Pantene brand equity eroded over time as cost savings efforts stripped the pack and product of the major points of difference. Project Makeover set out to restore the brand’s place at the top of the haircare category.
The North America Pantene business was consistently losing share in the haircare category. The time had come to transform the business as quickly as possible. The regional team huddled and evaluated where investments in the brand would make the biggest impact, fastest. After several rounds of rapid prototyping, the team had a vision.
Premium colors, materials and finishes were selected to mirror the upgrades to the formula inside the bottle and the messaging to accompany the relaunch. The pack architecture got an overhaul too. With 18 collections in the line-up, the product benefit became the top priority in communication which was supported by an illustration and a descriptive name. This aided navigation within the line-up which had previously been a major pain point for consumers. A high-gloss finish modernized the brand’s white color and a persistence in executing a high quality champagne gold became the pack’s crowning glory.
The new designs increased overall brand impression during quantitative and qualitative research. That was leveraged to garner major retailer support and later led to a total shelf redesign and expansion of the treatment and styler line-up.
Execution
Shelf design
In tandem to the redesign of the total Pantene pack line-up, we did extensive retail shelf design to support retailer growth strategies as well as meet the needs of the Pantene shopper based on shopper psychology insights.
Social strategy
Pantene had minimal social media presence. With the relaunch of the brand, we created assets that were leveraged across multiple digital platforms to tell the story of the brand and visually connect with the consumer.
Stylers & treatments
The styler and treatment lineup expanded to mirror offerings from top competitors in the category. I designed a two pronged system to address the needs of the two main consumer groups: “simplicity seekers” as well as “end-look seekers.”
Expert collection
Soon after the initial launch of the Pantene Expert Collection, it started to under-perform. Following consumer research, it was determined Expert’s positioning needed to shift to capture a broader audience.
I led the packaging and identity refresh. We wanted to leverage the Pantene equity so we aligned with the recognizable base design but purposefully differentiated with an inverted color palette and invested in premium materials and finishes to elevate the value perception.
Pantene Expert’s restage was a part of the bigger innovation story that year with customers. Together with other large initiatives, it gained support from the largest retail partners and helped to secure shelf space for the brand.