The GCC's cultural fabric is driving innovation in laundry sector.
Gulf Arab cultural dress is contributing towards product innovation in the region's laundry detergent market, pushing some of the world's heavyweight brands to use local insights like never before. Witness the race underway to produce the next black abaya or white 'dishdash' laundry detergent. Henkell-owned, Persil's Abaya Shampoo and White Thobe liquid detergent really helped drive the category in a new direction when it launched in Saudi Arabia in 2007, 2011 respectively.
In May this year, it continued the innovation with the launch an oudfragrance version for White Thobes. "Oud is part of the regional custom and GCC nationals apply it when wearing thobes," said a Henkel spokesperson. Persil Liquid Detergent conducted a consumer survey testing 16 different fine oud fragrance options before formulating the new variant. According to Richard Nicoll, managing director for the Mena region of shopper marketing agency, Saatchi X, it taps into a rich vein of Arab consumer motivation beyond the functionality.
He says there's an opportunity to: "reveal powerful underlying needs that are based on emotion as much as function - such as enhancing selfesteem, restoring a sense of security when feeling threatened, or expressing care and affection. "These emotional needs are often inherently connected to the functional, and together they form deeply personal objectives." "In the case of buying a detergent, a shopper may choose a product because it claims to whiten their clothes better more than other options on the shelf (functional need) so that they can feel more attractive, cleaner and confident (underlying emotional need)." He adds: "It is when shoppers can envision the achievement of goals personal to them that they are most open to influence." In this sense successful shopper marketing tactics tap into the motivations most relevant to shoppers at just the right moment.
Other detergent brands are looking to capitalise on the Gulf's Abaya and "dishdash" trend. One of them, ECOS, the US eco-friendly cleaning products firm, is planning to launch its own "black" laundry detergent version. Full details are firmly under wraps, but it could hit shelves in November in Dubai, according to the firm. Persil, however, is confident that it can hold on to its significant market share in this expanding category. Abdul-Aziz Elyas, group brand manager for laundry care in the Arabian Peninsula at the brand's parent Henkel, says: "It's an innovation game. And we're constantly working on a GCCbased innovation pipeline."
He said Henkel had spotted a huge gap in the GCC market a few years ago where consumers were unsatisfied with all the solutions for cleaning their abaya's. "We're now the number one liquid detergent for black abayas and have 50 per cent market share in the black wash category." It will be tough to shift Persil, but there will continue to be no shortage of calls for products tailored to local tastes and cultural habits. For now, the race may be about increasing the R&D work rate and getting merchandise speedily onto the shelves, as much as marketing.
© Gulf Marketing Review 2012
