Brand story of the week
Global brand, The Body Shop, are working proactively to increase inclusivity by changing the angle of their brand’s marketing and steer away from the negative connotations surrounding their skin care’s ‘anti-aging’ marketing and product labels. ‘Drops of Youth’ is one of their top selling skincare ranges, with a bottle being sold somewhere in the world every 20 seconds. Their decision to rebrand to ‘Edelweiss’ will set a trend within the industry to move away from harmful branding surrounding women aging and towards creating a new beauty industry norm.
Goodwill story of the week
With the current cost of living crisis effecting millions, UK supermarket Iceland have launched a campaign set to help an estimated 40,000 pensioners living in poverty. They have partnered with the Rothesay Foundation to give away £30 gift vouchers, 269 stores across 17 of the nations most qualified locations for elderly members of the public living in poverty, will be distributing the food aid passes. The campaign follows a pilot run across nine stores in Lambeth, London, which helped elderly people on low incomes enjoy Christmas.
Industry story of the week
In tribute to Queen Elizabeth II, the advertising industry placed all plans and campaigns on pause during the unprecedented time for the UK. Many TV channels suspended advertising temporarily, Channel 4 and ITV included although TV ads have been switched back on ahead of the Queen’s funeral, whilst the BBC and ITV replaced the usual programme with extended news coverage. OOH media owners also showed their respect in response to last weeks news by pulling digital ads, replacing them first with individual tributes to Queen Elizabeth II, before revealing a coordinated effort.
Environmental story of the week
Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard, is donating his ownership of the brand, estimated to be worth £3b, to a collective that will use any profits not reinvested into the business to fight the climate crisis. The new model estimates $100m will be distributed per annum as a dividend to fight climate change. Chouinard explained in an interview that it’s almost 50 years since Patagonia started its experiment in business and that the Earth is now the company’s ‘’only shareholder’’.
Social story of the week
YouTube is partnering with a handful of edtech companies to launch an ad-free video player for educational content. With the platform on a rise amongst students and those looking to gain new skills outside of the traditional classroom setting, new key features have been introduced to make online experiences even better. These include an embedded YouTube player without ads or external links, paid courses from selected creators, and quizzes to help retain learned information.
