Our signature scents are so beloved that people have been requesting spray / liquid colognes of them for years. We've had solid colognes, but there's something nice about a spray cologne that, frankly, is more traditional and therefore more commonly-accepted.
About 6 months ago, we partnered with my friend and colleague Jennifer Hardaway of KleanSpa to make some excellent spray colognes, but we don't make those in house. They're great, but small. People have been asking for bigger quantities, and at 3.3 oz, we might as well try making them ourselves.
But the thing is, we're not cologne makers.
We're soapmakers. We make lotion. We make body wash and hand wash. But cologne is a bit of a different beast. It means stepping into a new realm of business. It's one we're not quite familiar with on a personal level.
We went back to the lab.
Actually, that's not totally true. You see, we don't even have a lab to go back to.
Russ had to set up our own cologne lab in his office (photo of that coming soon) and try to make up concoctions that smell exactly identical to the solid cologne, body wash, and soap (which already are a moving target, since the ingredients themselves have a scent, and everything smells different on a person).
In the mean time, we've been working with our expert designer, Alyssa Butler, to design labels that both stand on their own, and work well in a box. We wanted them to reflect the Wild West and also be reminiscent of our general vice-driven theme, this time, cigars. I sent over this Pinterest board.
We wanted them to be unique among all the colognes out there, but also identifiable as part of our own product group, since our products all align with some very specific profiles.
Here's the first design:
(Yes, that's a screenshot of the actual file that she sent over.)
Right away, I got goosebumps: this is it.
So now, we're in the process of getting bottles sent to us for a small run (just 10 of each) to see how they go. Watch here (and your newsletter) to find out when they're available. Until we get the boxes, they'll be at a lower price (like $35 for 3.3 oz). Once we get the box situation sorted, they'll go up to somewhere around $50, depending on the cost of the box (yes, boxes are hella expensive for our little quantities... don't hate the player).
Are you looking forward to Outlaw Colognes?
You could probably print the label on brown paper grocery bag material and wrap it around the bottle and glue it on and I bet you people would still think that it was cool as F@$$. Might sell better with keeping the cost down for a while until it gets the name out there that way when people go to buy it they won’t be scared to spend the money on it. Most people if it’s the same price or around the same as a name that they know, even though they like the smell of yours they might go for the popular name just because most people are scared to take chances on things. That’s just what I have noticed in my sales experience when I was younger. I would have to twist arms to get them Togo with a off brand product with me knowing it’s better. People willlet you tell them your whole sales pitch and when you ask them at the end if they are ready to try it they chicken out and say nahhhh maybe next time, I’m going to go with this one for now. If the price is a little lower you have more leverage to Persway them and an usually get the sell and they come back next time and buy it again thanking you for turning them onto it and say they have told there friends.just my 2 cents I know it means squat but just thought I would put it out there. In the end it all boils down to profit and if you can sell the product for x amount of money with the expensive label bottle and box and make whatever profit when all is said and done but sell it for cheaper because you use cheaper label outlets and box but still make the same amount of profit in the end after all expenses are paid. I would go the cheaper route. I care about the quality of what’s in the bottle more then the looks of it. I wish you all the best luck on your way to the top of the market. Your products are the best!!!
The first ones will come without the box, but once we get enough critical mass to make a box, we’ll get a box. The box will be so nice you definitely won’t want to throw it away. :)
Hopefully we’ll have the option to buy without a box since it’ll end up in the garbage before we even try it out anyways! I’m excited to give them a try personally. I’ve only had the gambler soap so far (I missed out on trying the solid today 😭) I wish I knew what the others angels like so I could make a better decision. I’m looking very much forward to seeing you guys grow as a company. Keep up the good work!