• by Tanya Gazdik , April 12, 2018

Armor All has hired WWE star John Cena to star in its “Fear Nothing” campaign, aimed at appealing to a younger audience.

In one 30-second spot, Cena talks about how each scent of the Armor All product creates a different mood in his car. The second spot features Cena talking about the brand’s cleaning wipes. A third spot is planned. 

The effort, from Armor All AOR Merkley+Partners, also includes online video, digital banners and social content.

The timing on the campaign, which broke this week, coincides with Cena’s latest film, “Blockers,” which opened in theaters nationally last weekend.

The humorous, over-the-top efforts aim to shake up the automotive appearance category and energize the brand, according to the company. The spots feature Cena and comic sidekick “Hank,” played by actor Justin Dray, with the taglines “It’s easy to look good” and “It’s easy to smell good.”

Armor All, a leading brand of the Global Auto Care division of diversified consumer products company Spectrum Brands Holdings, has been a category leader for more than 50 years.

“The target for the brand is 25-54, so while our target already includes a younger demographic, we need to increase our relevance among them,” says Jamie Kistner, vice president, marketing, Spectrum Brands Global Auto Care division. “John Cena’s broad influence and specific appeal to this younger audience can help the brand be more relevant.”

Kistner would not reveal the terms of the partnership with the actor or what it is spending on the campaign.

“We can’t disclose specifics, but we hope that this will be a longer-term campaign,” Kistner tells Marketing Daily. “We can’t release spending, but this will be one of our largest campaigns.”

This isn’t the brand’s first celebrity partnership. A previous effort featured Tony Stewart, former stock car racing driver and NASCAR team owner.

Merkley+Partners also handles STP and A/C PRO, two other major brands within the Spectrum Brands Global Auto Care division.