Fem: Taking fairness on-ground

Dabur has rolled out a beauty contest, ‘Fem De Sohney Sohney Mukde', across five cities in Punjab, in order to engage customers of Fem bleach

In its quest for fair and glowing faces, Fem fairness bleach is traversing the roads of Punjab. After the acquisition of Fem Care Pharma by Dabur in June last year, the company has beefed up its marketing plans for the brand's bleaching products.

In order to engage its customers, Dabur has rolled out a beauty contest, 'Fem De Sohney Sohney Mukhde', for women over 18 years of age, who use bleach. The contest will be held in five cities in Punjab -- Amritsar, Ludhiana, Chandigarh, Patiala and Jalandhar. This is the first time that such a contest is being organised by Fem.

The winner of the contest will be crowned 'Fem De Sohne Sohne Mukhde of Punjab' and will get a chance to appear on television.

The company has not set an upper age limit to enter the contest. "We believe that beauty is ageless. Therefore, this contest celebrates beauty across age groups," Medha Mohan, brand head – Fem, tells afaqs!.

"Fem has been associated with beauty and fairness for last 25 years. It is pretty evident in our market share, which is close to 50 percent. And Fem is a brand made popular by women and endorsed by women. To pay a tribute to all those women who have used Fem for years, we are organising this contest," she adds.

Initially, the beauty hunt has been introduced in Punjab, one of the top five markets for Fem bleach. "The bleach market in India accounts for Rs 150 crore and is growing at a steady rate of about 20 per cent per year. Punjab is one of the top five markets for the brand, with about 12 to 13 per cent contribution to Fem's business," says Mohan.

The beauty hunt would be conducted through both beauty parlours and high-streets. It is an integrated activity with the channel partners. The company has tied up with 15-20 beauty parlours in each city. Girl-promoters from the company will be present at each parlour, encouraging patrons to use bleach and telling them about the contest.

In addition, mobile canters would also seek entries at major markets and high-streets across these cities. These canters will act both as booths to advertise the event and also as mobile beauty parlours. Women can visit these canters to try the products and also to register for the contest. The canters will move across two to three high traffic spots per day in each city.

The shortlisted candidates will be invited for a city-level finale, where three finalists from each city will be chosen. These 15 finalists will then undergo a two-day grooming and training session by professionals. They will compete for the title at a grand finale, scheduled for March 7 in Chandigarh.

The company will give these finalists an opportunity to share their beauty experience on TV. These vignettes will then be aired on Punjabi music channel MH1, the TV partner for the contest. The outdoor partner for the event is Radio City Connect, the activation arm of Radio City.

The company is creating buzz around the contest by airing promos on MH1, which also provide information about the beauty parlours where women can register, thereby giving these parlours a wider reach in the city. The event is also being promoted through radio interviews and RJ mentions.

After Punjab, the company plans to roll out this initiative in five cities across Maharashtra, in the next few weeks. The campaign will again target 15-20 parlours in each city.

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