The tagline “The Bold Look of Kohler” was created in 1967 for a one-year ad campaign. Today, it’s over 50 years old and still represents Kohler plumbing around the world.
Advertising has evolved over the last century, but Kohler’s consistently bold approach has been the difference in building the brand. From national magazine campaigns beginning in 1915, to TV commercials aired around the world, to personalized digital experiences, Kohler has been building its brand awareness and driving consumer demand through advertising for more than 100 years.
In the mid-1960s, Kohler made its biggest and boldest advertising move to date with the marketing of their new line of products in five stylish accent colors: Antique Red, Blueberry, Citron, Espresso and Jade. The colors were an instant hit with distributors, sales reps and homebuilders, and the decision was made to make a major investment in national television advertising to debut the bold and colorful new look of Kohler.
The Bold Look of Kohler tagline and the “bold look girl” were launched on national television on the widely viewed NBC late-night show, The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. They were initially used as advertising graphics alongside the Kohler of Kohler logo, and The Bold Look of Kohler, as it’s known today, wasn’t adopted as a logo until the late 1970s.
In the years that followed the Bold Look launch, Kohler continued to ramp up advertising efforts across TV, radio and print, and by 1987 had earned the number one spot in unaided brand awareness for the first time in history. Kohler maintains that top position to this day.
