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DAYTON, OHIO—Design Forum, a leading retail consultancy, worked with Procter & Gamble Co. to bring the Mr. Clean™ brand to life in the form of the Mr. Clean Performance Car Wash®, a premium interior and exterior wash that offers state−of−the−art car cleaning equipment with a high level of service and multiple customer amenities. This is P&G’s first expansion into the retail market.

The car wash opened June 27, 2007 at the corner of Mason−Montgomery and Socialville−Foster Roads in Deerfield Township, near Cincinnati, Ohio. As part of the company’s strategy to stretch its successful brands, the Mr. Clean Performance Car Wash further extends the Mr. Clean brand. The brand has seen sales triple in the last five years to more than $400 million, with the launch of the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser® and the Mr. Clean AutoDry® home car wash product.

The effort is a result of the company’s FutureWorks division, which seeks opportunities beyond the scope of P&G’s existing business units. FutureWorks identified the car wash industry as a strong prospect for growth and thought there was an opportunity in the market to deliver a high−quality wash.

“We are treating this project like a learning lab to help determine whether P&G will build out the concept as a national chain,” said Glenn Williams, P&G spokesman. “Our research shows that consumers are quick and happy to associate the Mr. Clean brand with a high quality car wash.”

In addition to the research that P&G conducted, Design Forum gathered consumer insights and found out that having a clean car makes people feel better about their lives.

“The idea that a clean car makes people happy led to the idea of ’magically clean’ as the design filter, which carries through all elements of the design, from the phrases and images used in the graphics to the form of the fixtures,” said Scott Jeffrey, chief creative officer, Design Forum.

Coming into the project P&G had already established the name “Mr. Clean Performance Car Wash.” Design Forum used the key elements of the Mr. Clean brand identity to create a dimensionalized circular seal logo with the Mr. Clean character at the center. The team freshened the Mr. Clean typeface and colors and added the words “Performance Car Wash” to create a strong, powerful mark.

The Experience
As customers drive up to the facility, clear signage directs them to the self−serve or full−service queuing. For full service, they pull under a bright blue arched canopy and an attendant approaches their car with an electronic handheld device for taking orders. Three lanes help manage traffic and minimize the perception of a long line. Overhead there are Mr. Clean−branded menu boards that describe the wash options which include everything from a basic wash to a full interior detailing. After the customer chooses the level of wash, the attendant prints a receipt from the handheld unit, notes the selection, and the customer’s car enters the state−of−the−art wash tunnel.

As the car is being washed, customers have several options. There is exterior seating including brand−blue benches and picnic tables. Inside the 2,100−square−foot convenience store there is a gift shop and coffee bar serving P&G’s Millstone Coffee®, complete with a lounge space offering wireless Internet and flat screen TVs.

In addition to the coffee, the store provides an opportunity to sell other P&G products, like Tide to Go®, Febreeze® Auto Fabric Refresher™ and licensed Mr. Clean car products, alongside snacks and drinks, greeting cards, stationary, car−related accessories, housewares, books and toys for the kids.

“We wanted the Mr. Clean Performance Car Wash to be loaded with amenities and we especially focused on the female customer, who we discovered often feels uncomfortable in traditional car washes,” said Jeffrey. “In addition to the fact that the customer can get a fast car wash, the experience is clean, bright, friendly and safe, while the store provides added convenience and entertains the kids.”

The Space
From the exterior the building looks simple and contemporary, conveying a sense of quality and speed, but not appearing overly expensive. A metal architectural band circles the top of the building and a blue arch detail brings elements together and points to the entrance. A tile mosaic surrounds the entryway, with varied shades of blue creating a dramatic backdrop for the Mr. Clean identity to be the focus of the building.

The interior space is predominantly white with a fresh, bright color palette that ties back to the brand’s signature azure blue. The vivid green accent color was inspired by the packaging of the Mr. Clean AutoDry line of home car wash products.

Upon entering the store there is a curved welcome wall that introduces the experience. Above the signature water supergraphic, dots that mirror the shape and angle of the Mr. Clean Performance Car Wash logo communicate the brand attributes and voice with phrases like “Helping you shine is our business” and “Cars everywhere rejoice.”

“The welcome wall is a powerful moment to tell the brand story,” said Jeffrey. “Through imagery and brand messages it conveys the ’Experience the Shine’ theme and lets people know that this is a premium car wash experience.”

Throughout the interior, large windows allow customers to observe their vehicles moving through the adjacent 140−foot wash tunnel. Mimicking the exterior canopies, three blue archways segment the space and help move people through the different areas. These arches also provide an impactful backdrop for the special merchandise focals, where curved white fixtures highlight various items for purchase.

Rippling ceiling details and a blue splash mark inset into the floor punctuate one of two stations—the “Sud Soaker” and “Radical Rinse”—where kids of all ages can control remote spray nozzles that shoot colored suds and high pressure rinse water at the cars as they roll by.

The blue and white cash wrap is in the center of the space, dividing the merchandise from the lounge area. Here, the same blue tile mosaic from the entry adorns two sides of the counter, and low refrigeration units and shelves offer up drinks and snacks, with the coffee bar on the side. A stylish ceiling detail anchors this part of the store and overhead signage includes the familiar Mr. Clean character as well as the Millstone coffee logo.

The centerpiece of the sleek lounge area is the water feature, which has a tile backdrop. An acrylic panel is floated in front of the trickling water with the statement: “We promise you a delightful car cleaning experience to help you shine.” Beyond the water feature a curved wall that mirrors the one at the entry features a supergraphic of a shining car with Mr. Clean reflected in its hood.

From this vantage point customers can see their cars emerge from the car wash tunnel to receive the final touches. At this point an employee takes the car to one of 18 stations in the Finishing Canopy where vacuuming and other detail work takes place. This blue canopy was designed to communicate performance and highlight the moment when the car is “magically clean.”

“We wanted the canopy arches to be contemporary and simple,” says Jeffrey. “They are impactful from a distance, they are memorable and they differentiate. They really become an arcon—an architectural icon—for the brand.”

About Design Forum
Design Forum is the premier retail consulting firm whose design process integrates research, strategy, branding, design, architecture and implementation. Headquartered in Dayton, Ohio with offices in London, Los Angeles, New York, Paris and San Francisco, the company has produced award−winning designs for an international client list that includes Walgreens, Applebee’s, Smart Car, AT&T, Washington Mutual, Yankee Candle, John Deere and Procter & Gamble. For more information visit www.designforum.com or contact Beth Ling, 937/439−4400.

Design Forum is part of Interbrand Group, a leading global branding consultancy. The organization is owned by Omnicom (NYSE: OMC) (www.omnicomgroup.com), a strategic holding company that manages a portfolio of global market leaders.

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