The Rise of Gender Neutrality in Beauty
What do you see, when you look in the mirror? Does it surprise you, delight
you, destabilise you? Be it cruel, kind, or way off-base(coat), what you see
isn’t necessarily what you have to live with.
The beauty industry has empowered consumers to defy, enhance and get
creative with the canvas they’re given. But what now, when an increasingly
vocal (and influencial) audience is rejecting the pillars of gender-specific
products? Does the beauty category need to throw off the labels of
For Men and For Women to focus purely on the product benefits?
The conversation around gender and identity had entered mainstream
consciousness. Whether it’s the ban on harmful stereotypes by the ASA,
traditionally machismo brands tackling toxic masculinity, or fashion houses
releasing gender-free lines, the idea that you are defined and limited by
your gender is no longer an absolute.
More than one-third of Gen Z respondents in a recent survey strongly
agreed that gender does not define a person as neatly as it used to. The
idea that a beauty product can instead tackle a certain flaw or enhance a
certain quality is making headway, and Mintel research supports this.
“Consumers are moving away from traditional gender stereotypes and
expectations. As such, they are going to come to expect brands to push a
gender-neutral message to the fore of their new product development and
marketing campaigns.”
Of course, it's easier for smaller, newer companies to live this idea. It's often
at the very heart of their brand, their mission or purpose in life. The bigger
or more established you are, the more carefully you have to tread. Like it or
not you’re held to a different standard, scrutinised more closely, a target for
backlash more easily. Fundamentally it comes down to authenticity.
If you’re going to do it, mean it. Find those in your organisation who can
make it a passion project as much as a business decision. Don’t have one
brand in your stable celebrate the breaking of gender stereotypes whilst
another promotes it.
Should you get in the game? Well, maintaining relevance in an increasingly
fluid world aside, it opens you up to an entirely new spectrum of audience.
Why limit your brand to one type of wallet?
#beautyforall

Ellie D'Eath and Isabel Campa, the creative duo behind Unboxed, put their
lippy where their mouth is to create a gender neutral, subscription based
and sustainable beauty brand, without tick-boxes.
"We wanted to create something that everyone can take pride in
purchasing, using and reusing. Unboxed is all about embracing how
colourful humanity is by creating a simplified product range, a canvas that
respects both people and planet. Beauty for all!"