Retail News South Africa

Madam & Eve goes to the cleaners

Comic strip duo Madam & Eve are about to hit supermarket shelves under a new range of household cleaning products branded Magicmaid, thanks to a co-branding venture between Rapid Phase and industrial cleaning group SAFIC Holdings, conceptualised and orchestrated by marketing expert Roman Cylkowski.
Madam & Eve goes to the cleaners

Says SAFIC Holdings Group CEO Fred Platt, “Madam & Eve will be introduced to the category as a fun yet hard working brand, encapsulating Madam & Eve's personality on the back of a range of efficacious formulations specifically developed for this market by an industry leader.”

Madam & Eve is an hilarious syndicated comic strip about a middle-aged white woman and her "domestic maintenance assistant", Eve Sisulu, that has appeal for diverse cultural groups, genders and ages. The characters reach five million people everyday across the country.

Signing of the agreement between Safic and Rapid Phase, creators of Madam & Eve.
Signing of the agreement between Safic and Rapid Phase, creators of Madam & Eve.

Research among consumers has shown that humour is one of the best tools for creating a connection, especially with the more than one million domestic workers across South Africa. Domestic workers are the home experts and the Magicmaid brand is intended to pay tribute to their dedication in keeping SA homes in peak running condition, using Eve as their spokesperson and representative within the category.

Encompassing a range of 13 products, each label bears a unique cartoon of Madam & Eve by Rico Schacherl and Steve Francis depicting the style of humour we've become accustomed to with South Africa's much loved chief domestic maintenance expert.

Cheekily positioned with the strapline “Cleans what madam can't”, the range aims to appeal to consumers looking for a fun yet hardworking brand. It also introduces a zany sense of humour into a category traditionally known for its very serious, contrived and boring testimonial type approach to consumers.

The launch will be supported with an extensive media campaign which includes billboards, press and magazine, as well as online advertising.

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