We can only complain and hope they give us back original April Fresh Downy.
I wrote to them telling them I've moved on to other fabric softeners NOT made by P&G.

Maybe if we all do it, they'll get the hint.

I have posted several times about this!! If you go to the Downy.com website & read the reviews about Downy April Fresh softener...you will see HUNDREDS and HUNDREDS of complaints. Myself, my Mom and my Grandma have used Downy April Fresh since the early 1970's!!! The "new" formula is disgusting. I will no longer use softener made by P&G, until the bring back Classic April Fresh.

When I wrote to P&G, they apologized for me not liking the new formula and re-worked scent...but said market research showed this was wanted. Bull! If someone buys a bottle of Calvin Klein Eternity, or Shalimar, or Polo, or Obsession, or Chanel No.5, or Opium....it does not matter if it has smelled the same for 20, 30, 75 years...this is the reason people buy it, because it smells how they want!!!

A big company making a mistake is not impossible. And for them to try to recapture the market has happened. Remember "New Coke"? (Though I won't go into the argument some have whether "Classic" is the same taste.) However to say their research is "Bull" is pretty naive given the success that P&G has had in the market considering the Downy line alone is over a $1 Billion/year in sales. That's a lot of caps full of stuff going through machines!

You're doing the right thing to contact them, express your opinion and buy something else. If there are that many who agree with you, sales will suffer and maybe they'll get the message.

I've never liked scented fabric softeners - I think the chemical smell of all of them is disgusting with but one exception, accordingly I don't use fabric softener anymore anyway so it's of no major consequence to me. I do hope you get the product you like back on the market. I definitely know the frustration of a company discontinuing the sale of items I like, use and buy, or changing them beyond recognition, but I also understand business. The fact is, they don't change it for the sake of changing it. They're not out to go "hey, this person likes this so let's quit making it!" Personally I'd like to see them separate the stench from the product. Sell them separately and you can make it smell like you want and people that don't want to stink don't have to. But, to quote Alex Karras "Mongo only pawn in game of life".

Good luck.

I used April Fresh Downy for years -- had no idea the scent had changed.

A few years ago I realized I could buy Snuggle in a HUGE dispenser at my favorite warehouse store for right at $10 (often cheaper, because I usually use coupons). One bottle lasts me 6 - 8 months, I love the scent, it works as well for me as Downy did, so I've stayed with it.

I agree with Mara, I really hadn't noticed a change in the scent, but the bottle I'm currently working on is a couple months old so maybe I still have the original formula.
I was at the store the other day and they has Snuggle on sale, and I had a coupon to put on top of the sales price. (I love getting stuff almost for free, lol) so I figured "why not". Honestly, I think I like the Snuggle better than the Downy,I've also noticed the Snuggle isn't a thick as Downy, therefore, there isn't all that residue in the dispenser if that makes sense. If you don't like the new April Fresh Downy, try something else. You may be pleasantly surprised. :)

I too have to agree that the april fresh scent changed. I too am not happy with it. It is not the same as when I was a kid and young adult. I have used snuggle in the blue bottle and it seems to work good. I have tried the gain scents too. I like them also but it seems Gain FB does not control static cling as well.

they didn't care, Proctor and Gamble..they just told me to use the dryer sheets, they didn't change. I told them I don't use dryer sheets, just the liquid, and they never wrote back...how rude!
The NEW COKE comment hit the nail on the head...maybe they'll change it back. It's just very upsetting when you use something for so many years and then it's some nasty stuff. Plus, they have so many new scents that they invented and they can't leave this one alone?

Cynic....Big companies don't make mistakes? Their market research is not bull? Are you taking you "cynic" name a little too far, just trying to be a little argumentative, just to be so?? :)

Big companies make Big mistakes all the time! In the early 2000's Mercedes almost bankrupted themselves and tarnished their 100+ year reputation for making amazing cars. Their "market research" led them to use outsourced parts, thin and cheap materials...because they were just focusing on selling a lot of cars, to those who just wanted to drive around with a 3 pointed star on the hood. Well, it backfired big time. Their produts were blacklisted across the globe, with nothing but complaints and Not recommended ratings by countless consumer based groups. Mercedes (for the last 5 years or so) has returned to stringent quality control, and more in house made parts and accessories). Their sales are once again skyrocketing, and their products look, feel and perform how one would expect a Mercedes-Benz to do!

Downy made a huge mistake. Take about 10 mins and read the reviews on the downy.com website, about April Fresh Downy!

When I was a little kid, and there were no fabric softeners and my mom used to hang the sheets on the clothes line, is what the April Fresh Downy used to make me think of and now it's gone...up to now, I had those memories. Then they changed it.
When my mom was laid up and had been using dryer sheets, I came over to do her laundry and brought the April Fresh and told her, this is nice stuff, and when I was folding the towels and she picked them up, she said you're right, they're so soft and they smell like nice air, and I said they remind me of when you used to hang the sheets on the line, and she said they do, but now they're soft too!
I read on one of the links that someone said Gain softener was used when they changed April Fresh. Which one did you use?

Since April Fresh Downy has been mutliated, I have been using Suavitel Baby Powder scented softener or Downy Mountian Fresh (Spring Fresh?, one with the green cap). It smells JUST like Irish Spring soap (does P&G made Irish Spring soap as well as Downy).

Nothing works or smells like classic April Fresh Downy, but it seems P&G does not care than consumers are mad and sad.

Guess unfortunately, I'll have to go search for something that might smell similar to April Fresh, and hope that it's not made by Proctor and Gamble...cause if it is, it will probably change too...(kind of like when you find a series you like, and they cancel it, huh?)

I feel like I got the find of the year today!!! I was at my Local Target this afternoon, walking down the fabric softener aisle, lamenting my April Fresh Downy. I was angrily looking at all the "New" Scent Pearls Arpil Fresh, when I noticed one bottle said April Fresh, but not "New" nor with Scent pearls. I opened it...Classic April Fresh smell.

I quickly scavenged thru their big supply....and ended up finding THREE 77oz. bottles of the Downy April Fresh, that I know and love. It was like winning the lottery!! :)

Now I have to see if I can find it. Were all the good ones the 77 oz. size?
I don't know what to do with this 120 oz. bottle of the nasty stuff I got stuck with...
Will go on a mission to see if I can find some!

I do not like the smell of the new April Fresh Downy. I smelled it in the store and it was very sweet and "candy like". I am using up the last of a bottle I had sitting in reserve down in my laundry room. After this bottle is gone, I will be switching to Snuggle brand softener or even the Kirkland brand that "resemble" the old style Downy April Fresh. I have also thought about purchasing the unscented Downy and then adding my own essential oils to it so that it is scented however I like it to be. I am thinking of adding a mixture of lavender and orange together. That is a nice scent.

I hate how companies try to "fix" what isn't broken...

And... To eiluj, if you don't like it, I am sure you can donate it to your local woman's shelter. They will gladly take it and it will get used ;) That way it doesn't go to waste.

I plan on returning it, even tho I don't have the receipts anymore...maybe if people return it, P&G might get the message...I think it's too nasty to even give to someone.
What bothers me, is that Proctor and Gamble don't even write back...that's pretty rude

Eiluj, it was me who uses the gain FB, I used both the origal scent and the new Lavender scent. They both smell good, so it is a personal choice. I like the lavender because it is not moxed with vanillia like some others are and it smells just like the bush. FYI, when I was in Target a while back, they have their own brand of detergent and FB, they are like imposter scents, that smell like downy and others, but much cheaper. I may try them too and see how good they are.

Let me know if you like it, and I'll take a shot at it..I so want the April Fresh back, but if something is similar, I'll try it. I was in WalMart last week, and I opened up so many to try and smell april fresh again...no luck, but I'll keep trying...there were too many to open them all...some of them are terrible...stand far back when you want to see what they smell like!
I'll go check the Target brands.
thanks

After reading this I saw a bottle in the store and smelled it. Lol. It was terrible. Mostly, because it totally ruined the childhood memory of laundry softened with Downy. I'm definitely no longer P&G's target consumer. I'll stick to Vernel.

Westvillager: Which scents of Vernel do you recommend? Where is the best on-line place to order? Thanks, CC

Covingtoncat: I only use Day at the Sea, which doesn't remind me of anything beach-related. Lol. It's just a fresh scent. I'm sorry but I don't buy it online. There's a place in the Hamptons by our weekend house that has it. If you do a search on here, there are a ton of mentions about where peeps buy Persil, Vernel, etc.

The only ones I know are: Better Products Online and Factory Direct.

Thanks. Those are the places that I found, too.

Well, I decided, that I'd just wash the clothes, towels, and whatever, and not use any fabric softener at all. I was afraid they'd be all stiff and crunchy, but I left them going in the dryer and I was surprised that they came out ok. Plus, they don't smell like bubble gum or rotten cotton candy anymore!
I wrote Proctor and Gamble, told them I will not use any of their products anymore, unless they bring back the old April Fresh...I'm sure I'll never hear from them, but I don't expect to.
I'll just do it this way until, if ever, they bring it back.

I was in target yesterday, checked out there brand of softeners, the april fresh scent they offer, didnt seem to smell much so it was hard for me to tell, but it did not smell like the new miserable april fresh scent that downy has.. I have always thought that downy was the best softener on the maket, and it should be for the price of it. I wont buy it, dont care much for the other scents and they ruined a good thing, I hope the change comes back and kicks then in the butt.

I haven't used Downy with scent for years. I switched to Free & Clear years ago and then to a "greener" version from Shaklee.

I do remember April Fresh though ... it was what I used. This post had me open a bottle and smell the new version ... uck ... very awful. Not sure what focus group could have given that smell the green light.

If people keep complaining, I'm sure P&G will be forced to bring back the old one. I'm sure they must see a "hit" in their sales. The brand person who led this project should be fired.

I agree. There is nothing 'April Fresh' about the new scent. It's not something I would buy.