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CASE 2-2: CULTURAL NORMS, FAIR &

LOVELY, AND ADVERTISING
Case Summary

This case study analysis focuses on misplacement of cultural imperatives by mounting unethical
advertisement campaign by two Indian package mass consumption companies - Hindustan
Lever Ltd and CavinKare Ltd. Hindustan Lever Ltd (HLL) holds 90 market share of the skin
care industry but when CavinKare Ltd (CKL) lunched its Fair ever product within two years
CavinKare Ltd was able to gain 15% of the market. The implication is that businesses should
use utilitarian ethics as bases to evaluate the appropriateness of heir advertisement. Despite this
HLL continued its unethical promotional strategy with a little modification which still portrays
color preference. It was on the basis of this that All Indian Women Democratic Association
(AIWDA) took a bold step to complain to HLL and when HLL failed to respond AIWDA
appealed to the National Human Right Commission protesting that HLL advertisement is racist,
promotes son preference and insulting to the working women. This case analysis will analyze
each question in the case analysis in relation torelevant international marketing concepts.
2.1 Is it ethical to sell products that are mildly
effective?

 Basically business ethics is a professional ethic that examines and explains the ethical
principles and corporate effort made by a firm to comply with the global best practice.
The implication is that businesses try to evaluate the ethical impact of their business
practice if itis in line with the generally accepted business practice standard and socially
responsible to the general public. So for HLL to cash in to this demining cultural practice
and churn out those racially polarized advertisement is unethical and socially
irresponsible. So to address the issue of selling products that are mildly effective I must
point out here that it is unethical business practice.
 However Indian dermatologists pointed out that fairness products do not actually work
because the only reach the upper layer of the skin and do not affect the production of
Melanie. The bottom line is that HLL promotional strategy for Fair & Lovely is
misleading because it does not reflect the feedback from customers. More importantly,
HLL exploitation of cultural norms by embarking on a promotional strategy that mislead
the public that Fair & Lovely will make them accepted within a culture that is divided by
social class is unethical and socially irresponsible.
 2. Is it ethical to exploit cultural norms and
values to promote a product? Discuss.

YES
When Promotes Good Cultural Norms & Values (Such as:
Family bonding, freedom of speech, etc.)
 Fair & Lovely

UNETHICAL
Violation of
Gender
Discrimination
Colorism Human Rights of
Dignity
It is safe to say that HLL Fair and
Lovely commercials are very demeaning
to women in India. HLL campaign ad’s
degrades women in one major aspect;
the ad’s depicted the absence of a son in
a single father and daughter household.
The ad went on to show there was a
struggle with finding work
opportunities because no son was
present and it was harder for darker
tone women. After the daughter began
using the cream her skin tone starts to
lighten. The daughter was then able to
acquire a job as a stewardess while
treating her father to five course meals.
These ads were racially biased due to
the fact that they were implying that
lighter tone women will have more
opportunities than darker tone women.
Many of the cosmetics advertisements’ theme is the beauty and the
special function of the product. Fair and Lovely has advertised its
products in this way.
It showed how “the miracle worker” makes the women whiter and
more confident. From this aspect, the advertisement is similar to the
other cosmetics’ in general.
Other elements and stories used to convince the customers that if they
use its products, they will be successful in their career and probably have
a higher social status are unethical and negative.
The main qualification for woman to get a job is the way she looks but
not the capability within her is demeaning to women regardless of the
social influence. The derision of any race, caste, skin color, creed and
nationality should be avoided in the advertisements.
4. Will HLL’s Fair & Lovely Foundation be enough to
counter charges made by AIDWA? Discuss.

 The establishment of Fair& Lovely foundation was a right step in a right

direction but only that as an action to correct the damage to HLL corporate
image and the negative impact to the women segment of the Indian society is not
enough. However, pulling off those unethical advertisements off air; sponsoring
career fairs in over 20 cities; offering counseling in over 110 career areas and
supporting 100 rural scholarships for women on vocational programs helped to
reposition Hindustan Lever Ltd as a socially responsible corporate organization.
 The establishment of the foundation and withdrawal of the unethical adverts pushed
up Fair &Lovely annual sales growth between 15% to 20% while expanding the
market share of skincare product market by 42.7%. I believe to counter the charges of
unethical advertisement leveled by AIDWA, Hindustan Lever Ltd needs to sustain the
foundation to continue to discharge the corporate social responsibilities that informed
its establishment.
 Behaving in an ethically and socially responsible way should be the hallmark of every
business entity`s behavior, domestic or International (Cateora et al., 2011). However,
HLL should innovate new promotional strategy that will align positively with the
Indian culture.
Question 5:
IN LIGHT OF AIDWA CHARGES, HOW WOULD YOU SUGGEST FAIR &
LOVELY PROMOTES ITS PRODUCTS? WOULD YOUR RESPONSE BE
DIFFERENT IF FAIREVER CONTINUES TO USE “FAIRNESS” AS A
THEME OF ITS PROMOTION?
HILL need to answer Three significant
questions:

1. Does the Fair & Lovely advertisement portray racism?

2. Does the advertisement promote son preference?
3. Does the advertisement insult the working women?
Fair & Lovely Should Promotes their
Products:

 Articulating new advertising campaign.

 Advertise on more positive manner.
 Take new promotional strategy.
 Should careful about Cultural perspective etc.
 “Fairness”

"Fairness" is Fair & Lovely's theme I don't think it could be changed. If you want
lighter skin you want to be fair. If you want whiter teeth you buy whitening gel, to
me it's the same thing.
Question # 6

Propose a promotion/marketing program that will counter all

the arguments and charges against Fair & Lovely and be an
effective program.
 Three ethical principles

1. The utilitarian ethics

This probes into the cause of the problem and identify the
principle subject of the problem.

2. Rights of the parties:

This try to find out if the rights of the parties are respected.

3. Justice and fairness:

this principle seeks to find out if the canons of justice or
fairness to all is respected (Cateora et al., 2011).
My Recommendation
 QUESTION# 7
Now that a male market for fairness cream exists, is the
strength of AIDWA’s argument weakened?
The existence of male market for fairness should not
diminish the strength of AIDWA‟s argument because the
primary aim of AIDWA is to ensure that HLL apply ethical
principles and generally growing cultural trends to
promote its products responsibly. Like Fair & Lovely, HLL
should remove fairness as the theme to promote their Fair
& Handsome. The company should even repackage and
rebrand these products as “Smooth & Lovely” for Fair
&Lovely and “Fresh & Handsome” for the Fair &
Handsome respectively. This will change the entire old
perception of the brands and reposition these products
among both fair and dark skinned people in India in a more
ethical manner.
8. Comment on using “Shakti Ammas” to
introduce “fairness cream for the masses” in
light of AIDWA’s charges.
All India Women’s Democratic Association:
Shakti Ammas is a traditional Indian classification of social status based on the color of the skin. This
system emphasizes on whiteness as higher status and positive value while dark as lower status. The
implication is that skin color is closely identified with caste and is laden with symbolism. This became
cultural norm over time. Even this “Shakti Ammas” in itself is not ethical because it insult some of the
Indian gods like Krishna and other dark Hindu gods.

Lighter skin VS dark skin:

In the past, the preference of lighter skin has been very important to Indian Women’s culture but
cultural trend has changed that perception. This is manifested in the Shrinking number of men and
women in India who think lighter skin is beautiful.
 Modern Marketing concern:
Large part of globalization process by firms is to understand the cultural trend and the perception of the
market from the perspective of international marketing which transcends across continents.
 Hindustan Lever Limited (HLL) concerns:
Hindustan Lever Limited (HLL) should conduct research on current cultural trend and modern role of
women instead of exploiting out-date and controversial cultural norms that are not fit to the present
cultural environment. I believe Hindustan Lever Limited (HLL) should have not used Shakti Ammas in
the first place but would have conducted research that would have disclosed the present cultural trend
which is in line with AIDWA (All India
Women’s Democratic Association) views.