Yardley is planning to rejuvenate its cosmetic and skin care brand in Canada and has chosen OK&D Marketing Communications of Hamilton, Ont. to help with the task.
A six-figure budget has been set aside for a new Yardley campaign expected to debut late fall for the Christmas season and into spring 1998.
J’e Duda, ok&d creative director, says the retro trend in fashion could have a positive impact on the revival of the 230-year-old British cosmetic and skin care brand, which rode the crest of the ‘British invasion’ in the ’60s and ’70s.
Duda says everyone knows the Yardley name and it still has a strong following in Canada, although marketing efforts behind the brand have fallen off in the past few years.
He says the perception is that Yardley appeals mainly to older women, but that that’s not necessarily the case, adding women 25 to 40 also use the brand.
Yardley scented soaps, lotions and bath products for women are available in Canada and Duda says, over time, other products, such as cosmetics or the men’s line, will be introduced.
Yardley of Canada, previously marketed by Maybelline in Canada, has been taken over by Trilogy Brand Management of Burlington, Ont., the new cosmetics division of McCaughey Managed Brands, a company in the business of reviving well-known brands.
It currently markets and distributes brands such as Wet Ones, Binaca, Mr. Bubble and Diaparene in Canada.
This fall McCaughey has plans to position Binaca, a breath freshener, to the youth market through a cross-promotion with Polygram Records and MuchMusic.
