Crabtree & Evelyn Announce New Brand Identity
Crabtree & Evelyn has announced a new brand identity, more in keeping with the ethos of its founder, wanderlust and nature enthusiast, Cyrus Harvey – and one that is aimed at bringing it right into the 21st Century!
The brand is obviously looking to move away from an old lady gift set image, to one that resonates with the younger generations. Let’s be honest, no-one ever has really thought Crabtree & Evelyn is cool, have they?! It’s the kind of beauty brand you would buy for that Auntie, am I right?
Lovely, but a little bit safe, and not much fun.
Well, all that might soon change. Harvey founded the brand in 1972, with values of travel, connection and curation – and the folks at C&E, as they want to be known, have decided that those values are super-relevant today. And they have invented a slogan to promote them – Born Curious. Grown Wild.
They didn’t stop there. Nope, C&E want to target the Gen Z and Millennial consumers, and made some bold and brave moves to do just that – namely discontinuing all the products and shutting all the shops. Wow.
“We knew we had to reconstruct everything. That meant our brand, our products, our business model – to be welcomed into the curious, global community of global explorers., and to be authentic. There could be no half measures. So we made the daring decision to discontinue all of our existing products, close all of our existing stores, and reintroduce the brand behind a dynamically different product range and a social and digitally driven business model – David Stern C&E CEO
The company will now focus on online business and has already paid loads of influencers to start the buzz with the hashtag #BornCuriousGrownWild. This campaign started on instagram a few days ago, in time for today’s launch.
There will also be some ‘concept stores’ in key cities across the world, and host experiences for consumers, in the future months, but for now, it’s all about the digital, and all about attracting a new consumer. Oh and mainly all about the slogan/mantra/hashtag.
For me, this mantra is not just a reflection of our founder Cyrus Harvey, who explored the world in search of ingredients and inspiration. It’s a reflection of today’s Millennial and Gen Z ‘Zillennial’ consumers. This group are more curious than ever, using knowledge as currency, experiences for growth, and demanding that brands feed these desires. It’s no longer about traditional retail, it’s about connecting to our consumers whenever, wherever – on their terms. Traditional media has also evolved, with influence in the hands of the many, rather than the few, which is why we too have evolved to become a social-first brand that exists digitally, and uses authentic storytelling to echo the modern values of our brand, and our audience – Nicole Cowell de Gruchy, Global Social Director
There are two collections to start with – the first is Evelyn Rose – described as “a new and unexpected take on a rose-scented collection that invites the consumer to reject the ordinary, embrace the thorns and unleash their unique nature”. Quite.
Next up is the first genderless offering from the brand – a must have nowadays I’d say if you are marketing yourself at Millennials and younger – called Crabtree. This is described as “a collection of elevated essential products encompassing the brand’s celebratory and inclusive approach to life”.
These new products will sit alongside The Cult Collection, a curated edit of Crabtree & Evelyn icons enhanced under the new brand vision.
The new packaging is sleek, and the products look interesting. I am waiting to try some of them, so can’t comment yet on the scents or feel of them, but if it was a luxury, but fresh and modern look they were going for then they have succeeded.
The Crabtree collection has things like a new Buff + Invigorate Body Bar (£13.50) which I love the look of, and Refresh + Renew Face Foam (£21.50) which has apple AHAs in there.
The Evelyn Rose Velvet Body Melt (£31.50) is a rich cream that melts into an oil, and a Soft Touch Face Foam (£21.50) that includes ingredients like Rosewater Concentrate, Crambe Abyssinica Seed Oil and Coconut Water.
If you want to check out the new collections or see what other cult products are available, then get over to crabtree-evelyn.co.uk, or follow the hashtag on social media.
