Seda Exchange
Unilever
Issue 33 | December 2014
Agency
JWT Brazil
Creative Team
CCO Ricardo John Head of Art Fa´bio Simo~es Creative Director Gustavo Soares Copywriter Juliana Mendonc¸a Art Director Paula Fernandes
Production Team
Digital Production Rodrigo Alberini Gabriel Zanferrari Nathan Wang Graphic Production Fla´vio Colella Leandro Iacovone Graphic Designer Fernanda Fiore
Other Credits
Account Management Caroline Bassi Project Managers Rodrigo Alberini Guillermo Bale Planning Isabella Mulholland Mariana Quintanilha Jessica Bouchet Client Approval Marina Fernie Diego Guareshi Gabriel Macruz
Date
October 2014
Background
When Paul Polman became CEO of Unilever in 2009, he set about an ambitious plan to double the company's profits while significantly reducing its impact on the environment.
Every Unilever brand manager was tasked with making their brands more sustainable, including Seda, the largest haircare brand in Brazil.
Idea
Throughout October, Seda offered to swop all old shampoo packs for free cellphone minutes with all the major operators in Brazil, TIM, Ol, Claro and Vivo. They built a special recycling station at Repu´blica subway station where city dwellers could dispose of their waste packaging.
Supporting the work of WWF Brazil, the idea was part of Seda's Recarga Natural campaign, which had introduced products made with natural extracts such as green tea and citrus, ginseng root and mulberry root.
The idea behind it all was be nice to the environment and the environment will be nice to you, helping you stay pretty and confident.
Results
Not known yet.
Our Thoughts
The innovation here isn’t so much in the advertising idea but in the business strategy. There’s no doubt the City is very sceptical of Paul Polman’s commitment to building profitability through sustainability. But when you look at it, there are only a handful of companies that genuinely have a commitment to the environment. The fact that a huge company like Unilever believes it should, and can, make a difference is heartening. It is equally heartening that its brand managers are taking up the challenge. Even though this recycling idea is a relatively small enterprise, it is symbolic of an entire company shifting its stance. The City may want profits at whatever cost. The rest of us don’t.