Earlier this month I was discussing fad products in my Marketing class and brought up 80s icon Chia Pet. Immediately my senioritis-inflicted students burst into renditions of the now infamous jingle. That’s impressive name recognition for a brand that peaked in popularity when they were fetuses and sustains itself today only through nostalgic impulse buys and endless line extension. It got me wondering whether manufacturer Joseph Enterprises, with a little outsourced design help, could retrieve the Chia brand from the compost pile.
Chia’s major flaw, and the reason for its sharp decline after an early success, is its over-reliance on a single expression of its brand position. Although consumers responded warmly to the first Chia pets’ playful and innovative take on a traditional terra cotta planter, Joseph Enterprises mistakenly attributed Chia’s popularity solely to a specific design element: the substitution of sprouts for hair. Chasing the high of the
Chia Ram, the company launched product after product featuring sprouts-as-hair rather than branching out into other playful and unexpected (non-follicular) designs. And each time they repeated the same joke, fewer people chuckled. Licensing deals with popular television and film characters (Chia Homer and Chia Shrek) keep revenue trickling in, but today it is difficult to tell Chia product from Chia parody.
In 1994, realizing, perhaps, that its star was falling, Joseph Enterprises made one serious attempt to diversify with the Chia Herb Garden. Unfortunately, the plain terra cotta pots failed to embody the creative design that made the original pets so popular. Without a visual surprise, the herb garden had no real connection to the Chia brand. Few sold.
Remarkably, after two decades and several missteps, Chia retains enormous brand awareness. And the recent demand for retro brands gives the company an opportunity. Considering Chia’s status as an American pop-culture darling, the brand would have little trouble getting media and word-of-mouth attention for a comeback attempt. The trick is for Chia to abandon the sprouts-as-hair gimmick that relegated it to fad status and showcase original, quirky designs that surprise and amuse.
Finding a source for fresh designs may be difficult for Joseph Enterprises, a company best known for infomercial-friendly fare like the Clapper, Ove Glove, and Creosote Chimney Log; however, there’s one success story which might point the way. Target thought outside the big box and partnered with famous architects and designers to differentiate their brand from logistics expert Wal-Mart. Perhaps Chia could commission young artists to lend their creativity to the brand?
At its core, the Chia brand is about blending elements of the outdoors and indoors in playful, visually interesting ways. It’s about reimagining the indoor planter, and bringing the outdoors in has never been more relevant. A whole generation, raised in cities and suburbs on video games and processed foods, is coming of age in America, connecting to nature for the first time through the organic and environmental movements. Chia can serve as an ambassador brand, using this generation’s affinity for popular culture and design to connect Gen Y (and the Millenials) with the outdoors and challenge gardening’s gingham and appliqué tradition.
There’s no time to waste. Competitor Nyokki (Japanese for “grow”) is emerging as the missing link between Chia Past and one possible Chia Future. Left unchecked, Nyokki may soon take its playful (yet still hair-centric) designs to another level of abstraction and eliminate Chia’s chance for perennial success. Immediate action is needed, or Chia, like another now-extinct product of its era, will have fallen, with no chance of getting up.
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