A twist on the Bubo problem
And not one that requires antibiotics or leeches, mind you. No, this latest recalls the perhaps apocryphal story of Chevrolet trying to market its Nova in Spanish-speaking countries only to find that "no va" means "it doesn't work."
Let me set the scene — a virtual stroll through Sephora was in order today since I had recently received a tantalizing email from them. I was looking for a new mascara, as my Diorshow was running out, but I'm not all that brand-loyal. Looking through the list of new products, I was struck by the name of this brand — Imju.
How do you pronounce that, I asked myself? Like "I'm Jew"? (You know, "not did you eat, but Jew eat?") The company's owner says the term is pronounced ee-myoo, but you just can't assume it will be pronounced like that in the real world. It's reasonable to assume that customers may mispronounce it as "I'm Jew." Sephora says that Imju is one of Japan's leading cosmetic brands, and so I can see how they may not have anticipated the line's being exported to the US when they selected the name, and didn't want to change for the US market despite its possible reception here. I would certainly have counseled them as to that potential concern, and I might have advised changing the mark for the US market.
Sometimes, though, a neurotic trademark practitioner (i.e., yours truly) can overthink things. Product reviews for the Imju Fiberwig mascara product are almost uniformly raves. And I didn't read about any concern over pronunciation. So while the name is a bit disconcerting and won't be winning the coveted Alt-0174 any day soon, since it doesn't evoke any infectious diseases, I'll give it a pass.
Let me set the scene — a virtual stroll through Sephora was in order today since I had recently received a tantalizing email from them. I was looking for a new mascara, as my Diorshow was running out, but I'm not all that brand-loyal. Looking through the list of new products, I was struck by the name of this brand — Imju.
How do you pronounce that, I asked myself? Like "I'm Jew"? (You know, "not did you eat, but Jew eat?") The company's owner says the term is pronounced ee-myoo, but you just can't assume it will be pronounced like that in the real world. It's reasonable to assume that customers may mispronounce it as "I'm Jew." Sephora says that Imju is one of Japan's leading cosmetic brands, and so I can see how they may not have anticipated the line's being exported to the US when they selected the name, and didn't want to change for the US market despite its possible reception here. I would certainly have counseled them as to that potential concern, and I might have advised changing the mark for the US market.
Sometimes, though, a neurotic trademark practitioner (i.e., yours truly) can overthink things. Product reviews for the Imju Fiberwig mascara product are almost uniformly raves. And I didn't read about any concern over pronunciation. So while the name is a bit disconcerting and won't be winning the coveted Alt-0174 any day soon, since it doesn't evoke any infectious diseases, I'll give it a pass.
You'd think Sephora would spend some coin to have some brand advisor ready to help its new brands as they enter the market. Egad.
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I wonder though. Isn't any controversy involving any product Sephora offers still going to drive more traffic, whether foot or eyeball, their way? And if they did have to remove a product from their shelves, wouldn't that just make way for the next aspiring occupant of Sephora shelf or site space?
My big mission with Sephora, however, involves our upcoming trip to Paris. I want to see if Sephora in Paris still provides generous quantities of free samples no matter how small your purchase, or if they've adopted the horrible American practice both of saying they don't have any samples and making you feel privileged when they give you a two-ounce bottle of lotion after you've spent $100 there. The French are giddy to provide you with samples, and those samples have led me to many happy product relationships.
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