Case Brief

Round-2

Making Colgate Max Fresh the #1 Youth Brand of India

The Freshness Segment
The Freshness Segment in the Toothpaste Category in India comprises of gel based toothpastes that
promise fresh breath as their core benefit. The segment is ~23%* of the Toothpaste Category around
22% in Urban and 25% in Rural.
27.0
25.0
23.0
21.0
19.0
17.0
15.0

23.3 23.7 23.6 23.7 22.9

23.1 23.0
22.3 22.3 21.6

2012

2012

2013

2014 YTD 14 YTD 15

All India (U+R)

2013

2014 YTD 14 YTD 15

All India - Urban

23.8

2012

24.9 26.0 26.1 25.2

2013

2014 YTD 14 YTD 15

All India - Rural

The freshness segment growths have slowed down in the last two years.

We see growths softening more in Urban Indian than in Rural.

Brands in the freshness segment have been gaining from Family Toothpaste and Low Price Packs like
Babool and Cibaca and lose to other segments that offer differentiated propositions like Family Naturals
(Dabur Red, Patanjali, Meswak, Himalaya), Whitening and Sensitivity.

*All Market Shares as per AC Nielsen

YTD = Year to Date

The key players in this segment are Close Up and Colgate Max fresh, Close up being the leader in the
segment.

Colgate Maxfresh
Maxfresh is currently the fastest growing brand within the Colgate portfolio with a market share of 7.6.
Close-up is the market leader within the gel segment with a market share of 14.

The Brand Promise

Maxfresh infused with cooling crystals provides an intense burst of energizing freshness.
Current bundles Available - Maxfresh is available in two main variants Spicy Fresh and Peppermint Ice.
The third variant, namely Citrus Blast is present in mostly in Modern Trade.
All India (U+R)
$SOM
COLGATE MAX FRESH
COLGATE MAXFRESH CITRUS BLAST
COLGATE MAXFRESH PEPERMINT ICE
COLGATE MAXFRSH SPICY FRSH RED

$SOM
COLGATE MAX FRESH
26g @ Rs. 10
40g
80g
150g
230gm +

2013
6.9
3.5
0.2
1.5
1.5
0.1

JUL15

AUG15

SEP15

7.5
0.1
0.9
6.5

7.3
0.1
0.9
6.3

7.2
0.1
0.8
6.3

2014
7.3
4.1
0.2
1.4
1.3
0.0

YTD 14
7.3
4.0
0.2
1.4
1.3
0.1

YTD 15
7.5
4.4
0.3
1.3
1.2
0.0

Diff
Months
(0.1)
(0.0)
(0.1)
(0.0)

YTD + / 0.3
0.5
0.2
-0.1
-0.2
-0.0

YTD
SEP'14
7.3
0.1
1.1
6.0

JUN15
7.6
4.5
0.3
1.4
1.2
0.0

JUL15
7.5
4.4
0.3
1.3
1.1
0.0

YTD
SEP'15
7.5
0.1
0.9
6.4

AUG15
7.3
4.3
0.3
1.2
1.1
0.0

Diff YTD
0.2
(0.0)
(0.1)
0.5

+/-0.2
-0.1
-0.0
-0.1
-0.0
0.0

Maxfresh is available in the India in the following packsizes

Maxfresh Spicy Fresh 26g @ 10/-, 50g, 80g, 150g and 300g Saver
Maxfresh Peppermint Ice 40g, 80g, 150g
Maxfresh Citrus Blast 150g

Media
Media in select states such as AP and Maharashtra has led to higher gains in these markets. The current
brand ambassador is Allu Arjun, a superstar in AP, who has a strong connect with the TG.

*All Market Shares as per AC Nielsen

YTD = Year to Date

Distribution
Maxfresh @ Rs. 10 has played a pivotal role in driving distribution for the brand, especially in rural India.

The Challenge
Max Fresh is not synonymous with freshness as perceived by the Target Group. Close-Up enjoys high
recall as freshness toothpaste, and is commonly known as the red gel. With media investments on
Max Fresh, due to the high recall of Close Up, there is a lot of misattribution to it as well.

Closeup
Closeup was Indias first gel toothpaste. Launched in 1980, it has been the market leader in gel
toothpaste category for 3 decades. Being the first mover, Closeup, has been synonymous with
'Freshness'. It has a very unique brand identity, positioned as the toothpaste that gives people
confidence in those very "up close and personal" situations. The brand has always been unique and fun,
encouraging people to open up.
It has had a few iconic campaigns in the past - the most famous ones being Kya aap Closeup karte
hain? and Paas aao.
The core target group of Closeup is the youth and hence their marketing strategies are youthful and
trendy. Their advertisements have lot of music and dance focusing on boy/girl interaction in up close
and personal situations. In the past, they have also roped in stars like Surya in South of India to connect
better with the target group.
Of late, the brand has been investing in consumer engagement programs like First Move Party and
Movie partnerships & Meet the stars contests. Closeup has partnered with several movies such as
Katti Batti, Shaandaar, Shrimanthudu (Telugu) and Mitwa (Marathi). The brand continues to stay acive
on digital platforms to connect with its core target group.

Key Deliverables
A Maximum of 5 slides that encapsulate

Drivers of the freshness segment in Personal Care category and in Toothpaste category
SWOT analysis of Maxfresh vis-a-vis Closeup
Pen portrait of the bulls-eye consumer for Maxfresh
One-line Integrated Marketing Campaign idea
o Eg: Current Max Fresh IMC Idea Infectious Energizing Freshness

NOTE: Key deliverable for the shortlisted teams going through to the next round will be to create a
detailed marketing campaign for the suggested IMC idea.

*All Market Shares as per AC Nielsen

YTD = Year to Date