Old Spice first hit shelves in 1937 and quickly became a top selling shave soap and aftershave. In the 1990’s, P&G purchased the brand and relaunched it as a male high performing deodorant. While the deodorant was offered in various scents, the early technology forced them all to have similar base note characteristics. By the mid 2000’s, Old Spice had lost its positive scent equity to the Axe brand, and was losing relevancy among young men, an important consumer target.

We were asked to reinvigorate the brands fragrance heritage by developing packaging for a new line of four unique experiential deodorants based on the concept, 'Scents inspired by the freshest places on earth.'

Following qualitative research, full colour imagery was identified as the best way to bring to life destination-themed fragrances. The classic hand etched style of illustration common to 19th century nature books was leveraged to communicate Old Spice’s 70+ years of heritage. Delightful surprises, including sharks and bears were added to each illustration, enhancing the consumer’s emotional connection with the fragrance as well as updating the traditional illustration style. Red, traditionally the brands dominant colour, was used sparingly after it was identified as a signal of heavy, musky scents.

Early sales results indicate that the initiative is expected to exceed expectations