Beauty: how much does CSR weigh in the media?

Bulk, creation of an eco-score, launch of an investment fund dedicated to the circular economy… CSR initiatives of companies in the beauty sector are increasing in the light of new consumer demands. Despite this enthusiasm, CSR’s place in the brand discourse in the written press and on the web is far from clear. In 2021, according to a survey by the Onclusive Beauty Brands Observatory, only 2% of articles analyzed were related to topics related to social and environmental responsibility. luxury diary

Specifically, 140 influential press titles, generalist and specialist Fashion and Beauty sites were analysed. The media speeches of nearly 2,000 brands were then scrutinized by the observatory. 243 of them were associated with CSR-related topics, which corresponds to only 267 pages of the total sample. For Sabine Desmarquets, Customer and Solutions Director at Onclusive, this poor portrayal of brands’ CSR obligations is not synonymous with a lack of editorial interest in the topic. “There is a real media pull on these topics. In 2021 we have seen the publication of very nice articles on these themes in editorial spaces that are often hard to come by for beauty brands”she explains in the luxury diary

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And to add: “While some brands like to communicate on the topic, many fear greenwashing. Still others argue for ‘doing’ instead of ‘saying’ and feel that they do not have to justify their commitments, which are already concrete. Also keep in mind that many do not see CSR as a specific communication axis, insofar as their entire DNA is part of sustainability and ethics. This is the case for many emerging brands that are 100% built around these values.”

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