Caprice crosses border as Palmolive makes shampoo play in U.S.

Headnote

With Walmart already on board, marketer bets Mexican brand can thrive off equity built in smaller media markets

COLGATE-PALMOLIVE CO. has made a small fortune die past decade bringing its popular Suavitel fabric softener and Fabuloso household-cleaner brands from Mexico into the U.S. and letting them thrive largely off equity built in a smaller, cheaper media market.

Now, the company is putting that strategy to the acid test in one of the most hody contested markets in U.S. package goods - mass hair care - as it began importing Palmolive Caprice shampoo and conditioner from Mexico to the U.S. last month.

The idea of a shampoo named after what's best known as dish soap may seem incongruous to many consumers. But Palmolive has a distant heritage in the U.S. as a shampoo brand in the early 20th century, and a far more recent heritage for many consumers of Latin, Asian or even European descent.

One person familiar with the matter said Palmolive ranks behind only...