Nivea pulls 'White is Purity' ad campaign after public outrage

By

Kate Dingwall

Published
Apr 6, 2017

After widespread public outrage, Nivea has pulled its new “White is Purity” ad campaign.

Titled “White is Purity”, the new ad campaign was focused on highlighting Nivea’s newest women's deodorant, specifically targeting the Middle Eastern market. On social media, Nivea touted that the new deodorant would “keep it clean, keep bright. Don’t let anything ruin it, #Invisible.” The ‘White is Purity’ slogan was aimed at showing consumers that the new deodorant wouldn’t stain white garments. 

After the ad's unveiling on Facebook last week, the ad spread like wildfire across social media. While the general public was in uproar, the ad was quickly picked up by the alt-right movement, being shared and praised on white supremacy groups. 

Nivea quickly pulled the ad, apologizing publicly to the Washington Post, “That image was inappropriate and not reflective of our values as a company. We deeply apologize for that and have removed the post. Diversity and inclusivity are crucial values of Nivea. We take pride in creating products that promote beauty in all forms. Discrimination of any kind is simply not acceptable to us as a company, as employees, or as individuals.”

Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time Nivea has made a poor decision on the advertising front – in 2011 the brand released an advertorial of an African American man ripping off a tribal mask, with the slogan “recivilize yourself”. Nivea underwent a similar public shaming, being forced to publicly apologize for its grave error.