Advertisements and Vitiligo : A step towards a more inclusive world

As the world is becoming more technologically advanced and connected, people have started to become more diverse and inclusive with their thought processes. Easy accessibility of the Internet and social media has let visibility of good ideas and opinions spread far and wide. In this all-inclusive era, many new thoughts and projects are gaining acceptance, which otherwise would have been an alien concept. The same goes for the beauty and fashion industry. The industry which was usually known for its standard beauty norms is slowly changing for the better. The one-size-fits-all idea of beauty is finally being dismissed. Now slowly and steadily the idea of all-inclusiveness, that different can be beautiful, is gaining acceptance by society as well as the industry. By inclusiveness, we not just mean different races, colours, ethnicities but also a variety of skin, shapes and sizes.

In the most recent years, one of the most revolutionising concepts we have been witnessing gaining importance in the industry is the inclusiveness of imperfections. The idea that our flaws are what makes us human, hence no one is perfect is path-breaking. Many brands have started adopting this concept of “there is no standard sense of beauty”, and by advertising their products through diverse models, they are gaining a much larger audience. This leads to a bigger and better representation of a society, which was previously untouched. People who never thought that their group will get recognition in mainstream media, that too as something beautiful and appealing are now getting that screen time which they deserved; one campaign at a time.

In this avant-garde set of ideas, the most noticeable one till now is the inclusion of various skin conditions. By setting aside the old norms of beauty many brands have adopted models who have societally “imperfect” skins to be their representatives. These kinds of inclusions are not only inspiring for the people living with these conditions but for everyone harbouring insecurities. By using models with skin conditions such as Vitiligo, the brands are breaking stereotypes as to what should be a standard of perfection when it comes to beauty and fashion.

There are many brands worldwide that have featured Vitiligo models as the face of their brands and are continuing to do so. Vitiligo, to simply state, is an autoimmune skin condition, where a faulty immune system starts attacking melanocytes (colour producing pigments) which results in white patches all over the body. Contrary to its not dangerous and not contagious nature, the social stigma regarding this visible skin condition is extremely negative. Many people living with this condition are insecure and targeted by the societal standard of beauty, which all happens due to a lack of proper knowledge. Hence the inclusion of models having the skin condition by brands is a huge step towards spreading awareness regarding its harmless nature. These advertisements featuring the models are broadening the idea that “every kind of different is beautiful in its own way”, and empowering people to embrace themselves and their skin just the way it is.

Models like Winnie Harlow, Amy Deanna, Prarthana Jagan, Ninu Galot are some of the industry favorite names globally and in India who aren’t letting their skin become a drawback.They are changing the industry for the better with their confidence and hard work. Them embracing and loving their skin have not only empowered them for the better but have also encouraged millions of women all over the globe living with skin conditions to embrace theirs too.

Along with these hard-working models many brands have decided to take a step in the right direction by becoming more welcoming of the diverse beauty world has to offer.

To name a few of such brands:

• Claire

A fashion and accessory brand which targets teens and youth starred April Star, on the homepage of their website to create awareness and representation regarding the condition.

• Primark

The brand has been praised for featuring a teen model with Vitiligo for its clothing campaigns in 2019. Kaiden Williams has been setting an example by becoming a young model with a skin condition to be so accepting of himself and not being afraid to be a role model to the world. In 2020 too they featured a model showing off her socks in a cosy and confident Instagram post by the brand.

• Sheertex

Going by the tagline of the world’s toughest tights, Sheertax featured a model with vitiligo in their ads to create awareness for the issue. What more? One of the parents on Twitter stated that a kid saw that pretty model on the Sheertex website and brought a lego that resembles her. #representation_game_strong.

• Starbucks

Starbucks is known worldwide for its coffee and great range of beverages. But do you know what’s better than just a good drink? An ad with subtle hints towards diversity. In a blink-and-miss advertisement, they featured a model with Vitiligo ordering a beverage. These small inclusions as to what should be normal, makeup for a good part of the awareness movement.

• Puma

The industry’s favourite model Winnie Harlow features Puma’s newest brand ambassador. From being on America’s next top model to be one of the top models in the industry, Winnie has time and again proven that she is not only the spokesperson for Vitiligo in the fashion industry but also an inspiration for all.

• Covergirl and Missguided

This revolutionising advertisement by Covergirl featuring Amy Deanna says a lot about representation in the beauty industry when it comes to skin conditions. In the ad, Amy uses two different foundations to highlight her hypopigmentation. She makes a bold statement by taking “Why try to blend in when you can choose to stand out?” to a whole another level in this #IAmWhatIMakeUp campaign. Missguided also has taken inclusivity to the next level by introducing mannequins who not only have vitiligo but a whole variety of skin and other conditions. Such representation has gotten women everywhere excited to finally see the conventional standards of beauty shattering and diversity broadening.

Hence, such Advertisements being all over the media is a huge step towards making people more self-confident in embracing themselves. These models and campaigns play a huge part in breaking the conventional norms of beauty, which we have been witnessing for a long time now and representing that it is okay to be different and we should not stop ourselves from pursuing what we want. Beauty is truly subjective and, what is beautiful for one, might not be for the other. So it is important to love ourselves for who we are and not how we look. Our skin is just a part of us but, it doesn’t define who we are. But the actual achievement will be when advertisements like these will not be a piece of exceptional news but a part of our daily life, a norm.