P&G Tests Tide Basic

2009-07-16 | 03:55

No frills laundry detergent takes on low-priced competition.

For years, innovation has been a keyword at Procter & Gamble, as the company rolled out novel product after novel product.

But the "customer is boss" is another P&G mantra, which is why the companyis testing Tide Basic, a laundry powder that costs about 20% less than regular Tide and is available in about 100 Wal-Mart and Kroger stores in southern and southwestern states, including New Mexico and Texas.

There are no plans for a national rollout yet.

Tide Basic is based on the original 62-year-old Tide formula. With the tagline, "Big Value, Basic Clean," Tide Basic will offer the same cleaning quality of regular Tide, but with less of the fabric maintenance, whitening, brightening and stain removers, according to the company.

P&G is testing Tide Basic at a time when private label is capturing a larger share of many consumer product categories.