Unilever Pakistan to rebrand ‘Fair & Lovely’; new brand name to be announced after regulatory approval

KARACHI - Unilever Pakistan announced on Friday the next step in the evolution of its skincare portfolio, with the rebranding of its flagship brand Fair & Lovely.

Taking forward the brand’s journey towards a more inclusive vision of beauty, the company will stop using the word ‘Fair’ in the brand name ‘Fair & Lovely’. The new name of Fair & Lovely will be announced after the necessary regulatory approval.

Over the last decade, Fair & Lovely’s advertising has evolved to communicate a message of women empowerment. The brand’s vision is to adopt a holistic approach to beauty that cares for people and that is inclusive and diverse - for everyone, everywhere.  The brand is committed to celebrating all skin tones.

In 2019, the brand’s communication moved away from benefits of fairness, whitening and skin lightening, towards the glow, even tone, skin clarity and radiance which are holistic measures of healthy skin. Unilever Pakistan has also removed all visuals or words on Fair & Lovely’s packaging that could indicate a fairness-led transformation – including the removal of dual-faced cameo showing shade transformation, as well as the shade guides. Unilever Pakistan upholds principles that no association should be made between skin tone and a person’s achievement, potential or worth.

Amir Paracha, Chairman & CEO, Unilever Pakistan Limited, said, “Unilever is an organization that is evolving continuously, and today we have taken the next bold step in our evolution by committing to a more inclusive and diverse portrayal of beauty. This ambition has been in the works for some time with significant steps such as the removal of the dual-faced cameo and shade guides from the packaging of Fair & Lovely in 2019. We have also moved the brand communication away from fairness towards glow which is a more holistic and inclusive measure of healthy skin. We are now committing to remove the word ‘Fair’ from the brand formerly known as 'Fair & Lovely'. The new name will be announced soon.”

Fair & Lovely is based on pioneering technology that has made multiple skin health benefits available to millions of consumers at an affordable price. Fair & Lovely has a combination of vitamins B3, B6, C & E, glycerine, UVA and UVB sunscreens and allantoin - which together are known to improve skin health and protect the skin from external aggressors, UV rays and environmental pollution. The product is designed to improve skin barrier function, improve skin firmness and smoothen skin texture - all of which help enhance radiance and glow holistically. The brand has never been and is not a bleaching product.

In addition to the changes to Fair & Lovely, the rest of our skincare portfolio will also reflect the new vision of positive beauty.

Career guidance and high-quality education are vital elements to building a career and essential to empowering women. That is especially true where socio-cultural, infrastructural or economic barriers stand in women's way.

Unilever set up The Fair & Lovely Foundation to offer women scholarships to pursue their education. In 2019, it launched a mobile-friendly career and education platform www.fairandlovelyfoundation.com.pk as a holistic solution. This mobile platform offers career guidance as well as a curated selection of courses. The courses are chosen from well-regarded, high-quality digital education partners such as edX.org (founded by Harvard and MIT), the IT skills training firm, NIIT Limited, and English Edge, an English language training specialist.

As with the rebranding of Fair & Lovely, we will be also be announcing the new name for the Fair & Lovely Foundation.