“ITC wanted to establish a scientifically advanced range under Savlon portfolio”: Bluemarlin’s Ashwini Pable

Bluemarlin, a strategic brand design agency, partnered with ITC’s personal care products business to help support and deliver design and branding solutions for its (ITC’s) health and hygiene flagship brands Nimyle and Savlon.

With a mandate to communicate the proposition of expertise and effectiveness, Bluemarlin worked with ITC to accelerate the launch of three new product offerings. These include NimWash vegetable and fruit wash, Savlon Hexa soap and sanitiser range, and germ-protection wipes under the Savlon master brand.

Talking about the partnership, Ashwini Pable, consulting director, Bluemarlin, tells afaqs! that her agency supported ITC with packaging design solutions. She says that the mandate for the project was very simple, “… act swiftly to help ITC transform its vision of providing affordable/effective hygiene through its brand/product portfolio. And, also develop a deeper connection with its customers in such trying times as a reliable, effective and safe brand.”

“We moved the brand’s packaging design seamlessly into advanced efficacy through its science-inspired brand mark,” she shares.

According to Pable, ITC wanted to establish a more scientifically advanced range under the Savlon portfolio for consumers who were looking for body products with more efficacious and specific germ kill properties.

“The challenge for both ITC and Bluemarlin was that being a body product, it could not be very harsh on the skin. Hence, we needed to take extra care in design to cue enough moisturisation, along with the desired efficacy,” she says.

Pable mentions that her agency was able to accelerate the process, with all the products hitting the shelves in an unprecedented eight weeks after the brief was shared.

But why go for a design change in unprecedented times like these? Pable stresses that packaging design has a huge role to play in times like today.

“We constantly stress on the fact of being purposeful as a brand. That purposefulness has to be reflected in the design. The consumers are suddenly more aware and conscious of good hygiene. This is leading to change in their habits and behaviour. Having the right kind of messaging for this behaviour shift is a very important aspect of the design, which stems from the brands proposition.”

Apart from this, another big challenge, Pable points out, is standing alongside 100 new local brands that suddenly sprout from nowhere after seeing this as a potential money making opportunity.

“Hence, the stress on quality standards, simple messaging, and carrying the values and credibility of a good brand becomes a very important aspect for the design.”

So, how does a product design (or redesign) impact the consumers? “Branding has a direct impact on the decision making process. A well designed product may catch a few eyeballs and create the initial impression. It may further gain recognition in a crowded market simply through the visual connect it creates,” Pable tells us.

“It can also lead to more conversations, which can ultimately fuel the word of mouth channel of sales. It may provide sensory pleasure and please one or more of the consumers’ senses. This leads to improving brand preference, and increase in sales and (eventually) turnover, which are the main objectives for any brand today.”

Giving an example of how much product sales are affected by a simple design change, Pable elaborates, “A rebranding and repacking project we undertook for Britannia Treat biscuits saw an increase of almost 80 per cent in the sales of this brand.”

“We designed the packaging, taking into consideration the target audience, colours and font that will attract more eyeballs... The demand shot up, as the target audience was able to connect with the packaging and the communication being delivered through the new identity. The work paid for itself in five days – that’s the power of effective design,” she signs off.