Dr. Squatch has managed to cut through the labeling and marketing noise with humor, authenticity, and viral genius. What started with cold process soap, has now grown into a $1.5 billion (yes, billion with a B) acquisition target for global consumer goods giant Unilever.
The Roots: Real Soap for Real Guys
Dr. Squatch launched with a simple but meaningful mission: to bring high-quality, natural soap to men without the usual clinical branding or synthetic-heavy formulations. While many body care brands for men skew toward hyper-masculine or sterile presentations, Dr. Squatch embraced a fresh, playful voice.
Central to their product line is simple, basic cold process soap. They took the traditional soapmaking method and used it to differentiate themselves in the crowded men’s market dominated by body washes and detergent-based soaps. That, along with excellent packaging, compliant labeling, and creative marketing, propelled them into the big leagues.
Viral Videos, Bro Humor, and Gen Z Gold
Mostly staying away from traditional paid advertising, Dr. Squatch’s direct-to-consumer empire was built on the back of tongue-in-cheek YouTube ads and meme-worthy social media campaigns. Their 2021 Superbowl Ad —“You’re Not a Dish. You’re a Man.”—racked up tens of millions of views, thanks to its irreverent tone and snappy one-liners like “Your soap is crap.”
They leaned into humor while still educating customers about the benefits of natural soap; a strategy that struck a chord with millennials and Gen Z men. From playful digs at body wash brands to poking fun at toxic masculinity, Dr. Squatch managed to create a brand persona that was bold, unapologetic, and—most importantly—shareable.
The Bathwater Stunt Heard Round the Internet
The peak of Dr. Squatch’s virality came in mid-2025, with a campaign so outrageous it seemed like satire: a limited-edition soap infused with bathwater from actress Sydney Sweeney.
Yes, you read that right.
To promote their partnership with Sweeney, Dr. Squatch announced a giveaway for “Sydney Sweeney’s Bathwater Soap,” claiming it was made from water used in a real bath by the Euphoria and Anyone But You star. The response? Over 1 million entries in just three days. (Imagine growing your mailing list that fast!!!)
It was a marketing masterstroke: combining curiosity, celebrity, and a healthy dose of controversy. While some questioned the ethics or the legitimacy of the stunt, most understood it for what it was—a brilliant PR play designed to dominate the news cycle and drive social media buzz.
And it worked. The campaign was covered everywhere from Adweek to News24, with headlines like “Making a Splash” and “1 Million Fans Entered.” The product (a basic $8 bar of soap) sold out instantly. Even non-customers were talking about it.
Dr. Squatch had once again reminded the world that authenticity and bold creativity could still win big—even in an industry oversaturated with polished influencers and algorithmic advertising.
The Unilever Acquisition: Why It Makes Sense
Shortly after the Sweeney soap campaign, Unilever announced that it was acquiring Dr. Squatch – for 1.5 BILLION dollars. This not the first indie brand bought up by Unilever. According to Adweek, Unilever is going after brands that have dedicated followers in niche markets. Companies like Dollar Shave Club, Schmidt’s Naturals, Seventh Generation, Dermalogica, and Paula’s Naturals are just a few purchased by Unilever.
Why does it matter?
The marketing methodology of Dr. Squatch, and their subsequent purchase by Unilever, is a beautiful example of how it CAN be done. It IS possible to grow a soap and cosmetic business into something really big.
Dr. Squatch was originally started by Jack Haldrup (as Sasquatch Soaps) in his garage in 2013, selling on Facebook and at Farmers markets. He crowdsourced $100,000 in capital investment early on. By 2017-2018 they were really hitting the viral market through YouTube and reached revenue in the 100’s of millions by the early 2020’s.
While not everyone can be a “Dr. Squatch,” it does show that it is possible with ingenuity, courage, outside-the-box thinking, and making sure the legal basics are in place early on.
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