Orchard plucks Cinthol from Ambience D'Arcy

FMCG major Godrej handed over the Rs 20-crore plus Cinthol account to Orchard, Mumbai. The account moved from Ambience D’Arcy

On February 1, 2001, FMCG major Godrej handed over the Rs 20-crore plus Cinthol account to Orchard, Mumbai. The agency servicing the account was Ambience D'Arcy. Confirming the movement Arvind Sharma, MD, Leo Burnett, of which Orchard is the second agency, told agencyfaqs!, "We got the account on the strength of our strategic presentation." But he remained tight-lipped about why the account could have moved from Ambience. A plausible explanation could be that internationally both Orchard and Ambience D'Arcy are owned by Bcom 3.

Talking about the other agencies in the fray a Godrej insider said, "We did not follow the usual protocol of inviting agencies for a pitch. The brand had been under review for a while and Godrej was looking for some fresh ideas to rev up Cinthol. Various agencies made presentations over the past few months. Finally we decided to go with Orchard." He also added, "When a big company decides to move one of its bigger brands, it is obvious that it is looking to do things differently. However, at this stage, it is too early to say whether Godrej is looking for a complete repositioning of Cinthol or a creative refocusing of the brand."

Cinthol is the largest brand of soap in the Godrej portfolio. Currently, it commands a 3.5 per cent market share in the toilet soap market. Thus, Godrej's decision to hand over its most popular brand to Orchard, a 15-month old agency, certainly raises eyebrows. To put things into perspective, Sharma said, "Orchard set up shop in November 1999 and it has achieved a billing of Rs 70 crore already. This speaks volumes about the quality of its work. As a start-up, I believe, Orchard has set a benchmark of sorts."

Taking into account the various avatars of the Cinthol brand, the task is clearly cut out for Orchard. Sharma summed up by saying, "Cinthol is a mass-market product and enjoys tremendous trust among consumers. The thrust of the new campaign will be more on addressing the strategic issues than on the creative rendition. The main theme of the ad campaign, therefore, will remain freshness. All I can say is that a ‘fresh' campaign will break in a couple of months time." The brand will be heavily advertised through TV commercials.