Axe Is Finally Taking the Subtle Route in 'The History of Overdoing It' Campaign

AXE is done apologizing for the past, and is now hellbent on redesigning it.

The men’s grooming brand has launched a new proprietary spray technology alongside a campaign titled “The History of Overdoing It.”

The goal is to establish the spray update as both a product fix and a brand reset.

Available first at Walmart, the upgraded body spray promises a lighter, more controlled mist with up to 10% more sprays per can.

It also delivers a more focused application designed to reduce overspraying, one of the most common consumer complaints over the years.

For a brand long associated with teenage excess, this is a big step for AXE.

It knows just how its consumers perceive it, so it's finally making moves to alter its brand identity towards subtlety and control.

“AXE has always been part of the cultural conversation around guys doing too much, and for years, that included how our body spray was used," said Dolores Assalini, head of AXE US.

Assalini explained that the campaign enables the legacy brand to own its overspraying past "while officially making it history.”

A Time-Traveling Brand Reset

The campaign brings the idea to life by poking fun at generations of guys who overdid it, drawing parallels between cultural excess and AXE’s own reputation.

Take, for example, a man from the Stone Age using a fish he caught to impress a woman.

Instead of being wooed by his talents, sticking the fish up proudly only gave her the ick.

The historian then compares this notion of "overdoing it" to overspraying AXE all over your body. It's this very idea of the brand that AXE is finally saying goodbye to.

The spray innovation will roll out across AXE’s full body spray portfolio, starting with a new scent.

Part of its Fine Fragrance Collection, the new Midnight Amber is inspired by the quiet luxury movement and features notes of hazelnut, sandalwood, and vanilla.

The product will retail between $5.99 and $7.99 at Walmart.

Overall, it's clear what AXE is trying to say here. Spray smarter, not louder.

AXE’s Spray Reinvention

AXE offers a practical case study in how to correct brand perception without discarding the equity built over the years.

• Product innovation works best when it clearly solves a long-standing consumer complaint.
• Owning past brand stereotypes can build credibility instead of triggering defensive messaging.
• Retail-first launches with functional upgrades strengthen both shelf appeal and storytelling.

Now, the question is, can AXE consistently reinforce this more restrained positioning while staying culturally relevant to the modern-day man?

Unilever, Axe's parent company, reported a turnover of about $59.4 billion in 2024, giving context to the resources and global reach behind the brand’s reinvention.

Our Take: Can a Brand Outgrow Its Own Joke?

It's true, AXE has always been known to be a loud brand associated with excess.

However, this time around, the brand is ready to address consumer pain points by acknowledging that people don't actually want to be able to smell you meters away.

There’s something honest about admitting you overdid it for years, and in a category like menscare, this kind of subtlety and restraint can feel almost rebellious.

Reinvention doesn’t have to be dramatic. Sometimes it’s just tightening the spray and letting the product speak for itself.

In other news, Old Spice revived a '90s classic to tell a coming-of-age story in its latest campaign. 

Brands pursuing ambitious creative need partners who are all in on their ideas. Take a look at the top creative agencies in our directory.