SheaMoisture disrupts traditional merchandising segmentation

Sundial Brands, the parent company of SheaMoisture is the driving force behind the 30 and 60 second video segments.

“I have often said over the last 20 years that the beauty aisle is the last place in America where segregation is still legal,” ​explains Richelieu Dennisfounder and CEO of Sundial Brands in a media release about the campaign.

“Separating 'beauty' from 'ethnic' has only served to further perpetuate narrow standards of what is considered beautiful in our industry and our society – which is why we began leading the efforts to break down those walls,”​ he adds.

Social change​

The company has long been adamant about how absurd it is that beauty is distinct from so-called multicultural beauty, especially given the realities of global and regional populations.

And by sharing an alternative vision for the business and coining the term New General Market, SheaMoisture hopes to be the change it wants to see in the industry.

Besides the videos, SheaMoisture has enlisted the help of influential bloggers, retail partners, and an award-winning creative agency to advance the objective to #BreakTheWalls.

The walls in the hashtag aren’t purely semantic or metaphorical but refer to the retail shelving which separates beauty and ethnic isles in most stores.  

Partnerships​

For the video spots, SheaMoisture teamed up with Droga5. “The effort is both a celebration of the positive changes women are experiencing in the beauty industry and a rallying cry to join together to continue to reshape the beauty landscape,” ​according to the media release.

Retailers are adapting and moving toward more needs-based marketing and merchandising. SheaMoisture claims to have seen changes like wider product offerings and more inclusive marketing since it’s been in business.

Influencers​

Beauty bloggers in the natural hair and natural products space are involved with #BreakTheWalls.

Natural Beauty Vlogger Alba Garcia of SunKissAlba had this to say about the initiative: “Natural hair products and where they live in the beauty aisle can unite us more than we think. It's about time we view the beauty aisle as accessible and suitable for everyone, without the divide. It's been such a pleasure to partner with SheaMoisture on #BreakTheWalls — a mission we all feel so passionate about in the beauty aisle and beyond.”​