EXPLORATORY RESEARCH

Market research
Gillette has a dominant market share, thus, to cater to the different set of growth challenges,
Gillette focused on expanding the core market. As a part of the market study and to understand
the consumer better, Gillette conducted ethnographic research to observe customers. They also
did home visits during this phase. “This door-to-door assessment yielded keen insights about
how the Indian male shaver differed from his American counterpart.”, as quoted from the
report. Gillette uses this kind of market research to obtain insights related to price sensitivity,
seating position, water requirement, mirror requirement, light availability, and frequency of
cuts. Entry Barriers in Shaving industry: In this section, we have tried to study the shaving
industry concerning ease of competition and entry of new players in the market. The analysis
is based on a research study conducted by Business Insider, India. Razor blades are difficult to
make. The razor tip has to have a very sharp tip and a strong base. For this reason, there are
only a few companies that manufacture their blades. As only a few companies can manufacture
blades, these companies have the advantage to charge higher prices and hence, create entry
barriers for new players. New entrants have found it difficult to set up their manufacturing
plants and thus, have outsourced it. Eg. Harry’s. Finally, as has been seen in the past, startups
have been acquired by giants. Unilever has acquired Harry's and Dollar Shave Club. Other
competitor entering e commerce like letsshave.com are coming up with competitive strategy.

LITERATURE REVIEW
Gillette’s first mover advantage
We began our exploratory phase with literature review because there are large deposits of
literature/articles and reviews about Gillette’s success story. A two-fold focus on achieving
low cost as well as differentiation has set Gillette in a formidable ground. To be a market
leader, certain firms have leveraged their first mover advantage. Firms have gained an
insurmountable market position by building upon their technological edge offered in their
product. We have seen that Gillette has used a similar strategy. This fact is highlighted by the
analysis of a report in the Science Direct, Pioneering and First Mover Advantages: The
Importance of Business Models. Report highlights a scenario where it compares how the
FMCG players responded to the low-cost disruption in their markets with how Gillette
responded to a similar threat. Bic had emerged as a strong market player, had acquired about
a quarter of the market in less than ten years, and became a threat to Gillette. “Gillette set
about to change people's perceptions of what to expect from their razor. Through a series of
innovative product introductions (such as the Sensor, the Mach 3 and the Fusion), Gillette
redefined what “performance” meant in this market”, as quoted from the study. Gillette
started focusing on getting patents for new products and invest high in R&D. In 1994, they
introduced the Custom Plus line that was a disposable with a lubricating strip. In late 2002,
they announced the introduction of a new line of disposable razors with proprietary
technology. Gillette was, thus, trying to disrupt the market by changing the whole idea about
shaving. By successfully raising the bar in this market, Gillette managed to convince
consumers that they should expect more from their razors and that Bic was not really “good
enough” for them. “In the process, they succeeded in maintaining their leadership position in
refillable while capturing a 45% market share in disposables”. Statistics quoted from the
report. The above analysis highlights that Gillette has repeatedly leveraged a first mover
advantage by introducing new products, disrupting existing markets and changing the way
customer needs were currently satisfied. This is yet another feature in making Gillette the
market leader.
Impact of Speed-to-Market:
The success of a new product is only possible when there is a successful delivery to the market.
If there is a delay in taking your product to the market, other competitors might leverage the
opportunity. In this regard, we have studied a research paper that analyses key factors in
increasing speed to market. The research considered four variables: Vision, NPD Process,
Long-Term View, and Product Refinement. After running the regression, NPD Process and
Long-Term View were the dominant factors. Gillette has been consistently bringing out new
products in a well-timed manner. For e.g., Gillette fusion in 2006, Fusion Power Phantom in
2007, Fusion Power Phenom in 2008, Fusion Powerglide in 2010, Mach 3 sensitive in 2013
and ProGlide flexBall in 2014. In the long-term view, it has been iterated that Gillette presents
itself as a technology company rather than a marketing company. This long-term vision binds
it to the customers. Gillette’s Consumer sensitive business model: Setting your product to
exactly fit in what the consumer wants is another important aspect that determines the longevity
of the product. Gillette has focused on consumers by conducting market research and
implementing insights from the same while designing their products. We studied
documentation from a Harvard Business Review report by Vijay Govindarajan.
IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS
To get more insights of Gillette’s products, interviews were conducted for consumers (barber
and individual consumers), retailers (salesperson) and company officials (interns). Some of the
questions asked during the interviews are mentioned below:
Category Key Questions Snippets

Company 1) Reasons for Consumer a) Rarely been offered a substitute to

officials- loyalty? Gillette, i.e, no competition
interns 2) Reasons for being market b) Gillette gets whatever shelf space it
leader? requires.
3) Competition?
4) Distribution Network?
 Retailer- 1) Shelf space decisions?
salesperson 2) Distribution channels?
3) Purchase patterns?
4) Pricing Strategy
a) "Whatever is seen is purchased“
b) Suggestive selling is not required for
Gillette Razors
c) New products need no promotions
d) Sales are almost unaffected by price
increases

Consumer 1) Purchase Frequency a) Mach 3 was the most recalled razor

2) Expenditure? b) The frequency of shaving is not a
3) Willingness to pay? function of prices,technological
4) Competitors? changes, etc. but it is an intrinsic factor
of the consumer
c) Prioritize comfort over price while
choosing a razor.

Barber 1) Consumer base? a) Visits increase during the time of

2) Products used? festivals, weddings, etc.
3) Services offered? b) Only Gillette has managed to keep
its "brand value
c) Gillette regularly increases its prices

Resources:
• http://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1108/eb039924
• http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0024630113000319
• http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S001985019800008X
• https://hbr.org/2012/04/how-pg-innovates-on-razor-thin
•https://www.marketplace.org/2015/03/16/business/ive-always-wondered/why-are-razor-blades-so-
expensive
• https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2445034No-shave November, retrieved on 16th
November 2017 from internet, https://no-shave.org/
• Letsshaves.com, retrieved on 15th November 2017 from internet,
https://yourstory.com/2016/05/letsshave/
• USTRAA, retrieved on 17th November from internet,
https://www.happilyunmarried.com/ustraa/products.html#category5
• Movember, retrieved 16th November 2017 from internet,
http://www.freepressjournal.in/webspecial/movember-or-no-shave-november-what-is-it-all-about-
and-why-you-shouldnt-shave/1163636