Hai Karate Cologne: Is It Still Being Manufactured?

Hai Karate was a men's cologne and aftershave sold in the United States and the United Kingdom from the 1960s to the 1980s. It was first developed by the Leeming division of Pfizer and launched in 1967. The product was known for its humorous advertising, which included self-defence instructions to help wearers fend off women. The fragrance was reintroduced in the UK in 2014 and again in 2021, but it is unclear if it is still being made today.

Hai Karate was a budget aftershave and cologne for men

Hai Karate was known for its humorous and creative advertising campaigns, which included self-defence instructions to help wearers "fend off women". The brand's marketing plan played to the male fantasy of a world where women find them irresistible. Each bottle came with a self-defence instruction booklet, and advertisements featured a stereotypical nerd who, after using Hai Karate, is seduced by a glamorous woman. The tagline, "Be careful how you use it", emphasised the idea that the product was so irresistible to women that men would need to know karate to protect themselves.

The fragrance was a Citrus Aromatic scent, with top notes of lavender, bergamot, lemon, rosemary, and anise; middle notes of geranium, fern, carnation, cinnamon, cedar, and heliotrope; and base notes of oakmoss, vanilla, tonka bean, amber, and musk. It was a traditional barbershop scent with a pronounced amber note in the dry-down, giving it a sensual edge.

Although Hai Karate was a successful and well-known product, it was ultimately discontinued. However, it has since been reintroduced in the UK twice: first in 2014 by Healthpoint Ltd, and again in 2021 by Beauty Clear. These reintroductions used the brand's original formulation but with different packaging.

It was sold in the US and UK from the 1960s to the 1980s

Hai Karate was a budget aftershave and cologne for men that was sold in the United States and the United Kingdom from the 1960s to the 1980s. It was first launched in 1967 by the Leeming division of Pfizer with the tagline "Be careful how you use it". The cologne was priced higher than competitors such as Old Spice and Aqua Velva but lower than English Leather.

The fragrance was known for its humorous television and magazine advertisements, which featured self-defence instructions to help wearers "fend off women". The marketing campaign was developed at the advertising firm of McCaffrey & McCall by George Newall, who also co-produced and wrote songs for Schoolhouse Rock! The advertisements played to the male fantasy of a world where women find them irresistible.

From 1969 to 1976, Bond girl Valerie Leon played the woman driven wild by a man wearing Hai Karate in a highly successful series of British commercials. Leon parodied her Hai Karate role in an episode of The Goodies. Similar ads ran in the US, and at the height of its popularity, Hai Karate was selling over $200 million in product a year.

Hai Karate was originally launched with the original fragrance, followed by Oriental Lime and Oriental Spice, and possibly Musk and Iced Hai. It was reintroduced in the UK in 2014 by Healthpoint Ltd, and again in 2021 by Beauty Clear.

It was relaunched in the UK in 2014 and 2021

Hai Karate was a men's cologne and aftershave sold in the United States and the United Kingdom from the 1960s to the 1980s. It was first launched in 1967 by the Leeming division of Pfizer with the tagline "Be careful how you use it". The product was priced higher than similar products like Old Spice and Aqua Velva but lower than English Leather and Jade East.

The fragrance was known for its humorous and creative advertising, which included self-defence instructions to help wearers "fend off women". The marketing campaign was developed at the advertising firm of McCaffrey & McCall by George Newall, who also co-produced and wrote songs for Schoolhouse Rock! The advertisements played to the male fantasy of a world where women find them irresistible. Hai Karate's television commercials featured Bond girl Valerie Leon as a woman driven wild by a man wearing the aftershave.

In 2014, a different company, Heathpoint Ltd, bought the rights to Hai Karate and relaunched it in the UK. The packaging featured the history of karate and highlighted the fragrance's appeal to women. The box and bottle were designed with a black background, a shiny red sun, and white lettering inspired by the Japanese flag. The bottle also had an indentation at the rear for a better grip. While the exact fragrance notes were not disclosed, the scent was described as "mystical and masculine as karate itself".

In 2021, Hai Karate was relaunched once again in the UK and the EU by Beauty Clear. This relaunch followed the brand's original formulation but used different bottle packaging.

The fragrance was originally developed by the Leeming division of Pfizer

The fragrance Hai Karate was originally developed by the Leeming division of Pfizer. Leeming was a personal care company that was bought by Pfizer, the pharmaceutical company, in 1961. The Leeming name was preserved after the merger, though it was renamed Leeming/Pacquin. Hai Karate was launched in 1967 and was a budget aftershave and cologne for men. The cologne was priced higher than Old Spice, Aqua Velva, and Mennen Skin Bracer but lower than Jade East and English Leather.

Hai Karate was known for its humorous television and magazine ads, which included self-defence instructions to help wearers "fend off women". The marketing plan was developed at the advertising firm of McCaffrey & McCall by George Newall, who gained fame as the co-producer of, and songwriter for, Schoolhouse Rock! The ads were considered humorous as they played to a "male fantasy of a world where women find them irresistible". The cologne came in four scents: Regular, Oriental Lime, Oriental Spice, and Iced Hai. At the height of its popularity, Hai Karate was selling over $200 million in product a year, including soap on a rope, shaving cream, talcum powder, cologne, and aftershave.

Hai Karate was originally a woody-leathery scent, which has since been reformulated. The fragrance was reintroduced in the UK in 2014 by Healthpoint Ltd, following the brand's original formulation but using different packaging. It was reintroduced again in 2021 by Beauty Clear.

Hai Karate's marketing campaign was comical, crude and sexist

Hai Karate was a men's cologne and aftershave sold in the United States and the United Kingdom from the 1960s to the 1980s. The product was known for its humorous and comical marketing campaign, which was also considered sexist and crude. The campaign included self-defence instructions to help wearers "fend off women", playing into the "male fantasy of a world where women find them irresistible".

The marketing campaign was developed at the advertising firm of McCaffrey & McCall by George Newall, who later co-produced and wrote songs for Schoolhouse Rock! The advertisements featured Bond girl Valerie Leon as a woman driven wild by a man wearing Hai Karate. The campaign was a literal take on the battle of the sexes, with women portrayed as lust-crazed and unable to control themselves around men wearing the product.

The campaign capitalised on the martial arts craze of the 1970s, with karate-themed ads that featured high-kicks and wild, silly scenarios. The fragrance was supposed to be a short-lived product but ended up lasting ten years and growing into a $200 million business. The success of the campaign led to the introduction of other products, including soap on a rope, deodorant, shaving cream, talcum powder, shampoo, and gift sets.

The wacky and over-the-top nature of the campaign empowered men who may have felt insecure about using scented products. The product was also popular among gay men, with gay bars during this period reportedly reeking of Hai Karate. While the campaign was successful in terms of sales and cultural impact, its sexist and crude portrayal of women is a reflection of the time and would not be acceptable in modern advertising.

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