``The objective is to make Mach3 more accessible. And we recognise the fact that a product with low unit price will make it more accessible to consumers,'' says Prakash Nedungadi, regional business director, male grooming products, ISPL.

This is unlike the strategy for Sensor Excel, which was launched in December 1996 with five and ten-pack cartridges priced at Rs 195 and Rs 370 respectively. Single cartridges priced at Rs 39.50 were introduced two years later-in April this year-with an aim to deepen its reach and tap larger segments.

Globally, too, the two-pack cartridge set for Mach3 has been introduced just two months ago in a few countries like Poland. Mach3 was launched internationally in 1998. Mach3's four-pack and eight-pack cartridge sets are priced at Rs 245 and Rs 455 respectively. The retail price of Mach3 razor set (razor, organiser and two cartridges) is Rs 295 and commands a 40 per cent premium over Sensor Excel.

Priced at Rs 195, Gillette Sensor Excel currently has a market share of 30 per cent (value wise) of the systems segment of the Rs 530 crore blades and razor market and a consumer base of about 1.5 million.

The company claims to have an overall market share of eight per cent (in units) and 25 per cent in value terms. The total size of the wet self shaving market is about 117 million.

Mach3 will be rolled out nationally by January, 2000 through its 1,800 distributors which reach out to 3,50,000 retail outlets including top selling stockists.

Around the same time, Gillette will unleash its ``powerful and persuasive' advertising TV and print-which centers around aerodynamics and the art of `breaking the performance barrier'. Though the company is releasing a global campaign, it however will be dubbed in Hindi and other vernacular languages besides English.

The media plan includes a splash on major sports and entertainment channels in that it will associate itself mainly with cricket, football and motor racing and family entertainment programmes.

Close shaves on the Net
When 80 per cent of the Net surfers are men, aged between 20 and 35 year-old, what could be a better channel for any male grooming products company to connect to its target audience? Gillette is just doing that and particularly for its newest product Mach3, it is looking to the Net to make a sizeable dent in the market. ``More than numbers, we're looking at it as an opportunity to connect to our target audience particularly NRI's who want to gift Mach3 to their friends/associates back home,'' says Prakash Nedungadi, regional business director, male grooming products, ISPL.

The company has ventured into e-commerce in collaboration with Rediff-on- the-Net in April this year, and offers its consumers the option to buy or gift Mach3 (besides its other products) through orders on the Net. Gillette promises to deliver within 48 hours.