Women in razor commercials have always been hairless, that is, these ads oftentimes leave out the main issue to be addressed here, and that's hair. Finally, Billie's campaign showcases hair in all its glory.
Billie is launching its Project Body Hair campaign, which gives the center stage to what was once considered gross and, worse, a taboo: women's natural hair. The hairs being talked about here are the ones being scrutinized by people, albeit everybody has or had them at one point or another.
Unibrows, leg hair, and armpit hairs: these are just some of the most uncelebrated parts of women that are just too natural not to recognize. Fortunately, Billie has made the initiative to showcase body hairs and even took a step a little further by donating the photos of women to stock photo sites in order to offer everyone a look at what has been hidden in the past years.
Previous Razor Ads
Georgina Gooley, Billie cofounder, said her team noticed that razor commercials have always been unrealistic and seemed to point out that women have always been hairless. Come to think of it, misleading advertisements of the product show before-and-after use, though obviously nothing seemed to have changed.
If that's the case, what good does a razor bring to a woman? The common misconception is far from reality. Body hairs are not just natural, but it's also common and usual, which meant a stubble doesn't make one gross nor ugly. The Billie razor campaign does not only take a dip on this issue that is oftentimes brushed off, but it has also created a step in further helping people accept that these kinds of things, unwanted or not, really occur.
"When brands pretend that all women have hairless bodies, it's a version of body shaming," Cooley explained.
With the brand's efforts of sharing photos, it would be a big help in normalizing body hairs because why not? All images are taken by Ashley Armitage, a body positivity advocate. The brand is not only giving the internet some free photos that are celebrating women, but they are also encouraging others to share their photos of body hairs by crowdsourcing these images through the #projectbodyhair.
Shaving Is A Choice
As much as Billie aims to raise awareness of women's body hairs, Cooley stressed that shaving is a choice and that body hairs are just a part of life. The important thing is that women should never feel pressured to shave or not, as it should always be about what makes them feel beautiful.
This initiative of Billie is just the tip of the iceberg in breaking society-imposed beauty standards, but it should be lauded for making the effort. Hopefully, it will spark other brands to create such important campaigns.