Background
King of Shaves launched in 1993 with its first product, a natural shaving oil that reduced/eliminated razor burn for men who suffered from 'sensitive skin' (53%), allowed you to see where you were shaving (versus shaving off foam) and was (then) the only 'challenger brand' to Gillette. It was a problem solving brand, and it took the UK market by storm, In 1996 it introduced its pioneering low foam, aloe rich shaving gel, developed a widely admired innovative, maverick and pioneering reputation - so much so that 28 years later, KoS still remains the UK's #3 shaving brand in UK retailers after global brands, Gillette and Nivea for Men.
King of Shaves has always been Made in Britain, is pioneering refillable shaving products, and remains independently owned.
Why the packaging design 'reboot'?
A lot has changed in shaving since the early 90's. Then, 90% of men were 'clean shaven' (and wore suits and ties to work) - razor blade technology wasn't anywhere near as good as it is today, and by using King of Shaves, men (and women) experienced a much better shaving experience - the 'King' of shaves.
Nowadays, men are often 'ambivalent - lazy' about shaving; beards are way more commonplace - 40-50% of men now shave 'occasionally' rather than daily and razor blade technology has vastly improved, so razor burn is much less. In addition, when men and/or women buy their shaving preparation (can of shaving gel, foam - which remains by volume 90% of the market) they often choose 'the cheapest' - the brand 'on deal' or the 'default' Gillette.
Performance Brand, Lifestyle Aspiration*.
(*Of course we want that. What brand doesn't?)
With nearly 14,000 4* & 5* star genuine consumer reviews online, King of Shaves is the highest rated & reviewed shaving prep brand, bar none.
The performance of our product, and satisfaction in using is not in question. But we need to give people a clear reason to 'Buy us and Try us'.
In short: "Why buy King of Shaves instead of our competitors?"
What's our Why?
Gillette built their brand, reputation with the slogan 'The best a man can get'. Nivea for Men built theirs by leveraging their women's skincare expertise into men's skincare. Bulldog say they're 'Man's Best Friend', the US brand Harry's is 'Shaving's Other Guy'.
At King of Shaves, we trademarked and used print 'The World's Best Shave' - but this is in the experience of the user, not necessarily a claim to be made by a brand. Until relatively recently, we used the slogan 'Clearly Better' as our shaving preparations let you see where you're shaving.
But we need more - to connect with our customers at an emotional level (as opposed to pure performance); evolve our language to align with consumers' brand expectations today. Perhaps be less 'shouty' about us (we've historically had a large King of Shaves logo, front and centre, top of pack).
Most importantly, we want our packaging design to clearly communicate to whoever buys us, the fact that if you shave with us, you're setting your skin, and you up for a 'great' day ahead. Shave better with King of Shaves, get more out of your life. Well, that's what Will believes, but like we say - he's nearly 60 now.
We (and he!) can't wait to see what you amazing creative OMBLES will come up with.
Over to you!
Links:
Below you can find the current range to see how it looks now & what info would need to go on the packaging.