Glow & Lovely

Glow & Lovely (formerly Fair & Lovely) is an Indian skin-lightening cosmetic product of Hindustan Unilever introduced to the market in India in 1975. Glow & Lovely is available in India, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and other parts of Asia and is also exported to other parts of the world, such as the West, where it is sold in Asian supermarkets.

Tube of Glow & Lovely (with the former branding) showing the branding and face of Yami Gautam.

Unilever patented the brand Fair & Lovely in 1971 after the patenting of niacinamide, a melanin suppressor,[1] which is the cream's main active ingredient. Glow and Lovely contains stearic acid, mainly sourced from animal body fats (like lard) which contain the highest amount of stearic acid by weight compared to plant-based fats.

The target consumer profile for Glow & Lovely is the 18 and above age group, and the bulk of the users are in the age 21–35 category,[2] though there is evidence that girls as young as 12–14 also use the cream.[3] As of 2012 the brand occupied 80% of the lightning cream market in India and is one of Hindustan Unilever's most successful cosmetics lines.[4]

Criticism

Marketing campaigns of the product have been criticized for promoting colorism.[5] Marketing for the product in all countries implies whiter skin equates beauty and self-confidence.[6] Hindustan Unilever Limited research claims that "90 per cent of Indian women want to use whiteners because it is aspirational, like losing weight. A fair skin is, like education, regarded as a social and economic step up."[7] Following this controversy, including a 2007 television advertisement for Ponds White Beauty[8] in which the actor Saif Ali Khan expressed preference for the fair-skinned Neha Dhupia over the darker-skinned Priyanka Chopra,[9] the company suspended television advertisements for the product.[10][11] [12]

Rebranding

In 2020, Hindustan Unilever announced the rebranding of its flagship brand Fair & Lovely. The company will stop using the word ‘Fair’ in the brand name ‘Fair & Lovely’.[13] The brand was renamed to ‘Glow & Lovely’.[14]

References
  1. Miranda A. Farage, Kenneth W. Miller, Howard I. Maibach. Textbook of Aging Skin 540896554 (2009), p.498: "In a recent work, niacinamide and glucosamine (in particular, its derivative N-acetyl glucosamine [NAG]) have been determined to be effective in reducing melanin production in culture. In vitro, glucosamine reduces production of melanin."
  2. Jham, Vimi. Cases on Consumer-Centric Marketing Management (2013) 1466643587, p. 102: "The target consumer profile for Fair & Lovely is in the age group of 18 and above. The bulk of the users are in the age group of 21-35 and brand communication has always been targeted at this age group."
  3. Mike Peng. Global Strategy 0324590997 (2008), p. 414: "The target market for Fair & Lovely is predominantly young women aged 18–35 (Srisha, 2001). Disturbingly, “there is repeated evidence that schoolgirls in the 12–14 years category widely use lightning creams" (Ninan, 2003)."
  4. Alma M. Garcia. Contested Images: Women of Color in Popular Culture (2012) 0759119635, p. 182: "Through its Indian subsidiary, Hindustan Lever Limited, Unilever patented Fair & Lovely in 1971 following the patenting of niacinamide, a melanin suppressor, which is its main active ingredient. Test market David "Unilever to Rename Fair & Lovely Skin-Lightening Cream in India," Bloomberg (June 25, 2020).
  5. Mariam, Simra (2017-03-27). "Daring To Be Dark: Fighting Against Colorism In South Asian Cultures". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2019-01-06.
  6. Lynne Eagle, Stephan Dahl. Marketing Ethics & Society (2015) 1473934028: "Advertisements in all the countries in which Fair & Lovely is sold show product users getting better jobs, getting married or having a brighter future (and being noticeably happier) as a result of their lighter skin."
  7. Aneel Karnani. Fighting Poverty Together: Rethinking Strategies 0230120237 (2011), p. 101: "Hindustan Unilever Limited, Unilever's Indian subsidiary, claims Fair & Lovely is doing good by fulfilling a social need. HUL research says that '90 per cent of Indian women want to use whiteners because it is aspirational, like losing weight. A fair skin is like education, regarded as a social and economic step up.'"
  8. "Kabhi Kabhi Pyar Mein - Pond's White Beauty". Vimeo. Retrieved 2020-06-13.
  9. Sidharth Balakrishna Case Studies in Marketing Pearson 2011, 8131757978 Case Study 1: Fair & Lovely p.5 "... responding to an advertisement in which the actor Saif Ali Khan prefers the fair-skinned starlet Neha Dhupia over Priyanka Chopra, known for her dusky, wheatish complexion."
  10. "Kabhi Kabhi Pyar Mein - Pond's White Beauty". Vimeo. Retrieved 2020-06-13.
  11. Bagchi, Shrabonti. "The dark politics of fairness products in India," LiveMint (25 Jun 2020).
  12. Jain, Rupam, Charlotte Greenfield, and Siddharth Cavale. "Unilever's 'Fair & Lovely' to get makeover after backlash," Reuters (JUNE 25, 2020).
  13. "'Fair' To Be Axed From Hindustan Unilever Limited's Fair and Lovely". odisha TV. Retrieved Jun 25, 2020.
  14. "HUL Replaces Fair With Glow. People React With 'Glow & Lovely' Memes". aTrendHub. Retrieved Jun 26, 2020.
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