A lower-priced line extension seemed like a logical move to the Brazil MDO. “Everybody was
seeing the opportunity, but from the company the answer we usually got when we were saying we
need a cheaper product is that P&G can not make it. We can’t compete at that price tier,” Koelle
explained. “In 1996 we tried to compete at a lower price with Confort Seca, and it failed due to poor
performance.” The company was not able to reapply the Pampers Uni model of 1993. The success of
the recently launched Always Básico gave them hope that a line extension could work again in
diapers. Like Always, Pampers had similar cost issues and struggled to achieve a critical mass, but
possessed robust brand equity, even better than Always.