Abstract:

The JOURNEY brand was born of a unique strategic alliance between Manufacturer and Retailer - Cussons No. 1 in Personal Cleansing’ and Boots The Chemists the dominant retailer in Health and Beauty products - who came together to exploit the gap in added value or mass prestige’ fragrance within the Mens toiletry market. Shulton's Rapport brand, introduced in 1988 had successfully pioneered the mass prestige segment. Since that time consolidation within the industry, and specifically Proctor and Gamble’s acquisition of the Shulton brands, had led to increasing popularisation and a constraint on further activity and innovation within this segment. Against this scenario market data continued to show clear signs of wear out at the upper fine end of the market. Also consumer research continued to point to the increasing remoteness and inaccessibility of prestige fragrance versus an increasingly sophisticated user, with aspirational attitudes and values, who was rejecting mass fragrance and seeking a more accessible and affordable fine fragrance for everyday use. JOURNEY was developed in order to exploit this growing altitudinal gap. For Cussons the JOURNEY development would provide an opportunity to broaden their existing toiletry based position within the mens sector by establishing a successful strategic position within male fragrance. It would also provide the catalyst for longer term opportunity development within the category. For Boots JOURNEY would add value and innovation to the retail environment and help correct a declining share in the UK male fragrance market