****DISCLAIMER:
This article contains sport, references to sporting personalities, and
possibly even images of men in shorts sport. Be warned.**** Oh, and it's been written by MrLippie ...
Ever
since Jonny Wilkinson burst into the national consciousness of England
in 2003, there's been a slowly increasing awareness that rugby players
are not always the rugged bastions of semi-Neanderthal manliness that
they have often been portrayed as. This was further promoted with the
appearance of the perma-tanned Gavin Henson on various "celebrity"
shows,
although it could (and should) be argued that he took the whole
image-conscious look to the extreme.
So,
when Bath Rugby Club recently announced they had teamed up with Rock Face for
Men as a new sponsor, it hasn't raised as many eyebrows as it might have
a few years ago - although those who don't follow the sport might well
be surprised! Now, what sort of brand chooses a rugby team to be their
new "faces"? Would it be a brand going down the uber-macho route, or
were we looking at one which was aiming at sophistication, charm and
wit? Going for the stereotype or something more left-field? Given that this was the first time I'd
heard of a skincare brand associating with a specific rugby team, I was
willing to bet it would be the former.
A
brief look at the brand intrigued me - the packaging for all of their
products is very straightforward - no garish attempts at being
eyecatching, no attempts to look ridiculously sleek - just a simple
glossy design, white and muted
green, with a stylised mountain panorama. Each of the products has a
different slogan on the front, but again, it's not in your face at all.
You can read it if you really want, but half the time they'd just slide
past your consciousness (as did the fact that they all have German
subtitles - I only noticed that 3 weeks after I bought it!). So far, so
good.
The
first product I trialled was the shaving foam - naturally! The gel is
coloured to match the packaging - the muted green - and it fluffs up
nicely. It actually feels smoother than a lot of the competition, and
spreads across the face without feeling too soapy. The only minor
downside is that, being fluffy, it is surprisingly difficult to catch
all of it with a razor! A quick wipe across the face with a towel solves
that fairly swiftly, but definitely advisable to spare a quick glance
in the mirror to make sure none of it is escaping into your ears or
round the back
of your neck....
After
the foam, I gave the Face Scrub a try - now, I'm always a bit wary with
these, after my first experience with them a few years ago left me
wondering whether my cheekbones were exposed to the elements - but this
was pretty good. Lightly scented (v.faint citrus, as with the rest of
the range), with an almost Pacific Ocean colouring, it cooled and
lathered up quite well, without feeling too gritty or feeling like just
another moisturiser. Not bad. I was left looking a bit peaky and pink
afterwards, but only to be expected - didn't damage me too much!
Onto
the moisturiser - again, it's nicely done. Doesn't leave you feeling
oily or greasy, rubs into the skin quickly, and you don't feel like
there's something hanging around on your face for hours afterwards.
Handy!
The
last product I trialled was the Shower Gel. Nice, cooling, with the
citrus
aroma that doesn't linger too long, it does leave you feeling fairly
fresh without the blast of menthol usually necessary to achieve the same
effect! I'm quite happy with it, overall.
The
overall impression I garnered from the range - both packaging and actual content - was that it goes a long way to achieving the "no fuss"
status it aspires to. It's a great market to aim at, as so many guys
these days are conscious of their appearance, but have no intention of
letting grooming eat into their routine - I, for example, have an aim of
being out of the flat and on the way to work within 30-45 minutes of my
alarm going off, and I look at suspicion at anything that interferes
with that goal - much to Get Lippie's despair....
On
the flip side, how do Bath Rugby club feel about their new sponsor? We
were lucky enough to spend a weekend in Bath (beautiful city, by the
way) and went along to the Rec
to sound it out whilst watching a game. Geoff Binding, the Business
Development Manager, was around for most of the afternoon whilst we took
full advantage of the hospitality, and filled us in on a bit of the
background. "Rock Face are a great match for us, as they're a national
brand gaining visibility and with a genuine desire to build a
partnership with the club. The players have found out that there's a big
box of Rock Face products behind my desk and I keep on getting harassed
to hand it over."
 |
| Ben Williams - Centre |
Ben
Williams, Bath Rugby centre, said: “Rock Face offer no-fuss, great
products – we’re out in all different types of weather when we’re
training, and even the forwards need to look after their skin, so it’s
great to be associated with these guys.”
But what about the image and reputation of being a rugby player? Was that a worry at all?
"The
great thing about rugby is that it’s always been full of lots of
different characters. Looking back, you have the likes of Gareth
Chilcott and Jeremy Guscott, who have pretty different images in the
public eye, but were both fantastic rugby players. There are different
views on what a rugby player can get away with these days, but I think
so long as his performances on the field are up to scratch then there
isn’t really a problem.”
Fair
point. In a rugby-mad city like Bath, a little thing like a partnership
with a skincare brand isn't going to affect the view of the club - it's
all about what happens out on the pitch. In that respect, Rock Face is
probably the best brand they could've teamed up with - it's not
over-egging the image - it's all about getting the job
done with a minimum of fuss.
Prices are extremely reasonable for the quality and range from £2.99 to £4.99 (from Waitrose and Sainsbury's) but if you want to buy online, enter the code "GETLIPPIE" at the checkout at
http://www.rockface4men.co.uk/buy-rockface-online.asp and you'll get your products on a great 3 for 2 offer. We spoil you guys.
You can find out more about
Rock Face and Bath Rugby Club here.
Editors Note: I got asked for more player pictures, never let it be said I'm not obliging:
 |
| Dave Attwood - Second Row |
 |
| Stephen Donald - Fly Half |
 |
| Dan Hipkiss - Centre |
 |
| Guy Mercer - Back Row |
 |
Anthony Perenise - Prop
|
The Fine Print: We had complimentary tickets to the match, but products were bought at our own expense.
This post: Rock Face and Rugby, A Match Made in Heaven? originated at: Get Lippie All rights reserved. If you are not reading this post at Get Lippie, then this content has been stolen by a scraper
