We started by asking.
A1J is a family business in Bengaluru. Before we designed a product, a logo or a price, we went to households and asked what annoyed them about the freshener already in their bathroom.
Four wasted fragrances in every pack.
The answer we heard most was not about price. It was that a pack contains five fragrances, one is good, and the rest are tolerated. People are paying for four things they do not want.
The second answer was about time. Everything smells excellent for about three days, then thins out fast, and for the remaining weeks it is barely there.
So we are building the opposite. Two fragrances, each chosen by blind test, each formulated to hold rather than to impress on day one.
Slowly, and in this order.
- Ask firstHousehold interviews across Bengaluru before any product decision was made.
- Blind test the fragranceUnlabelled samples, ranked by real families. The winner becomes the product.
- Measure how long it lastsScored in real bathrooms on days 1, 7, 14 and 30, against the brands people already buy.
- Sample before sellingFree units to households first. If they do not ask for a second one, we have not finished.
- Sell directStraight to homes in Bengaluru, so the price reflects the product and not the shelf.
A1J is a family name.
It is on our other businesses too. That is the reason we would rather release two products we can stand behind than ten we cannot.