Dove Men + Care to launch in the UK – January 2010

After much speculation, Dove are finally releasing their Dove Men + Care line in the UK after an initial launch in Italy and other European countries.

First up are the deodrants (‘Tough on sweat, not on skin”). I’m already a fan of the regular Dove deodrants for how comfortable and non-drying they are so I’ll be looking forward to the launch which will include three new scents to choose from. Energising Spice (a “woody, spicy, amber combination”) sounds like one i’d like to try!

They’re also releasing a range of 2-in-1 body and face washes which promise to leave you fresh and clean whilst retaining a great deal of moisture in the skin. If you, like me, take searingly hot showers – you may notice that the skin on your body feels quite tight and uncomfortable once you’ve dried off. Looks like the Dove products aim to prevent this moisture loss but we’ll have to wait and see on that one. Not completely sold on using a body wash on my face but we’ll see how it goes, it definately sounds like a time saver. The wash that stands out to me from their initial range is the Daily Purifying wash that contains mild exfoliating beads.

Surprised? The Dove Men + Care line looks sleek, polished and modern. Thankfully we won’t be seeing an all-nude Real Beauty campaign for this one!

Something of interest, the Unilever brand that owns Dove also owns Lynx (or Axe in the US). I see this launch as a slightly more sophisticated line compared to Lynx, which I firmly believe should only be used when you’re 13 and have no idea what deodrant is and how bad Lynx actually smells. In the article I linked to above, Colin Hession – managing director of Colin Hession Consulting – says:

“At last it seems Unilever is having a proper go at building on the unique position it has created in the male grooming category with Axe {Lynx in the UK}. If it works, Axe users will no longer have to graduate to the opposition, Nivea Men, L’Oréal Men Expert or Gillette when they grow up.”

So perhaps this is the first step in Dove coming out with a fully fledged male grooming line to compete with the other three big-boys of mass market grooming products. Watch this space for a full product review!