. By creating a more positive brand image a company can keep the interest of consumers.

Examining the consumer behavior for nondisposable razors, we can observe that consumers are focusing on the premium segment. Also, they are becoming more sophisticated and expecting new technologies to smooth the shaving process. Focusing on that, Paramount should invest in the premium products category. Even though that would create cannibalism for the “pro-products” which is already loosing market.

The introduction of the Sensor Shaving System, one of the biggest product launches ever, forced Gillette to reevaluate its strategy in its shaving and non-shaving business. It had to decide whether to go ahead with the launch and if so, at what scale.

News has just broke of a revolutionary device that has hit the market! The new Gillette safety razor, the very first of its kind that has a disposable blade for a close shave every time! For sale for a starting price of $5.00 (which equals about 140 dollars today). The creation of this invention modernises razor technology of the time, from the old straight razors and hand powered clippers to disposable safe razors. News of this excites the men gathered around the front porch talking, walking up the steps of the general store you note their mustaches that are each precisely combed and styled with a small curl at the end. One man notices you looking, he states “Your mustache is looking a little dull there chap” directing you with his finger to the shelf full of products inside.

Synopsis: Gillette has long been known for innovation in both product development and marketing strategy. In the highly competitive, but mature, razor and blade market, Gillette holds a commanding worldwide market share. The peak of its innovation occurred in 2006 with the introduction of the Fusion 5-bladed razor. Today, innovation in razors and blades is thwarted by a lack of new technology and increasing consumer reluctance to pay for the “latest and greatest” in shaving technology. Gillette must decide how to put the razor wars behind them and maintain or increase its share of the global razor market.

* Customers: Male consumer products have been trending upward in the last decade. The customer segments are broken up into three areas; social/emotional, involved razor users, and uninvolved or maintenance users. Social/emotional are responsible for 39% of Nondisposable razors, Involved is for 28%, and maintenance users account for 33%. In 2009 consumers razors and replacement cartridges at a higher rate than ever before.

Gillette is an American company founded by King Camp Gillette. It was founded on 1901 and until 1962 it did not have any serious competition. This can be explained by its constant concern for innovation, which follows the belief of its founder, “a successful invention is the one that is purchased over and over again by a satisfied customer”. (Original idea of William Painter)

Paramount Health and Beauty Company is in the process of launching a new technologically advanced nondisposable razor “Clean Edge”. With its improved design, Clean Edge provides superior performance by utilizing a vibrating technology to stimulate hair follicles and lift the hair from the skin, allowing for a more thorough shave. The company has decided to introduce it in the men’s market where it has a strong presence. The company is now focussing on positioning and naming of this new product. It also needs to decide on the promotional activities to be performed adhering to the budget constraints and also must decide on the distribution channels through which it can reach to the masses.

The Indonesian economy has constantly grown within the last 20 years. However, the shaving market is still underdeveloped compared with Western markets. Hence, Gillette should provide more information to spread widely concept of shaving. Moreover, it should introduce new products to facilitate the introduction of shaving products to non-shavers and increase the frequency of shaving in current shavers.

Innovation refers to finding new ways to improve the existing products, services, processes, technologies, and employee performance in an organizational setup. In today's competitive business environment, organizations have to focus on bringing innovation in each and every aspect of their business operations; like products or service offerings, enterprise resource planning systems, marketing and promotional efforts, and organizational structure. The market challenges and competitive pressures also force organizations to use a blend of all these innovation processes in their business activities. Therefore, it is vital to give an equal focus on product innovation, process innovation, marketing innovation, and organizational innovation within the limited organizational resources and capabilities.

Could you identify any product systems in this product mix? Is the toothpaste considered a shopping, specialty or convenience product? At what conditions, could this product considered a business product? With respect to Scope, do you consider it a "star" or "cash cow"? Why? With respect to the product life cycle of scope, what is the current status of the product? What is your marketing advice at this particular product life cycle stage?

Gillette is seeking means to retain dominance in market share they have lead for the last century. Along with sustaining market share Gillette has continued focus on expanding worldwide into less saturated markets. In this analysis multiple alternatives will be explored in order to make a recommendation on steps that would favor Gillette’s organization in meeting their aspirations.

Gillette has been successful in convincing the world that more is better, in regards to the number of blades and other features of a razor. To be successful in the

Because of their similarities, Proctor & Gamble and Gillette are a good strategic fit. Between the two entities they have the ability to combine operations, technology, resources, distribution channels and research costs in efforts to drastically cut spending. With lower costs, and the merger complete, the collaboration of Proctor & Gamble and Gillette should achieve a 1+1=3 effect.

Gillette is successful because the focus on the one thing they know and that is men. They understand what men need for their grooming needs, and their products are sold all over the world (P Kotler, 2017). Gillette’s popularity has worked because of several factors, including high-quality innovation, consumer research, and mass communications. With their research, and the fact they have kept improving their product, Gillette has made many breakthrough product innovations, which should allow their success to keep increasing. In 1971, there was the Trac II, the first twin-blade shaving system, then the Atra in 1977 there was a razor with a pivoting head, and then in 1989 they developed the Sensor the first razor with spring-mounted twin blades dubbed (P Kotler, 2017). In 1998, Gillette introduced the Mach3 it was the first triple-blade system, surpassed only by the 2006 launch of the six-blade Fusion, promoted as “the best shave on the planet.” (P Kotler, 2017) It is possible that Gillette can become as successful with Women as Men due to the fact Procter & Gamble acquired Gillette in 2005 and Procter & Gamble are experts at marketing to women, due to the fact most of their lines such as dishwashing liquid, laundry detergent, and hygiene products are aim for their woman clients.