NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Thursday, August 6, 2015

Despite a storied history of championing condoms in Kenya, Trust Condoms has been suffering lately. After years of enjoying dominant market share, massive brand awareness, and a loyal fan base, Trust started to suffer stagnant sales and declining market share to new entrants. From 2011 to 2013, Trust users were switching to more ubiquitous alternatives like Salama (entering the market from Tanzania with massive margins that the trade quickly embraced), with ultimately 40% of Trust Classic users switching to Salama’s Halisi brand in 2013.

A proposed packaging refresh in 2014 was intended to turn the tides, along with a price hike to maintain cost recoverability, but the results were disastrous. Once the new packaging was launched, Trust’s market share plummeted 20% in 2014 alone, a direct correlation to the growth of Salama’s Halisi brand in Kenya (despite Salama having zero marketing budget).

Clearly, something else was needed.