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Whatever Happened To Noxzema?

  • Ad Age , Monday, July 28, 2008 12:30 PM
Once upon a time, Noxzema seemed to be in almost every American medicine cabinet. The century-old brand had more than a 20% market share in the '70s. But people familiar with the matter say Procter & Gamble has been trying to sell the once-ubiquitous brand for several months. The company declines to comment.

The facial-cleanser-cum-makeup-remover-cum-acne-remedy in a distinctive blue glass bottle had some of the strongest consumer affinity of any brand he's ever worked on, says Rick Brenner, who was a marketing director on Noxzema before and after Procter & Gamble acquired it from Noxell in 1989. But he says that while P&G has the smarts to market niche brands as successfully as it does megabrands, it doesn't have the desire.

In one of its first meetings with P&G management, the Noxzema team pitched former Chairman-CEO Ed Artzt on the need to extend to adjacent categories. Brenner recalls Artzt saying: "That's not what the brand's about. It's about the smell and the crunch, and you've got to stay true to that."

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