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Case study- Clean Edge Razor

1- What changes are occurring in the non-disposable razor category? Evaluate Paramount’s
competitive position. What are the strategic life cycle challenges for Paramount’s current
product as well as for Clean Edge?
 Non-disposable razor has accelerated in recent years because market has seen changes in
consumer behavior which had led to technological advancement, innovation and new
product introductions. From the year 2007 to 2010, Non-disposable razor has experienced
5% growth every year. The rate of new product introductions for non-disposable razors
had increased with an unmatched storm of 22 new stock keeping. As a result of these
introductions and to increase the demand of non-disposable razors, total media
advertising expenditures had been rising faster than sales. Additionally, distribution
outlets responded to the growth by increasing shelf space for the product. Distribution of

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the non-disposable razors started to shift outside the traditional food and drug stores.

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 Paramount encountered direct competition in the non-disposable razors and faced

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competition with substitute products. In 2010, Non-disposable razors were dominated by
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three multinational players- Paramount, Prince, and Benet & Klein, and even new
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entrants like Radiance Health and Simpsons had intensified competition in this market. In
2010, Paramount had 21.4% market share compared to prince’s share of 26.2% and Benet
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and Klein share of 21.1%, which shows the Paramount brand were second biggest in the
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non-disposable razor unit.

 Since, Paramount has two lines of non-disposable razors and refill cartridges- paramount
pro and paramount avail.
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Some of the life cycle challenges for the products are

1- Maintaining loyal customers.
2- Expanding the business and making the product reach wider audience
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3- Competition from new brands and innovative products.

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2- How is the non-disposable razor market segmented? Examine consumer behavior for
non-disposable razors.
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 Non Disposable razor market is divided into three segments based on price and quality:
value, moderate, super-premium. Due to new product innovations, the non-disposable
razor industry has experienced growth specifically in the super premium segment.

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MBA 660 Jainil Shah
1/22/2019 Akshay Guru Rajkumar
Toshiaki Koyoma

 Consumers were divided into three categories- Social/Emotional Shavers, Aesthetic

Shavers and Maintenance Shavers. Social/Emotional Shavers and Aesthetic shavers were
willing to experiment with new technology, whereas maintenance shavers were
disinterested in any product.
 Social/Emotional Shavers contributed to 39% of people using non-disposable razors,
whereas aesthetic shavers contributed 28% and maintenance shavers of 33%.
 67% of non-disposable razor users think that shaving is significant to feel more attractive
or remove unwanted hair. Recent trends in the male grooming routines has been a bright
spot in the industry. More media attention on men’s grooming issues has segmented for
growth.

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3- What are the augments for launching Clean Edge as (1) as a niche product and (1) a

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mainstream brand? Which would you recommend? What are the strategic

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implications of your recommendation?
 rs e
Launching clean edge as a niche product would focus on highly involved, meticulous
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groomers looking for a superior shaving experience. A niche strategy for paramount
will complement the existing products of paramount’s non disposable shavers.
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Additionally, a niche marketing strategy for clean edge will require $15 million in
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total advertising, consumer and trade promotion for the first year.
 Launching clean edge razor as mainstream would focus on a wider audience, and
clean edge razor are readily available to the public. Mainstream strategy will take a
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higher risk than niche and will dilute the brand power and products of Paramount.
Although, a mainstream strategy would result in 60% of sales of clean edge razor
from customers who are currently using paramount pro/anvil. But it is riskier as there
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is more cost involved in advertising, consumer and trade promotions and paramount
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would incur $48 million in launching the clean edge razor if they opt for mainstream.

Recommendations- We would recommend Niche strategy for clean edge.

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Implications for our Recommendation

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MBA 660 Jainil Shah
1/22/2019 Akshay Guru Rajkumar
Toshiaki Koyoma

 As there is less competition in niche market segment, launching clean edge into this
segment will provide paramount a superior edge against their rivals and can create a
better brand name in the niche market.
 As Radiance has planned to launch Naiv into the non-disposable razor category and Naiv
offers a vibrating feature similar to the clean edge razor. It would be a good
recommendation to launch clean edge razor in the niche market to be risk averse as there
is direct competition from Radiance.
 Launching clean edge into the moderate market segment will lead to the clash of
paramount’s pro will contribute to the maximum sales volume of the company and to
prevent the clash, a better strategy would be to enter the niche market and become

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dominant in the market.

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 Overall advertising and promotion cost for clean edge in mainstream is $42 million for

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the first year compared to $15 million in the niche market. As the expenditure and cost is
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low in the niche market, the risk is also less.
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 As a contingency plan, we recommend releasing in the niche market which will give
paramount a few years to understand the consumer response to clean edge and if it fails to
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capture enough market in the niche market, they can always change the strategy to
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release in the mainstream market.

4- Based on your positioning strategy, what brand name and marketing budget allocations
would you advise?
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 The Brand name we would recommend is ‘Clean Edge- The perfect razor’ because
focusing particularly on clean edge rather than paramount clean edge would help the
company create high quality brand image. Additionally, clinical trials had indicated clean
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edge resulted in 25% of hair removal compared to other non-disposable razors. These
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trails also proved to benefit to the overall skin condition with better skin tone and
improved skin texture. Most men who tried out clean edge razor were extremely satisfied
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and felt it was the closest, smoothest shave they encountered. Also, Paramount would be
the first company to provide scientific testing by a third-party lab to back these claims.

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