Brand Positioning & Innovation Plan

As the business leader responsible for the 3-year business plan for Kleenex brand facial tissues, our founder and lead strategist reinvented an iconic brand whose growth and meaning in the marketplace had stalled.  Even though Kleenex enjoys widespread awareness, being synonymous with a declining category presented several challenges to overcome.

• Create ownable, differentiated, and meaningful brand positioning to overcome a “sea of sameness” in a commodity category
• Build marketing and innovation plans for sustainable brand and category growth, to ensure continued distribution and retailer support

After a thorough and disciplined situation assessment, that uncovered drivers of a 20-year category decline, a new brand strategy, point of difference, and innovation plan was approved. 

This plan took a bold stance on the role the brand could play in customer’s lives and shifted the primary driver of growth versus the previous strategy.  The Vice President and General Manager of the Kimberly-Clark Walmart account team called this work "the breath of fresh air this brand has needed for a decade".

Innovation projects are underway across marketing, packaging, and product to deliver on a $400MM category growth opportunity over the next 10 years.