Dollar Shave Club asserts it remains disruptive following Unilever acquisition

12-Jul-2017 - Last updated on 13-Jul-2017 at 10:32 GMT

Related tags Dollar shave club Advertising

Recently bought by consumer goods giant Unilever, disruptive razor subscription player Dollar Shave Club asserts it still has its edge.

In a recent interview with Marketing Week, Dollar Shave Club’s executive creative directors Alec Brownstein and Matt Knapp spoke of the brand’s efforts to retain its identity.

“We’re fortunate enough that Unilever bothers to leave us alone in terms of how they’ve positioned it,” Knapp told the publication.

“We’re obviously doing something right, it’s so good to have that trust coming from them to continue doing what we’ve been doing as we’ve enjoyed some success. They are letting us do our thing.”

“Our hope is to continue to be disruptive, and to do what we do well,” Brownstein agreed.

Tongue in cheek

The Dollar Shave Club shot to prominence on the back of an enormously successful viral video advert in 2012, which reportedly won it 12,000 customers in two days and currently has over 24 million views on YouTube.

The brand is deliberately witty and irreverent, which, coupled with its innovative subscription service for razors, has earned it a strong following.

It also gained the attention of multinational Unilever, which made a successful bid for the company in its acquisition last year.

Knapp and Brownstein’s comments to Marketing Week suggest the multinational is savvy to the importance of brand authenticity, and allowing Dollar Shave Club room to retain its winning identity.

Leveraging a new retail journey

On the acquisition of the company last year, Unilever spoke of the opportunity the move afforded it to tap into its successful brand-consumer communication, and the direct-to-consumer retail model.

“Dollar Shave Club is an innovative and disruptive male grooming brand with incredibly deep connections to its diverse and highly engaged consumers,” said Kees Kruythoff, President of Unilever North America.

“In addition to its unique consumer and data insights, Dollar Shave Club is the category leader in its direct-to-consumer space. We plan to leverage the global strength of Unilever to support Dollar Shave Club in achieving its full potential in terms of offering and reach.”