KLEENEX / LETTING IT ALL OUT / BY ED WHITE

Issue 28, 1 September 2011

Introduced 87 years ago, Kleenex the world's first facial tissue brand, has risen to become a market leader, so beloved and ubiquitous that it has long been the generic American term for tissues. But the price of fame has been misfortune: the brand itself was getting lost. Additionally, volatile commodity markets, a cultural shift towards price -consciousness , the growth of own-brand tissues and pricing wars with competitors had eroded sales volumes and margins. But Kleenex is fighting back : expanding its use through innovative packaging, lavish PR , reasserting its emotional bond, and moving from interruptive advertising to creating brand ambassadors reaching out to online social networks . Is it enough to win back consumers and fight analysts' downbeat expectations?