Unilever intends to stop using the word “normal” on packaging for its beauty products to make its brand more inclusive.
The London owner of some brands, including Dove, Ax and Vaseline, announced the decision on Tuesday, after conducting a survey that showed that the description of hair or skin as “normal” makes consumers feel excluded.
Unilever also said it would stop digitally changing the skin color, body shape and size of the models that appear in its ads, while increasing the number of ads with people from “underrepresented” groups.
“We are committed to addressing harmful norms and stereotypes and shaping a broader and more comprehensive definition of beauty,” Sunny Jain, president of Unilever for Beauty and Personal Care, said in a statement. “We know that ‘normal’ removal from our products and packaging will not solve the problem alone, but it is an important step forward.”
Unilever said it conducted a survey of 10,000 people in nine countries, in which seven out of 10 respondents said that using the word “normal” on product packaging and advertising “has a negative impact”, a rate that has risen to eight. from 10 to 18 to 35-year-olds.
Unilever made the switch after resolving several controversies over how its brand ads portrayed people of color.
Violent protests erupted in South Africa in September last year after an ad for the TRESemmé brand of hair care labeled black-haired images for women as “curly and boring” while describing women’s white hair as “fine and flat”. ”And“ normal ”.
This came after Unilever’s Indian business said it would change the name of its skin lightening cream from “Fair & Lovely” to “Glow & Lovely” amid concerns that the old brand has perpetuated stereotypes against darker skin tones.
Dove also caught fire in 2017 over an ad that appeared to show a woman of color pulling a T-shirt over her head to reveal a white woman underneath.
Unilever is one of the largest advertisers in the world, and its beauty products are at the heart of its business. The beauty and personal care segment accounted for about $ 25 billion of Unilever’s approximately $ 60 billion in revenue last year.
Unilever shares rose about 1.1 percent in premarket trading on Tuesday to $ 54.55 as of 8:20 p.m.
With Post Wires