Olay
 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification.(May 2024) |
 The logo of Olay | |
| Product type | Beauty products |
|---|---|
| Owner | Procter & Gamble |
| Country | United States |
| Introduced | 1952 |
| Markets | Worldwide |
| Previous owners | Adams National Industries |
| Tagline | "Ageless" |
| Website | Olay.com |
OlayorOlaz,previouslyOil of Olay,Oil of Olaz,Oil of Ulan,orOil of Ulay,is an Americanskin carebrand owned byProcter & Gamble.For the 2009 fiscal year, which ended on June 30, Olay accounted for an estimated $2.8 billion of P&G's revenue.[1]
History
[edit]Early days
[edit]Olay originated inSouth Africaas Oil of Olay. Graham Wulff (1916–2008), a formerUnileverchemist fromDurban,[2]started it in 1952. He chose the name "Oil of Olay" as a spin on the word "lanolin",a key ingredient.
It was unique in the early days because it was a pink fluid rather than a cream, packaged in a heavy glass bottle. Wulff and his marketing partner, Jack Lowe, a former copywriter, had tested the product on their wives and friends and were confident in its uniqueness and quality.[citation needed]
Olay's marketing was also unique, since it was never described as a moisturizer, nor even as beauty fluid. Nowhere on the packaging did it say what the product actually did. Print advertisements used copy such as "Share the secret of a younger looking you" and talked about the "beauty secret" of Oil of Olay. Other advertisements were written as personal messages to the reader from a fictitious advice columnist named Margaret Merril. They ran inReader's Digestand newspapers and often looked like editorials.[citation needed]
Wulff and Lowe, who ran the company under the banner of Adams National Industries (ANI), did not sell the product to the trade. It instead waited for pharmacies to ask for it based on consumer requests.[citation needed]
As the company began to market the product internationally, the ANI decided to modify the name of the product in each country so it would sound pleasing and realistic to consumers. This led to the introduction of Oil of Ulay (Irelandand theUnited Kingdom), Oil of Ulan (Australia), and Oil of Olaz (France,Germany,Italy,and theNetherlands). In 1970, the ANI opened a test market in theUnited States(Chicago) and was expanding into northern Germany.[citation needed]
1970–1985
[edit]Richardson Merrell Inc.(later Richardson-Vicks Inc.) acquired ANI in November 1970.[2]RVI capitalized the "Oil" and added the sub-name "Beauty Fluid" to help protect the trademark. They further added a sales force and created TV advertising. The company extended the product range to include items such as Night of Ulay and Beauty Cleanser and expanded into more countries (Spain, France, and Germany).
The result of Richardson Merrell's efforts was a dramatic increase in sales. However, as with many brands, the business was not uniformly managed, so there were differences in performance between countries.[citation needed]
1985–2000
[edit]RVI was acquired byProcter & Gamblein 1985.[3]P&G greatly expanded Olay both in the line-up and internationally. Olay became P&G's 13th billion dollar brand in 2013.[4]
Since then, the range has been expanded to include a full range ofhypoallergenicvariants, cleansers and creams. The brand also includes soap, and body wash. Olay Cosmetics was launched in 1996 but discontinued in 2001.[citation needed]
Name change
[edit]In 1999, P&G decided to unify the brand under a global name. Thus, Oil of Ulan and Ulay became Olay on a worldwide basis,[5]except in German-speaking regions and Italy, where it remained "Oil of Olaz". In the Netherlands and Belgium, it renamed to just "Olaz".
2000 to present
[edit]In October 2000, Olay launched in thePhilippines.In August 2007, Olay was launched inIndia.From 2010 to 2020,Oil of OLAZwas simply known asOLAZin German-speaking countries. Slogan: "Olaz lässt Sie strahlen."(Lit.:" Olaz lets you shine. ") Since 2020OLAZhas also been marketed asOLAYin German-speaking countries.[citation needed]
In 2019,Sarah Hylandpartnered with Olay for a skin product campaign.[6][7]
In 2024, introduced a new cosmetics science course with the online learning platformCoursera.[8]
Ingredients
[edit]Olay uses many different ingredients in the production of their skin care line.[9]The main ingredients used include retinyl propionate (vitamin Aderivative),glycerin,niacinamide (vitamin B3), broad spectrum sunscreen,coconut oil, and aminopeptides.
Brand and industry awards
[edit]In 2011, Olay ranked in 1st place among 50 of the industry leaders in Brand Finance's Top 50 Cosmetic Brands.[10]A more recent report, dated 2021, has Olay maintaining its high position, ranking 19th in the Top 50.[11]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^Byron, Ellen (2010-01-07)."Olay Highlights P&G's Push to Extend Brands".Wall Street Journal.ISSN0099-9660.Archivedfrom the original on 2014-10-30.Retrieved2016-07-21.
- ^ab"Cosmetics and Skin: Company Timeline".cosmeticsandskin.com.Archivedfrom the original on 2019-07-01.Retrieved2016-07-21.
- ^"A Company History"(PDF).Procter and Gamble.Archived(PDF)from the original on 7 November 2020.Retrieved21 July2016.
- ^"2013 Annual Report"(PDF).Procter and Gamble Annual Reports.Procter and Gamble.Archived(PDF)from the original on 1 August 2016.Retrieved21 July2016.
- ^"OIL OF OLAY gets a makeover".INTA Bulletin.International Trademark Association. 1 July 2000. Archived fromthe originalon 2016-08-17.Retrieved2016-09-21.
- ^"Sarah Hyland on Her Unique Campaign with Olay, Fighting for Her Health and 'Modern Family' Ending".Forbes.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-07-09.Retrieved2021-07-23.
- ^"Sarah Hyland Shares Her Favorite Self-Care Practices | Entertainment Tonight".Archivedfrom the original on 2021-07-15.Retrieved2021-07-23.
- ^"Olay launches cosmetics science course with Coursera".Cosmetics Business.Retrieved1 April2024.
- ^"Search by product name".CosDNA.com.Archivedfrom the original on 2022-02-07.Retrieved2016-09-21.
- ^"BrandFinance Top 50 Cosmetics Brands - 2011 (Brand Finance) | Ranking The Brands".Archivedfrom the original on 2016-08-14.Retrieved2016-07-21.
- ^Haigh, Richard (2021)."Cosmetics 50 2021 | Brand Value Ranking League Table".brandirectory.com.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-10-11.Retrieved2022-02-07.