Something is happening in the advertising-for-women space. What started as a slow burn in the period sector, appears to now be a tidal wave across different product categories. What used to be highly-romanticised and stylised depictions of everyday essentials (bungee jumping whilst wearing a tampon, for example) are fast becoming the all-natural reality of those situations. The most recent example just landed in my inbox and comes from Wilkinson Sword, the razor company (spoiler: there’s a brilliant launch film further down the page).
I don’t think I’d realised consciously that hair removal was another space in which advertisers love to create faux-indulgent situations that would never happen in real life (definitely not contenders for the best ads ever). We’ve all noticed how models in those adverts seem to be shaving legs with no hair, but the joy they feel whilst shaving their legs is also unmatched. I’ve certainly never felt a ‘me’ moment whilst bending uncomfortably to reach the backs of my calves.