CASE STUDY: Feline Pine [acceleration]

The Case

As the market leader of the relatively small natural cat litter segment, Feline Pine was stalled after years of double-digit growth.

The Challenge

With growing consumer interest in the environment and especially in “green” products, Feline Pine was well positioned to succeed. However, competing against Clorox, Purina and Arm & Hammer, the brand’s share of voice and shelf limited its opportunity to accelerate. Recognizing this, the president of the company and senior management felt the brand needed to rethink everything.

The Approach

After conducting a comprehensive U and A, followed by extensive data mining and consumer research to understand buying behaviors and preferences, Concentric found that a comprehensive brand reinvention was needed for Feline Pine. Instead of continuing to think like a commodity product, Concentric recommended the brand shift to a lifestyle-focused approach that moved the position from environmental to a health and emotion orientation.

Key Action Steps

• Retention Study
• Consumer Insights Panel
• Package Redesign
• Broadcast Advertising—TV/Radio
• Website Customer Forums

• Veterinary Spokesperson Utilization
• Print/Interactive Advertising
• Loyalty Card Marketing
• Vet Clinic Outreach

The Results

With a clear brand personality, decisions regarding tagline, logo, packaging, web development and overall strategy became simple. The brand was able to seek out and find its next consumers more easily. Unaided awareness more than tripled. Brand distribution is at an all-time high and Feline Pine Scoop® has grown 139% in the past 12 months alone. In a flat $1.6 billion litter category, that kind of growth is simply huge.