P&G Shampoo
Unveils New Image,
New Formula
 

 “Introducing Procter & Gamble’s
NEW!  NEW!  Drene Shampoo.”

Lincoln, Me. (DG)—

During the closing of the Saturday, March 6, 1948 broadcast of NBC’s TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES, the radio listeners expected to hear the final commercial for Drene Shampoo.  As usual, they heard the announcer talk about Drene, but it wasn’t the same Drene the listeners were familiar with.  This Drene Shampoo wasn’t just new, it was “New!  New!  Drene.” Procter & Gamble, the makers of Drene, made major changes both inside and outside. 

On the inside was a gentle shampoo that brought out the softness and shine of the hair it came in contact with.  Granted, other shampoos did this, but what sets New!  New!  Drene apart from the competition was an added ingredient known as “Soft-As-Rainwater Action.”  This new ingredient doesn’t mean all Drene users could only wash their hair out in the elements of a rainy day.  Depending on the time of year and the region the Drene user lived, this could be a very chilling experience.  What the announcer meant, Soft-As-Rainwater Action assisted Drene’s gentle shampoo in washing the hair to a natural shine and softness without a trace of dulling soapy film on the hair.  Drene washed away the unwanted dirt, but left the hair shiny, soft, and easy to manage.  If there were springy curls before the shampoo session, they were still there--- as springy as ever, after Drene got through with them. 

Speed also played a major role with New!  New!  Drene.  With the faster pace the American people had to endure during a typical 24-hour day, leisure shampooing wasn’t necessarily a thing of the past, but it was certainly on the endangered list.  When the hair had to be washed in very little time, New!  New!  Drene was the shampoo to use.  In contact with water, Drene exploded into rich, creamy lather.  This lather content was as much as 5 times the lather amount of other shampoos and soap.  New!  New!  Drene was very consistent in its quick lathering ability--- even with water that was hard enough to cut with a chainsaw.

Not only were there noticeable improvements with the shampoo inside, there were also noticeable improvements on the outside.  These changes didn’t necessarily do anything for the hair, but there was a noticeable difference in how the shampoo was packaged. 

Instead of the blue and yellow package Drene users were familiar with, New!  New!  Drene was packaged in a new colorful green and blue carton.  Its new color scheme was easy to pick out in all stores who sold shampoo.  Since the shampoo content and the carton were new, it made sense for the bottle inside the new carton to have some changes.  Its new bottle design was designed specially for the hands to hold it.  The middle of the bottle was curved in to fit the contour of the hands.  There were also ridges where the hands could easily grip the bottle without dropping and breaking.  For those people with butterfingers, there was a better chance of holding the new New!  New!  Drene bottle.

Overall, the announcer said this “Procter & Gamble Exclusive” was “headline shampoo news.”  Drene had always been a popular brand over the years, but what was sold back then (as good as it was) didn’t compare to what New!  New!  Drene offered to people who had hair on top of their heads.  Satisfied Drene users were even more satisfied with what New!  New!  Drene did for their hair.

New!  New!  Drene sounds like it’s too good to be true, doesn’t it?  It was a real product and the people who used this new formula liked it very much--- but it was replaced the following year with the next “Procter & Gamble Exclusive.” 

Since it was introduced, Drene has had its share of improvements.  This is one of a series of articles on how Drene was sold over the years.  Keep an eye out on this website and my own website (www.dg125.com) on these different changes.