It's been a bad week for hair removal company Veet, whose latest advertising campaign has been pulled after a storm of protest
Does body hair make you any less of a woman? According to Veet’s new advertising campaign in the USA, the answer is apparently yes.
The most recent adverts from the hair removal giant have come under fire for being sexist, ignorant and offensive thanks to the tagline, ‘Don’t risk dudeness.’
In one, a man recoils in horror after waking up next to his girlfriend, who has morphed into a man because of her hairy legs. Another shows a woman refused by a cab thanks to her hairy armpit, before (yes, again) turning into a man. The last shows a pedicurist exclaiming ‘Oh, this is terrible!’ upon discovering her client’s dirty little secret: a pair of hairy pins, before the client (yes, you’ve guessed it) changes into a man.
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Since the uproar, Veet has removed the adverts and released this statement on its Facebook page:
“We just wanted to let everyone know, we get it – we’re women too. This idea came from women who told us that at the first hint of stubble, they felt like ‘dudes’. It was really simple and funny, we thought. To be honest, the three of us could really relate to these real-life moments and they made us laugh. Not everyone appreciated our sense of humour. We know that women define femininity in different ways. Veet helps those who choose to stay smooth. Our intention was never, ever, to offend anyone, so we decided to rethink our campaign and remove those clips. Thank you for letting us know how you feel."
Not only are we glad that these ads have been pulled, we’re also delighted people were so vocal in expressing their disapproval. From post-shave stubble to prickly legs and underarm fuzz, when did something completely natural become something to be ashamed of ? Forgive us if we choose not to whip out our trusty bottle of hair removal cream the first day we don a skirt. It’s not like we’ve grown an extra butt cheek. It’s just a bit of hair.