Gillette’s Five Bladed Razor Marketing Plan Jim Hudson Marketing 500 January 10, 2010

The product that will be marketed and researched will be the need and appeal for a new five bladed razor. The men’s razor market has been notoriously marketed with new products over the years and this market plan will be implemented from the Gillette corporation point of view. Men are always looking to get a better, faster and smoother shave. It is general maintenance that men must take care of on a daily basis as this product has global potential which is used and accepted by all men. The question that needs to be answered is whether or not there is room in the marketplace for five bladed razors and will it be profitable? “The earliest shaving razors discovered were flint blades made possibly as far back as 30,000 B.C. Flint could provide an extremely sharp edge for shaving; these were, of course, the first disposable shavers because flint becomes dull rather quickly. Not only did early man cut and/or shave off body hair with flint; he also seemed to enjoy carving unusual artistic designs into his skin. If he added natural dyes and colors to these cuts, he ended up with a tattoo. Other stone shaving tools found were made during the Neolithic Period or Late Stone Age” (Barry, 2003). “Gillette’s history has proved itself over the years. Thanks to years of innovation and heavy investment in marketing and advertising, Gillette occupies perhaps the most dominant position of any consumer goods brand in the UK, with an 85% share of razor-blade sales. Common sense might suggest that you would sit back and count the half billion pounds in annual revenues this market share delivers. Gillette, however, is owned by Procter & Gamble, and while even the best marketing company in the world can’t improve much beyond that level of market share,