Last week, the New York Times featured an article about Procter and Gamble’s foray into the dry cleaning business with their new Tide Dry Cleaners franchise.
This venture comes on the heels of a similar brand expansion by P&G with their launch of Mr. Clean Car Washes. Personally, I love these new
concepts. I am loyal to Tide and they could garner even more of my loyalty with Tide Dry Cleaners. I think it is a fragrance thing but laundry detergent has one of the highest loyalty rates in retail. So, taking Tide to the dry cleaning arena seems like a natural brand extension. Plus, P&G’s backing allows these dry cleaners to offer coupons – and I’m a sucker for a good coupon.
Brand extensions are a commonly seen and don’t usually warrant a whole NY Times article. So, what makes Tide Dry Cleaners and Mr. Clean Car Washes so unusual? Well, until now, most brand extensions were a storefront or service brand venturing into the retail arena. Examples
include:
- Starbucks coffee and ice cream at grocery stores
- Vidal Sassoon salon translated to hair care products
- Martha Stewart products at retail
- Taco Bell meal kits at grocery stores
Now, P&G seems to be inverting this formula – taking the brand awareness of a retail product and extending it to a store or service concept. We were so inspired by this revelation that we started thinking of the endless possibilities. What if there were . . .
- Clorox house-cleaners
- Crest dentist offices
- Eggo waffle houses
- Kodak professional photographers
- Purina pet boarding facilities
- Playskool preschools
- Staples temp agencies
- Miracle-Gro landscapers and gardeners
We made ourselves dizzy with all of the possibilities. I encourage you to have fun creating some of your own.
