Backstory | When Hindustan Unilever went up close with Colgate

Then in the 1980s, HUL relaunched Close Up in India giving an altogether new twist to the idea of toothpaste by its focus on how it looked and felt in the mouth. The first-ever gel toothpaste, it came packed in a transparent tube, was richly coloured in red and its target was young Indians. If Colgate fought “tooth decay” and stopped “bad breath”, Close Up offered something new and surprising in “fresh breath”, “shiny teeth” and the resulting confidence for young men and women. The advertising, featuring young people in various romantic situations, supported the message. The impact was instantaneous. Over the next 2-3 years, Close Up grabbed nearly 20 percent of the market share from a shell-shocked Colgate.

Smartly, HUL also launched Pepsodent on the plank of healthy teeth and targeted at the family’s oral health, forcing Colgate to defend itself on two flanks.

Eventually, the giant retaliated with Colgate Gel in 1990 and recovered some of the lost market share though in the gel category it is still Close Up which is the market leader with nearly 60 percent share. Over the years, HUL ensured that the Close Up brand pipeline stayed innovative and fresh with variants like Lemon Mint, Luscious Lychee and Fire Freeze.

As it turned out the variants didn’t do much for its sales and by the end of the 20th century, Close Up’s appeal had begun to lose some steam.

In January 2004, HUL promoted Close Up through a new ad campaign with the jingle “Kya aap Close Up karte hain?” While the jingle and its accompanying ad became popular, sales stayed low, forcing the company to drop many of the brand variants and focusing on the original Tingly Red product and a Lemon Mint variant.

Colgate would go on to face a sterner test later from a completely different category, herbal or ayurvedic toothpaste. But Close Up’s popularity has remained largely intact.

In 2003, when Unilever PLC sold off its US and Canadian oral care brands including Close Up to Church & Dwight Co, HUL retained the rights to the brand in India, a testimonial to its enormous popularity.