Zest (brand)

Last updated
Zest
Zest logo.svg
Product type Soap, body wash
OwnerHigh Ridge Brands Company (United States, Canada, Puerto Rico)
Unilever (except United States, Canada, Puerto Rico)
Country U.S.
Introduced1955;69 years ago (1955)
Markets U.S.
Previous owners Procter & Gamble
Tagline"Zestfully clean!"
Website www.zest.com

Zest is an American brand of soap and body wash owned by High Ridge Brands for the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico and by Unilever for the rest of the world. It was originally introduced by Procter & Gamble in 1955 [1] with the slogan "For the first time in your life, feel really clean."

Contents

History

Zest was originally introduced by Procter & Gamble in 1955 [1] and nationally launched in 1957. [2] Zest was originally positioned as a deodorant bar that included both standard soap and synthetic detergent ingredients. The synthetic detergent ingredient prevented the deposition of soap scum in the presence of hard water. Marbled in appearance, Zest originally came in two variants: Aqua and the yellow, lemon-scented Citrus. By the mid-1960s, the bar no longer had a marbled appearance.

In 1977 Procter & Gamble launched Zest in France, followed by Italy and the UK in 1982. The European version of Zest was yellow, marbled and used the same formulation as Coast in the US. The brand was subsequently withdrawn in Europe.

In 2011, Procter & Gamble sold the North American and Caribbean rights of Zest to Brynwood Partners VI LP, a Stamford, Connecticut-based firm, through its subsidiary, High Ridge Brands Company. [3] A company representative from P&G answers why the company decided to sell off Zest: "We continually evaluate all the brands in the portfolio against their strategic fit and value in our longer term global goals. In this case, we felt that Zest, with its great equity in 'clean'...and loyal core following in the U.S. and Canada, was a better value fit for a company that would bring greater focus to it." [4]

In 2015, Unilever acquired the rights to the Zest brand outside of North America and the Caribbean from Procter & Gamble. [5]

Marketing

Early commercials stated that Zest is not a soap, because it does not leave the sticky film that soap does. A 1970-era commercial illustrated this concept with an apparent demonstration in which two photographs of a person were each dipped in one of two bowls, one labeled "soap" and the other "Zest" — the one that came out of the "soap" bowl had a scummy coating whereas the one that came out of the "Zest" bowl had no such coating.

The brand experienced an upswing in sales in the 1980s and early 1990s, with the advertising slogan "you're not fully clean unless you're Zestfully clean!", coined by the BBDO sloganeer James Jordan. One commercial showed a teenage girl who used ordinary soap scratching her back against the metal pole of a school bus stop sign at her bus stop because her soap left a sticky film that she couldn't see but she could certainly feel. While she is still scratching her back, the bus shows up. Yet another commercial featured NFL fullback Craig "Ironhead" Heyward promoting the Zest bodywash product: a liquid in a plastic bottle. Television commercials would incorporate the slogan as part of the jingle and end with someone displaying a towel with the "Zestfully clean" slogan on the back; these towels have often been given away in company promotions.

In 2007, in a seeming about-face of their 'no soap film' policy, Procter & Gamble discontinued the old product and relaunched Zest with a size reduced by 11% (from 4.5 to 4.0 ounces), a new bar shape, and new, more intense fragrance. The product line was extended with the introduction of Zest body wash. A recent perusal of their support site yielded the following claim: "Zest Linen Fresh, Tropical Fresh and Tangerine Mango Twist are no longer made with synthetic ingredients. They're 100% soap and have a new 'surf' shape."

At one time,[ when? ] the range of products marketed as Zest comprised Aqua Pure, Energy Fresh, Linen Fresh, Ultimate Clean (said to offer antibacterial action), Spring Burst, Tropical Fresh, and Whitewater Fresh; along with three liquid body washes, Spring Splash, Morning Garden, and Ocean Energy.

The Zest site now features several variants: Aqua Pure, Aloe Splash, Ocean Energy (featuring Energizing Effects), Mint Explosion (featuring Stimulating Effects), Tangerine Mango Twist (featuring Stimulating Effects), and Whitewater Fresh (which was originally discontinued in 2006, but was brought back in 2012). Each variant was advertised as being available as both a bar and a bottled liquid labeled as "Bodywash".

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rinso</span> Brand name of laundry soap

Rinso is a brand name of laundry soap and detergent marketed by Unilever. The brand was created by Robert Spear Hudson and originally branded Hudson's Soap, which was sold to Lever Brothers of Port Sunlight, England, in 1908. It was introduced in the United States by Lever Brothers Company in 1918.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tide (brand)</span> Brand-name of a laundry detergent manufactured by Procter & Gamble

Tide is an American brand of laundry detergent manufactured and marketed by Procter & Gamble. Introduced in 1946, it is the highest-selling detergent brand in the world, with an estimated 14.3 percent of the global market.

Ivory is an American flagship personal care brand created by the Procter & Gamble Company (P&G), including varieties of white and mildly scented bar soap that became famous for its claim of purity and for floating on water. Over the years, the brand has been extended to other varieties and products.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Persil</span> German brand of laundry detergent

Persil is a German brand of laundry detergent manufactured and marketed by Henkel around the world except in the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Latin America, China, Australia and New Zealand, where it is manufactured and marketed by Unilever. Persil was introduced in 1907 by Henkel. It was the first commercially available laundry detergent that combined bleach with the detergent. The name was derived from two of its original ingredients, sodium perborate and sodium silicate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dreft</span> Laundry detergent

Dreft is a laundry detergent in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and other markets. First produced by Procter & Gamble in 1933, it was the first synthetic detergent. The Fairy brand of washing-up liquid and Cascade brand of dishwasher detergent are also sold under the name "Dreft" in some countries, including the Netherlands and Belgium. In Canada, the laundry detergent is sold under the brand name Ivory Snow.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joy (dishwashing liquid)</span> Brand of dish-cleaning detergent

Joy is an American brand of dishwashing liquid detergent owned by JoySuds, LLC. The brand was introduced in the United States in 1949 by Procter & Gamble. In 2019, Procter & Gamble sold the rights to the Joy brand for the Americas to JoySuds, LLC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sunlight (cleaning product)</span> Brand of laundry soap and detergent

Sunlight is a brand of laundry soap, laundry detergent and dishwashing detergent manufactured and marketed around the world by Unilever, except in the United States and Canada, where it has been owned by Sun Products since 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fairy (brand)</span> Brand of dishwashing liquid

Fairy is an international brand, primarily used for washing up liquid and dishwasher detergent, owned by the American multinational consumer products company, Procter & Gamble. The brand originated in the United Kingdom in 1898 and is now used on a number of P&G products in various markets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ajax (cleaning product)</span> Brand of cleaning products

Ajax is an American brand of household cleaning products and detergents made by Colgate-Palmolive and Awesome Products Inc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laundry detergent</span> Type of detergent used for cleaning laundry

Laundry detergent is a type of detergent used for cleaning dirty laundry (clothes). Laundry detergent is manufactured in powder and liquid form.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dishwashing liquid</span> Detergent used for cleaning dishes

Dishwashing liquid, or dishwashing soap, dish detergent, and dish soap is a detergent assisting in dishwashing. Dishwashing detergents for dishwashers come in various forms like cartridges, gels, liquids, pacs, powder, and tablets. It is usually a highly-foamy mixture of surfactants with low skin irritation that consumers primarily use for washing glasses, plates, cutleries, and cooking utensils. In addition to its primary use, dishwashing liquid also has various informal applications, like creating bubbles, clothes washing, and cleaning birds from oil spills.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shower gel</span> Liquid products used for cleaning the body

Shower gel is a specialized liquid product used for cleaning the body during showers. Not to be confused with liquid soaps, shower gels, in fact, do not contain saponified oil. Instead, it uses synthetic detergents derived from either petroleum or plant sources.

Cheer is a laundry detergent sold in the United States and Canada. It is manufactured by Procter & Gamble.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Camay</span> American bar soap brand

Camay is an American brand of bar soap owned by Unilever. It was introduced in 1926 by Procter & Gamble and was marketed as a "white, pure soap for women," as many soaps of the time were colored to mask impurities. Camay's slogan for many years was "Camay: the soap for beautiful women." It was later replaced with "For your most beautiful complexion at every age."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Procter and Gamble Baltimore Plant</span> United States historic place

Procter and Gamble Baltimore Plant is a historic factory complex located at Locust Point in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. It is a compact industrial complex built by the national corporation Procter & Gamble comprising five major three-story brick buildings spread over 10 acres (40,000 m2). These major buildings are the Process Building (1929), the Soap Chip Building (1929), the Bar Soap Building (1929), the Warehouse (1929), and the Tide Building (1949).

A soap substitute is a natural or synthetic cleaning product used in place of soap or other detergents, typically to reduce environmental impact or health harms or provide other benefits.

Coast is an American brand of deodorant soap and body wash owned by High Ridge Brands Company. It was originally introduced by Procter & Gamble in 1976. Its marketing catchphrase is "The Eye Opener!" Originally a bar soap, the company also began to produce body wash in 2003.

References

  1. 1 2 Davis, Dyer; et al. (May 1, 2004). Rising Tide: Lessons from 165 Years of Brand Building at Procter and Gamble. Harvard Business Press. p. 426. ISBN   9781591391470 . Retrieved 2013-05-07.
  2. "P&G unloads Camay and Zest soap brands". Cincinnati Business Courier. December 22, 2014. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
  3. Alexander, Antoinette (January 4, 2011). "High Ridge Brands snaps up Zest from P&G". Drug Store News. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
  4. Wong, Elaine. "Why Americans Will Soon Be Singing "Zestfully Clean" -- Again". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-10-06.
  5. "Unilever to acquire Camay and Zest brands". Unilever North America. December 12, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2020.