ABSTRACT
Bio-Vert is a leading Canadian brand of eco-cleaning products manufactured by Quebec-based Savons Prolav. Run by brother and sister team Yan and Bianka Grand-Maison, Savons Prolav bases its products on their vision which includes eco-friendliness, affordability, and effectiveness. Demand for Bio-Vert's phosphate-free detergents has increased dramatically since the 2007 blue-green algae bloom outbreaks in Quebec's waterways and subsequent legislation restricting phosphate use in cleaning products. As Bio-Vert products were already phosphate-free, they flew off store shelves. Demand exploded and within a year, Bio-Vert products were carried by all major provincial retailers, including Loblaws Companies Limited, Metro, Costco Wholesale Corporation and Walmart. To stave off increasing competition, Savons Prolav needed to do more to differentiate Bio-Vert from its competitors. Product efficiency, the brand's prime differentiator, was no longer enough. Sales of Bio-Vert products skyrocketed during and after this crisis, thanks in part to broad media coverage that sensitized consumers to solutions that mitigated recurrences.
