A concise marketing strategy deck on how to create a brand mythology for a luxury haircare brand. A mythology (or ethos or story) is key to establishing desire in people who will become your loyal customers.

1. Kérastase Paris
For Discussion: How to Create its Brand “Ethos”
Dexter King
September 20, 2013

2. AGENDA
How do we create a brand story for Kérastase?
Creating Brand Mythology & Ethos
Establishing Cultural Relevance
Brand Target Example
Additional Considerations
2

3. “A people’s ethos is the tone,
character and quality of their life, its
moral and aesthetic style and mood; it
is the underlying attitude toward
themselves and their world that life
reflects.”
3
Source: C. Gertz, The Interpretation of Culture, 1973

4. Creating the Brand Story
How do we Create a Brand Story for Kérastase Paris?
CREATE
BRAND MYTHOLOGY
ESTABLISH
CULTURAL RELEVANCE
THE AUTHENTIC, AND UNIQUE
BRAND STORY THAT HAS THE
POWER TO EXCITE PEOPLE
AND MAKE THEM CURIOUS
THE CONVERSATION VALUE
GENERATED BY INVENTIVE
ACTIVITIES AND EXPERIENCES.
“THE REASON TO TALK”
INNOVATORS WHO
“THINK DIFFERENT”
A NEW CLASS OF
INFLUENCERS,
INDEPENDENT THINKERS
AND DOERS THAT ARE NOT
AFRAID TO STAND OUT,
EMBRACE AUTHENTICITY
WHILE LEAVING CLASSLESS
LUXURY FOR DEAD

5. “In consumer culture people no longer
consume for merely functional
satisfaction, but consumption
becomes meaning-based, and brands
are often used as symbolic resources
for the construction and maintenance
of identity”*
5
Source: R. Elliot & K. Wattanasuwan, International Journal of Advertising, 1998

6. Creating the Brand Mythology and Ethos
Strategic Pyramid: The “What” of Brand Strategy
PURPOSE
VISION
Coca-Cola:
JFK Space Program:
To refresh the world
PURPOSE
THE REASON
Google:
Put a man on the moon by the end
of the 1960s
YOU EXIST BEYOND
To organize the world’s information
and make it universally accessible.
Kérastase Paris:
To bring the culture and principles
of skincare to the world of haircare.
MAKING MONEY
(NEVER CHANGES)
MISSION
A MASTER PLAN
FOR CREATING VALUE
(5-20 YEARS)
VISION
A SHARED PICTURE
OF MISSION SUCCESS
(5-20 YEARS)
GOALS
SHORT-TERM OBJECTIVES THAT SUPPORT YOUR MISSION AND VISION
(1-5 YEARS)
THE STRATEGIC PYRAMID
LIQ U ID AG E N CY
6
Source: The Liquid Agency, 2012
Mount Gay Rum:
Become a Top 5 rum brand in the
USA by 2018
Kérastase Paris:
To become the innovation engine
for L’Oréal by 2020.

7. Creating the Brand Mythology and Ethos
Kérastase Paris: What Makes It “The Only?”
ex - HARLEY DAVIDSON
WHAT: The only motorcycle manufacturer
HOW:
that makes big, loud motorcycles
WHO:
for macho guys
WHERE: mostly in the USA
WHY:
who want to join a gang of cowboys
WHEN: in an era of decreasing personal freedom
Kérastase Paris is the ONLY _____
that _____.
7
Source: “Zag” by Marty Neumeier, 2007

8. Our research showed that the proliferation of
media and products requires marketers to find
new ways to get their brands included in the
initial-consideration set that consumers develop
as they begin their decision journey. We also
found that because of the shift away from oneway communication—from marketers to
consumers—toward a two-way conversation,
marketers need a more systematic way to
satisfy customer demands and manage word-ofmouth
8
Source: McKinsey & Co Marketing Insights, June 2009

9. Establishing Cultural Relevance
Kérastase Paris’ Digital Strategy:
Consumer Generated Ecosystem
Create a brand-equity-building Internet ecosystem utilizing social media, blogs and
mobile to connect with target consumers. Enable brand connection by requesting
and posting consumer or influencer-generated content while Kérastase pushes
content to consumers where they live, work and play.
Images Source: Tommy Ton’s Tumblr Blog + Zimbio.com

10. Establishing Cultural Relevance
Brand Platform: Is it just Fashion?
What about partnering with innovative women who “think different” + “give back”
across all genres of culture and society?
Marissa Mayer
Tory Burch
Leila Janah
Liya Kebede

11. “The old brand model, which
advocated the creation of an external
brand image to influence consumers,
is a thing of the past... brands must be
better from the inside out. They must
embrace a cultural shift.”
11
Source: The Liquid Agency, Brand Culture White Paper, 2012

12. Brand Target Example
Consumer Target: The Rebels of the Elite
Innovators who “Think Different” - A new class of influencers,
independent thinkers and doers that are not afraid to stand out
and embrace authenticity while leaving classless luxury for dead.
Images Source: Tommy Ton’s Tumblr Blog

13. You've got to eat while you dream.
You've got to deliver on short-range
commitments, while you develop a
long-range strategy and vision and
implement it. …success [is] …doing
both.
13
Source: Jack Welch

14. Additional Considerations
Consumer interviews reveal opportunity in the short
term for consumer connection and growth
“ I love Kérastase. I think its products are amazing, but I stopped using it because the
size of the package was too small based on how much it cost. I would prefer to pay
more for a larger package that would last much longer.”
Former Kérastase
consumer from
Blu Salon,
Edgewater NJ
“ I know Kérastase is a very high quality product, but it has no personality to me.”
Customer of a
high end salon in
Northern NJ
“ I was going to use Kérastase but when I read the label I saw that it was made by
L’Oréal. Then I became concerned that I was just getting a mass brand in fancy
packaging.”
Customer of a
high end salon in
New York City
“ It’s hard to trust your stylist enough to give them free reign to create whatever they
feel is best. Looking at me and my friends, I’ve noticed that we only make big changes to
our hair when something in our lives has changed. Marriage... baby... age...”
Customer of a
high end salon in
Northern NJ
14
Source: Interviews with customers of high end salons

15. Additional Considerations
Kérastase Paris’
Marketing Growth Drivers
Training
Material
Interactive
Advertising
Packaging
Retail
Theater
PR
Brand
Experience
Strategic
Alliances
Influencer
Sampling
CRM

16. Additional Considerations
Additional Information Needed
Strategy and Execution must be informed by the
realities and circumstances the brand faces
•
Historical volume and distribution levels with growth rates
•
Brand performance vs. the competition
•
Future projections and goals for the brand
•
Kérastase’s consumer decision journey*... how well do we understand it?
Source: McKinsey & Co Marketing Insights; June 2009

17. Thank You
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