More and more beauty brands are becoming keen to show their diverse and inclusive concepts and active participation in social issues in corporate culture, brand marketing activities and even products. Although this kind of "goodwill" for the public and the market may not necessarily be quantified in specific figures in the brand's operating financial reports, it is almost a consensus that the expression of goodwill has a longer-term commercial value and significance.
Actions such as building a culture of diversity and inclusion, advocating for gender equality, promoting sustainable development, supporting vulnerable groups, advocating for natural beauty and reducing facial anxiety are becoming more and more common in the beauty industry that is constantly strengthening self-examination. Especially since the new crown epidemic, the pace of conveying the goodwill of their own enterprises to the public has accelerated significantly.
Founded in 1956, Secret, a deodorant brand, has always had the mission of empowering women to cope with high-stress moments. In the early stages of the outbreak, Secret began implementing equal pay for equal work within the enterprise, as the outbreak caused many female employees to choose between work and childcare. As part of its push for equal pay for equal work, Secret partnered with YWCA on the "Superhero Mom" campaign. In the online video sharing session, employee mothers share and support and help each other with their parenting difficulties during the epidemic, and the brand also provides paid parenting benefits for these women for a full year.
Christopher Talbott, Senior Brand Director of Secret and Gillette, told WWD: "The company's initiatives have helped us take our fight on gender equality issues one step further. He points out that brands shouldn't just talk about sales and operating profits, "In fact, 62% of consumers want brands to stand up for the social issues they care about." ”
Secret
Unilever's skincare brand Simple, in the UK, has partnered with Kindness.org and runs a global non-profit organisation called the Community Council for Good online. The organization's goal is to drive social change through a variety of actions that demonstrate kindness, and people can post a lot of small actions about practicing kindness on a daily basis, such as "I want to buy food for a stranger", "I want to praise a colleague", "I want to ask a friend how he is doing", "I will take the time to listen to my friend", and so on.
"Expression of goodwill and inclusion are at the heart of Simple's brand philosophy," says Guy Linnegar, Marketing Manager at Simple UK and Ireland. "This pandemic has highlighted the importance of showing goodwill, which is why we decided to work with Kindness.org in 2021."
Simple works with Kindness.org
Nadav Klein, assistant professor of organizational behavior at INSEAD, explained to WWD the importance of expressing kindness and transmitting positive energy on a daily basis from a social psychology perspective. "First of all, small acts of kindness can really make a big difference. For example, the kinder and more selfless I am, the greater the price I will pay. If I do you a big favor, it will cost you more than I would if I did a small favor. But we found that people who do small things are as positive and positive as other people who do big things, which shows that being kind to people is good. If you treat people a little better, it will really pay off over time because you can easily build a very positive personal image among people. He also points out that on a personal level, acts of kindness can make people happier and thus make life more meaningful.
At the same time, many brands are also making "well-intentioned changes" to the work environment within the company. Phil Lewis, Brand Development Consultant and Founder of Corporate Punk, said of the growing emphasis on goodwill in the brand's work environment: "In the wake of the pandemic, brands have realized that many ways of organizing their work can no longer be continued. Because as Gen Z and millennials become more aware of corporate behavior, and the rise of social media provides a more convenient channel for society to monitor corporate behavior, brands are also 'forced' to re-examine their work environment and the way they treat their employees. In general, companies that treat their employees well tend to make the former more willing to serve the company in the long term. ”
In addition, Phil Lewis pointed out that the company's goodwill to employees can make them more motivated, and their pace of innovation and productivity will also increase significantly.
Founded in 2009 by couples Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell, beekman skincare brand partners with local farms to support the economic income of local herders while also making organic soap from herders' own goat's milk. This product is very popular with consumers. In addition, Beekman gives employees 8 hours a year to volunteer in the community and hosts charity days within the company to build a culture of kindness to themselves, their families, or their communities. At the same time, the brand also set up its own "kindness committee" last year.
Beekman
At present, Beekman has received commercial rewards in promoting the construction of a brand of goodwill culture. In terms of operations, brand sales continued to rise. In December, Eurazeo Brands, together with co-investors Cohesive Capital Partners and Cherng Family Trust, invested $62 million in the brand, becoming the brand's controlling shareholder.
Eurazeo was attracted to this brand because of its focus on self-care and kindness. Adrianne Shapira, managing director of Eurazeo Brands, told WWD that Eurazeo Brands was attracted to Beekman because of its focus on giving back to the community and promoting a culture of kindness, "In the post-pandemic era, it will become increasingly important to be kind to the planet, to the community, and to yourself." ”
Placing business aspirations after assuming social responsibility and demonstrating corporate value, and combining benefits with public welfare, is now an important development strategy for most beauty brands. With the help of their own business resources to promote social welfare, and then give back to the enterprise, so that the entire public welfare project becomes a closed loop, this sustainable development can allow the brand to obtain higher business returns and market recognition at present and in the future. WWD
Written by Jason
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