Every Man Jack plots a 2026 refresh as men’s personal care category becomes more saturated

Every Man Jack launched in 2007 and sells naturally-derived products like body wash, deodorant and beard butter. The company’s been on a “significant growth trajectory over the last five years,” CEO Gerry Chesser said, citing double-digit annualized growth. But the men’s personal-care category, at large, is also exploding, especially as more men embrace self-care and watch grooming videos on social media. From 2022-2024, in the U.S., for instance, facial skin-care usage among men went up 68%, per Mintel. In this environment, legacy players like Dove and newer DTC brands like Manscaped are jockeying for market share, leaving Every Man Jack looking for ways to stand out.

“We love competition, because if you have big players out there that are investing in the category, that’s awareness, and that’s a good thing,” Chesser told Modern Retail. “[But] we said, ‘All right, if everybody’s clustering around these same types of propositions — better-for-you, good fragrances, regimens — how do we make sure we are still out in front and leading as a challenger?”

Getting to know the customer

To start to answer this question, Every Man Jack conducted consumer research last year. It asked several thousand participants what they loved about the brand, which sells online, as well as in retailers like Target. Every Man Jack found that it over-indexed on certain terms, like “adventure” and “masculinity.” Customers also said they liked to play sports and attend games, especially for football, basketball and golf.

Using this information, Every Man Jack identified multiple consumer cohorts based on habits and buying behavior. Previously, Every Man Jack largely targeted millennials, and then Gen Z, said Lindsey Scholtz, director of brand management at Every Man Jack. But “age doesn’t tell the full story, and you can get very generalized generations,” Scholtz told Modern Retail. “Your product messaging and media plans can really feel like this one-size-fits-all, … and you can ignore that overlap between generations and miss those nuances.”

With the study, Every Man Jack identified five customer groups and then zeroed in on two groups with strong purchase intent. Every Man Jack called one of these groups “Jack” and the other one “Jake.”

A “Jack” is someone who is familiar with men’s care, does his research and understands ingredients. “He’s a grooming maximizer,” Scholtz said. A “Jake,” meanwhile, is more unsure about his routine, is a heavy social-media user and values sustainability. “Jake is a guy like my nephew, who is a deer in the headlights,” Chesser joked. “He’s interested [in the category], but he needs to be led. When you think about influencer marketing and ambassadors, he really listens to what they say.”

Every Man Jack aims to address both groups’ needs, Scholtz said. To start, it’s zeroing in on “Jack,” since he already spends in the category. But Every Man Jack will target both demographics in its messaging. For example, a “Jack” version of a marketing campaign may be about larger brand awareness, executives said. Meanwhile, a “Jake” version may be more educational and explain what certain ingredients do or where a product falls in a skin-care regimen.

“[We want to] ensure that, in those first three seconds, we are establishing relevance with Jake and Jack and those concerns that they may have,” said Nicklaus Hasselberg, vp of growth marketing and e-commerce at Every Man Jack.

The ins and outs of EMJ’s refresh

Armed with new insights, Every Man Jack went to work fixing its packaging, products and promotional plans — while making sure it wasn’t alienating existing shoppers.

First, Every Man Jack changed its packaging to make it more modern and masculine. It added more nature imagery and scent notes. At the same time, Every Man Jack kept the same color blocking and wood-grain design that customers said they liked in existing packaging. As Every Man Jack is a B Corp, the company also updated its bottles, transitioning from high-density polyethylene to polyethylene terephthalate to improve recyclability and speak to the needs of a “Jake.”

Every Man Jack’s new packaging will debut in July, both online and on retail shelves. Every Man Jack went through some 30 iterations of designs, Scholtz said, some of which “really pushed the limit.” Not all styles stuck, but the ones that did — that kept “core elements we’re known for” — did well, Scholtz said. “We did a shelf test study, and it was just stronger purchase intent than a lot of our competitors.”

Every Man Jack is also updating its product selection. In research, customers requested clean, effective and non-irritating formulas. As a result, in recent weeks, Every Man Jack launched a $10-and-under Premium Collection, including a 48-hour deodorant without baking soda, an exfoliating body wash, and separate shampoo and conditioner bottles (versus a 2-in-1). All of the scents are anchored in locations, like the Redwood Forest and French Polynesia.

Finally, Every Man Jack is updating its marketing approach to be more “emotional” and sports-forward, especially based on the consumer research, Hasselberg said. In January, Every Man Jack rolled out a brand platform called “For Men Who Put in the Work.” For its inaugural campaign, it tapped NFL player Mayfield, a Heisman Trophy winner who bounced from team to team before landing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. “What we did not want was an endorsement,” Chesser said. “We wanted somebody that fit the storytelling. … This is a story about achievement and grit and perseverance.”

Every Man Jack shared assets for “For Men Who Put in the Work” on social media and connected TV. With marketing campaigns in 2026, Every Man Jack is trying to become more consistent, Hasselberg said. “In the past, we had an approach that it’s really about [designing for] the channel,” he said. Now, he said, “We’re focusing a lot on visual consistency and tonal consistency. We want to make sure that, at any point in time, we can grab content from TikTok, from email and from the web, and it would harmonize.”

Every Man Jack has inked other sports-themed partnerships lately, including an NIL deal with Michigan Wolverines guard Elliot Cadeau and an ambassadorship deal with American freeskier Tanner Hall. The brand also has an upcoming deal with Barstool Sports, from March 17 to April 6. That partnership will span Barstool Sports’ podcasts, video, social media and digital site. Every Man Jack will also give out samples at Barstool’s Final Four activation for March Madness.

A growing space for men’s care

Every Man Jack’s brand refresh comes at a critical point for the men’s care space, which is seeing widespread support and sales.

The category has been ripe for M&A, with Unilever acquiring Dr. Squatch for $1.5 billion in 2025. Meanwhile, male celebrities like Dwayne Johnson and John Legend have gotten into the men’s care business with Papatui and Loved01, respectively. Men’s care brands like Harry’s, Jack Black and Manscaped have found a dedicated following on TikTok Shop. Dove Men+Care is even sponsoring the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Marketing to men is not new, but the men’s personal care category is finding an increasingly-eager audience. Circana research found that 63% of men cited taking care of their appearance as integral to their overall well-being. And men’s share of wallet for personal care and grooming is “rising” year over year, said Abhinav Konda, senior engagement manager at Kearney.

At the same time, Konda said, men’s personal care brands need to evolve, like any other industry. Consumers want solutions that are “more personalized and right for their care and grooming needs,” he said. Without appealing to those preferences, “Mass brands with middle-of-the-road value propositions and legacy technologies will struggle,” Konda said.

Every Man Jack is confident it can convert new fans, thanks to its knowledge of the space, as well as its brand refresh. “Young men are really engaged with the category,” Chesser said. “They’re buying more products. They’re doing so more frequently. They’re embracing things like regimens. Those are all things that played into our original proposition, which gets us to where we are today.”