Executive Summary
Clicks and TRESemmé were embroiled in a hair ad saga that has led to racial discrimination allegations, and blacks boycotted Clicks and TRESemmé brands as a result. The saga began when a Clicks ad featured a black woman’s natural hair as “dry and damaged”, while the white woman’s hair was described as “normal.” This led to outrage among black women, who accused Clicks of racism.
TRESemmé, which is owned by Unilever, was similarly targeted in the boycotts as the hair care brand featured in the offending ad. It is recommended that Clicks and TRESemmé should avoid racial discrimination in their ads. It is essential to be aware of how their words and actions can be interpreted, and in this case, it is clear that the ad was interpreted as racist. Conversely, these two brand senior management teams should always be mindful of how their ads might be perceived; they should likewise be careful not to produce any ads that could easily be misinterpreted.
Introduction
Background
TRESemmé is a professional hair care line that was created by Antonio Tresemme; on the other hand, Clicks is a retailer of health and beauty products. The Clicks hair ad saga was caused by a series of events that spun out of control. It started with an ad campaign that implied that African hair is inferior to European hair (Mokoena, 2022). This sparked outrage among many people, who saw it as racist and offensive. The company issued an apology, but the damage was already done. The incident spread on social media, with people calling for a rejection of Clicks stores. Some even took to vandalizing Clicks stores in protest; in the end, the saga cost the company extremely in terms of lost sales and reputation.
Report Purpose
It is clear from the report that TRESemmé senior management teams should care more about their advertisements and how they are perceived by the public. Apparently, someone in a high position made the decision to create an ad that many people found offensive and sexist, and it backfired spectacularly (Mokoena, 2022). The lesson here is that it is important to be aware of current cultural sensitivities and to think critically about how an ad might be understood. If there are any doubts, it is always better to play it safe than risk offending the target audience.
Findings
Clicks Brand Losses
Clicks, a South African beauty retailer, found itself in the midst of a social media firestorm recently after an advert featuring a black woman with textured hair prompted accusations of racism. The backlash was swift, with many people accusing Clicks of perpetuating negative stereotypes about black women’s hair. The company issued an apology and removed the ad, but not before it had been widely shared online (Makoni, 2021). After Clicks ran an ad campaign featuring a white model with straight hair, they suffered losses in both sales and public opinion. The campaign was accused of being racist and promoting European beauty standards, which alienated their largely black customer base.
Furthermore, the models featured in the ads were all white, which made it difficult for black women to see themselves represented in the brand. This lack of diversity ultimately cost Clicks a significant amount of revenue. Critics took to social media to lambast Clicks for its blatant racism, and many people vowed never to shop at the store again (Mokoena, 2022). The negative publicity generated by the ad campaign appears to have had a significant impact on Clicks’ business, as the company’s stock prices plummeted in the days following the launch of the ads.
TRESemmé Brand Losses
TRESemmé found itself in the middle of a hair nationally when an offensive ad was released by Clicks, one of South Africa’s largest retailers. The ad showed photos of ugly African hair versus beautifully-made white hair. Needless to say, the black community was outraged, and many took to social media to express their displeasure with the brand (Makoni, 2021). In response to the backlash, both TRESemmé and Clicks issued public apologies. TRESemmé condemned the ad and distanced themselves from it, saying that it did not reflect their values as a brand.
TRESemmé, a leading hair care brand, suffered significant losses during the Clicks Hair Ad Saga. The incident started when an ad circulated on social media that seemed to suggest that African hair was dry, damaged, and frizzy. Clicks quickly removed the ad and apologized, but the damage had been done. TRESemmé is an Afro-specific haircare range that is massively popular in South Africa (it is likewise available in other countries), and many of its customers were deeply offended by the ad. The repercussion was so fierce that it even led to a protest march outside of one of the Clicks’ stores (Makoni, 2021). As a result of the negative publicity, many consumers boycotted TRESemmé and its products in South Africa.
Instructional Graphic
The graph above represents the decrease in demand that the Clicks brand and TRESemmé brand experienced. S represents the supply that was constant, while the D denotes the demand which declined. On the Y-axis is the Blacks population which is abbreviated by P; on the other hand, X-axis is demand; the arrows indicate backward from D1 to D0, meaning demand decline. The Clicks and the TRESemmé brand both experienced a decrease in demand during the Clicks Hair Ad Saga (Mokoena, 2022). The reason for this was that black people felt discriminated against by the ad. Some people argued that the ad was racist, while others argued that it was simply innocent fun. In a business platform, whenever a given group of clients realizes hatred, they normally withdraw by boycotting the seller (Bhandari, 2018). However, the end result was that many black people ended up boycotting both brands as a form of protest. This led to a decrease in demand for both brands, ultimately resulting in revenue loss for both companies.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Clicks became troubled in their recent ad campaign, which was accused of being racist. They demonstrated racism in their ad when they depicted a black woman as being unattractive and having bad hair. This is an example of how brands can be offensive and racially charged. TRESemmé got affected because it is the responsible beauty company for images together with Unilever. Many thought that TRESemmé gave Clicks the authority to discriminate against blacks through advertisement. Both Clicks and TRESemmé brands apologized, but many people were outraged by the blatant racism displayed in the ads. As a result, many people, especially black women, completely avoided the two brands, leading to a decline in sales.
Recommendation
My recommendation is that Clicks and TRESemmé should definitely embrace all races in their adverts to avoid losing black customers. The recent Clicks hair ad saga is a perfect example of why this is so important. By featuring only white models in their ads, Clicks sent a very clear message that they do not value or respect black customers. Additionally, I recommend that when it comes to marketing and advertising, it is always important to consult with experts to get a sense of how the public might perceive their images. In the case of the Clicks Hair Saga, it is obvious that many black people were offended by the way in which Click’s products were presented.
Reference List
Makoni, C. (2021) Strategic communications in Africa.: A case of Clicks Pharmaceuticals, South Africa. Routledge.
Mokoena, L. (2022). An exploration of the hair and hair care experiences of Black South African women as a basis of consumer brand identification in polarised product categories. Doctoral dissertation, The IIE.
Bhandari, N. (2018). ‘Hike in prices of petrol and its impact on demand and supply’. International Journal for Advance Research and Development, 3(8), pp.33-37.