Remember kids: the data will admit to anything when tortured long enough.

Total sales for Old Spice body wash at supermarkets, drugstores and mass market retailers excluding Wal-Mart were up 16.7% in the 52-week period ending June 13, according to SymphonyIRI Group, a Chicago-based market research firm.

From Forbes magazine

Who is the campaign speaking to? The women. Well then, do you know any men that leave the body-wash buying up to their women?

I do! Because it ticks me off when my man uses my girly scented shampoos & body washes!

As AdContrarian notes, 85% of purchases are made by women:

"Women buy all the important stuff -- the not-sexy, essential stuff that keeps the world going: socks and pickles and half-and-half and mayonnaise and cookies and toothbrushes and umbrellas..."

I thought it was refreshing that Old Spice noticed this, and even more refreshing that they chose not to fight it out with Axe on their terms.

Flawed? Maybe. But a worthwhile strategy. Given time, it'll hopefully tell.

(In our household, buying decisions are made by whoever's turn it is to do the shopping, unless a clear preference is made and generally a torn-off label provided; it's agreed that the fewer scents in soap, the better.)

OK.OK. I give. Women buy stuff. I know this is true. My wife probably bought everything in this house. But I draw the line at my scents, my soaps and my skivvies. Only I know what shaving cream I like, only I know what body wash I want. It's personal. It's mine. I'll dry myself off with those silly looking lace towels, and put my feet on that flowery bathroom rug of hers, but I'll be damned if she picks out my body wash.

I agree that it was about time someone went another route than the Axe/Tag/Hai Karate shit. That stuff has been done to death.

Hey, good points -- and maybe you're right, maybe that 15% includes that personal sort of product.

We might find out something. I'm hoping that something isn't that the Axe etc. approach is the only way. On one hand, I appreciate Axe for essentially carving out this niche; on the other hand, how they did it kinda represents the fall of civilization.

No hard feelings, I hope. I'd give you a hug, if you didn't smell funny.

I smell like a man, man. Man-hug

Yes, lets find out what the 15% women do not buy in the household is. It can't only be beer and lawnmowers.

Seems the aforementioned Ad Contrarian agrees.

Kind of. It seems. More dissent in the comments, though. Of which there are more than here. Even with me just commenting and commenting on my comments.

More Numbers! Now from Old Spice themselves

The brand's ad agency Wieden + Kennedy developed and coordinated 186 customized video responses that contributed to a 107% increase in Old Spice Body Wash sales over the last month, according to Nielsen data from Mike Norton, director of external relations for male grooming at P&G.

(as for lesser comments, I agree it's sad that we don't get as many. We've had spam-problems for many years due to high pagerank, and I do not have time to weed 2 real comments from 780 spam comments every day via moderation. Even with signups, there's 2 real comments and 25 spammers. What to do? I'm constantly looking for a solution. Signups are now closed due to spammers writing a script specially for us that created a new (spam) user every ten minutes 24/7 and that was getting a little old as well....)

And hopefully you buy your guns and hunting knives! I always draw the line at Guns and Hunting Knives. I buy my own. Last year she got me a pink machete. It was a complete embarrassment in the jungle.

This again goes to the heart of the Agency - Client Relationship. and Sarah Palin. You can't put lipstick on a pig and make it anything different than a pig..with lipstick on of course. I think Old Spice is a pig. BUT would the Agency be honest with the client who is hanging say $30mil in billings in front of their nose? And on the client side they knew it was a pig, but someone inside pitched to their boss new body wash and deodorant including sport scents without repackaging (do it on the cheap Yo!) and why go after AXE with Old Spice? WTF come up with your own new brand with zero heritage vs trying to take an old sailor brand and convert it like this. W+K did great. Great successful campaign. Not their fault if sales don't go up. I tried the pig and ain't going back.

Their packaging choice is a mistake. Big mistake. HUGE. /Julia Roberts /Pretty Woman

With my wife, it would have been a Laura Ashley machete. Count your blessings.

I'm off to create a company that makes Laura Ashley machetes.

Ad Contrarian and AdFreak are now weighing in on the backlash against the data. Or the backlash against the backlash.

Soooo.. I was right all along then. What do I win?

You win eleventy million hundred Internets! And I get eleventy million hundred +1 for starting it!

Lets all meet in the new thread that has so many retweets one has to scroll a mile to find the comment box (wow, there's a design boo-boo). I'll bring the beer, you bring the popcorn.