THE DEODORANT MARKET IN INDIA

The deodorant market in India is considered to be in its nascent form. It falls under the personal
care category which is worth Rs 90,336 crore. Mens deodorants occupy 60% of market share in
the deodorant market. HUL is the market leader and holds 31.5 % of the market share. AXE is its
flagship deodorant brand aimed at males with a very unique advertising technique. Other brands
include Rexona and Dove.

SEGMENTATION
The colour chart below indicates segment variables exclusive to a product or common among two
or more products.
Axe
Axe + Rexona

Rexona

Dove

Axe + Dove

Rexona + Dove

Axe + Rexona + Dove

Based on Age

Based on Sex

Based on Income

Based on Lifestyle

Based on Socio Economic Class

TARGET SEMENT OF AXE

REASONS FOR CHOOSING THE SEGMENT

When AXE was launched in India in 1999 by HUL, they carried out an intensive market research
to figure out their target market. They chose the target segment because the male population of
India was greater than the female population, so there was a lot of scope in the untapped market
of mens deodorants. They decided to target men aged 18-28 as they were vulnerable to attraction
and sought attention from the opposite sex. Aspirers and Seekers were targeted because of their
increasing abilities to spend on lifestyle products. For this reason, HUL even priced Axe at
affordable prices.

OTHER BRANDS BY THE SAME COMPANY IN THE PRODUCT

CATEGORY

The given table mentions the other two brands- Rexona and Dove, launched by HUL in the
product category of deodorants along with their respective target segments.

To confirm the perception regarding views on deodorants a survey was carried out to identify the
segments and preferences. A total of 170 people responded to the survey
40
30
20
10
0
13-17 18-22 23-28 29-35 35+

Exhibit 1: The percentage of people according to age groups who use deodorants

The target market (18-28 years) was chosen as most of the people in this age group buy
deodorants.

Brand Value; 11% Anti-Perspirant; 14%

Value for money; 8%

Strong Fragrance; 19%

Long-Lasting; 48%

Exhibit 2: The most important characteristic of a deodorant

30
25
20
15
10
5
0

Exhibit 3: The Percentage of people who prefer various brands

For majority of the people (48%) the most important characteristic for buying a deodorant is that
it should be a long lasting deodorant. Strong fragrance is the most important characteristic sought
by only 19% of the people. Yet we observe from exhibit 3 that Axe is the deodorant bought by
maximum number of people. This can be probably due to people equating strong fragrance with
long lasting.

MESSAGE COMMUNICATION
The message communicated to the target is that the fragrance of Axe deodorants drives women
crazy. The implication is that the male who uses axe deodorants has an edge in the mating game.
For this purpose a lot of advertisement is done- TV, print and internet. All the Advertisements
have a sexual undertone.
TV and Internet are the primary media. HUL has launched Axe games to lure in the younger
internet users in association with Zapak games.
To boost sales Axe has recently slashed prices from Rs.150 to Rs.125. The advertisement for the
same shows a girl cutting her dress really short. The advertisement line is Because Axe men like
it less.

POSITIONING
Axe has been positioned as a cool, iconic, youth brand since its launch in India in 1999 and is the
largest selling Mens Deodorant in the country. Perceived as a brand with a very strong fragrance,
Axe enjoys the position of a fashionable, stylish and naughty deodorant.
Axe can be positioned relative to its competitors in the product category on a variety of factors.
The comparative study of the competitors as per the factors of competitiveness can be illustrated
as follows.
COMPETITIVE
FACTORS
FRESHNESS

AXE

WILD
STONE

OLD
SPICE

BRUT

LONG LASTING
STRONG
FRAGRANCE
ANTI
PERSPIRANT

ADIDAS

PARK
AVENUE

CINTHOL

Axe deodorants are not anti-perspirant but still enjoy popularity in the market because of its
communication strategies and the strong fragrance. This can be further illustrated by the survey
results. Exhibit 3 shows the brand preference of a sample of people chosen randomly.
The points of difference for Axe are- Weapons of Seduction as well as its corrugated screw
caps. Axe in contrast to its competitors is perceived as a brand that is high on the attraction
quotient. HULs scientific research has proven Spray more, Get more and thus, it urges its
customers to spray more to get the desired effect. Whereas, other deodorants have pull up caps on
their bottles, Axe clearly establishes itself as a comfortable, easy to use brand with its innovative
packaging. The points of parity include delivery by aerosol spray, anti-odour properties and
strong fragrance.
The positioning statement of Axe can be given as - Among young males (aged 18-28), Axe is a
brand of deodorants that helps you to attract the fairer sex because of its strong seductive
fragrance. The perceptual map developed for Axe based on a sample survey further reinstates the
same statement. The perceptual map has been drawn on two variables- fragrance and lasting time,
which were the most sought after features in a deodorant by the customers (as per the survey).

As can be seen, Axe stands very high on fragrance variable though it does not last for a very long
time. It faces close competition from Wild Stone and Set Wet which have similar features as those
of Axe. On the other extreme, expensive deodorants such as Park Avenue and Tommy Hilfiger
have a mild fragrance but last for a longer time duration. These deodorants are preferred by men
above 28 years of age who avoid strong fragrances. Another segment is catered to by Old Spice
and Gillette which last for a long time as well as have a strong smell and are primarily preferred
by men with an active lifestyle.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Market Forecast & Indicators- Volume 1 2010-20
Consumer Voice August 2009

The Marketing Whitebook 2007-08

Marketing Management 13th edition : Kotler, Kelly, Koshy, Jha

http://www.theindiastreet.com/2008/11/the-battle-of-the-deodorants.html
http://www.icmrindia.org/casestudies/catalogue/Marketing1/Unilever%20in%20IndiaBrand-Marketing%20Case%20Studies.htm
www.hul.com