Fogg exudes the sweet fragrance of success

In the entrepreneurial circles in which he moves, Darshan Patel, the founder of the Gujarat-based Vini Cosmetics, has a well-earned reputation for sniffing out branding success from miles off.

It’s a reputation that he built, relying more on self-honed intuition than on biz-school wisdom, at Paras Pharmaceuticals, the family-owned business that was sold to Reckitt Benckiser. There, Patel’s repositioning of the Moov brand is credited with the phenomenal success of a product that had initially failed to find resonance with consumers. Likewise, Patel astutely saw vacuums in the personal care market that could be filled, and churned out an assembly line of products – from Krack cream to Dermi Cool talcum powder to Set Wet hair gel.

But what Patel did at Vini, the company named after the family’s pet turtle, is no less legendary. In the space of two years following the launch of the Fogg line of deodarants, Patel effectively disrupted the market enough to send his brand soaring to the top of the heap, dethroning then-market leader Axe.

“The deodorant line was one of the categories that I knew well from my Paras Pharma days,” recalls Patel. “It was growing rapidly in the personal care segment, but I wanted to launch a product that was different, and not just run-of-the-mill.” And he did it, in style.

The unique selling proposition that Fogg offered was that it did not contain any gas.

But behind that proposition lay a whole lot of acquired wisdom, backed up by extensive market research.

“I don’t do anything without market research,” says Patel. “It gives me a sense of direction as to how things will shape up and it improves the probability of success by 80 per cent. As an individual, I keep an eye on everything.”

Patel spent two rigorous years in market research and fused it with a lifetime of consumer insights gleaned from talking to members of his family, his friends and his co-workers.

“I realised that gaseous sprays didn’t last long, and that consumers didn’t much like them for that reason,” he says.

Thus was born the tagline for Fogg: ‘no gas, only deo.’

“It was all about formulating a product that did not have a propellant. I simply used the technology of spraying using a non-aerosol pump,” he recalls.

Fogg was daringly priced about 15-20 per cent higher than others in its peer set, but what it offered in turn was a value-for-money proposition that consumers found appealing. A canister would give about 800 sprays.

Other than the product innovation based on the absence of gas, Fogg also charted a different path with its brand communication. It steered clear of the storyline about deodorants serving as ‘babe magnets’ – in the way that Axe and other products in this category had positioned themselves.

Kiran Khalap, founder of brand and communications consultancy Chlorophyll, says all this goes to the core of Patel’s branding strategy.

“Vini Cosmetics, like Paras Pharma, has perfected the art and science of finding an underweight category, finding the Achilles heel of the leader, creating a proposition around that weakness and then putting substantial media weight behind the chosen strategy. That’s what worked so well with Moov, ItchGuard and Fogg.”

Khalap points out that in the case of deodorants, most of the earlier product communication focussed either on category creation (“You smell bad and others notice it”) or on attracting women. “Fogg shifted the goalpost and created a rational price-value-based argument,” he says.

The strategy bore results soon enough: Fogg became the deodorant market leader in under two years, which top slot it holds to this day. According to Euromonitor International, in 2015, Fogg had a retail value market share of 17 per cent, while the second position is held by McNROE Chemicals’ Wild Stone, with a 10 per cent share.

Patel reckons that another factor underlying Fogg’s rapid ascendance is the regular introduction by Vini Cosmetics of newer variants like Xtremo, Xpressio, Impressio and Make My Day, most of which have enormous appeal among young consumers. “Two years of research went into launching Fogg. It takes six to eight months to introduce a new fragrance. This is an ongoing process, driven by consumer needs,” says Patel.

Khalap points to another important product differentiation strategy that Vini deploys: it offers deos to suit different occasions — for ‘nights out ’ or for a ‘big date’ and so on. “This keeps the brand vibrant, even if each variant is not as successful as the lead product.”

Equally important, Vini also launched deos for women, breaking free of a market that catered only to male grooming.

Now, Patel wants Vini Cosmetics to grow both organically and inorganically in the personal care and hair care segment. “New products will be coming in soon. I have identified (acquisition targets) and things are moving. Once we get feedback (from the research team) and there is room to acquire, we will go ahead. We will soon decide (about acquisitions) in both the segments,” he says.

For all its gung-ho optimism that characterises its rapid growth, Vini is not without challenges. Newer entrants to the market are already snapping at its heels. In 2014, Both Axe and Wild Stone launched no-gas variants of their deos. Today, no-gas has become the accepted industry standard. “There will be challenges to Fogg, and remaining at the top will require continuous innovation,” says Jagdeep Kapoor, MD of Samsika Marketing Consultants.

“The brand needs to spread through ancillary product offerings, which it is doing. That will help it consolidate its position. Going forward, Fogg will have to gear up for even more intense competition,” he adds.

Additionally, ITC’s Engage is positioning products “for couples”, with complementing fragrances for men and women. Vini can ill-afford to rest on its oars.

Brand consultants also wonder about the relative merits of selling brands at high valuations, versus the virtue of creating value for the long term. Given Patel’s track record with Paras Pharma, which was acquired by Reckitt Benckiser, this acquires particular significance.

Says Khalap: “If the objective is to sell the brand to the next big bidder, what has been done with Vini Cosmetics is sufficient. But if the objective is to create value over the long term, the Fogg brand needs to acquire a greater purpose and build a community of believers in that purpose.”

Brands, says Khalap, represent belief systems, and Fogg will eventually have to stand up and make a statement beyond its product usage. Whether or not it can do that is something only Patel can determine. A nose for branding success has led him thus far. Where next will it lead him?

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