Brands capitalize on men sharing the load at home
This new trend has prompted FMCG firms to launch ad campaigns featuring men
The lockdown imposed to battle the covid-19 pandemic prompted more men to participate in basic household chores, at least in urban areas, said fast-moving consumer goods major Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL).
Increased participation of men in activities such as dishwashing, cooking, and helping children with their studies prompted the company to launch a digital campaign for the Vim brand featuring Indian cricket team player Virendra Sehwag, who was seen washing dishes.
“One of the things that we have seen increase and which is what led us to this campaign is the entire idea of marital partnership, because now both the husband and the wife are at home. We are seeing that men are stepping up more in terms of the work that they do around the house. Where we’ve seen a particular impact of this is engaging with children, doing some of the dusting and, importantly, a big one for us, is participating in dishwashing. We have definitely seen a rise in men washing dishes and talking about it. That’s been a big change we have seen,” said Prabha Narasimhan, executive director, home care, HUL.
The company’s home care division sells Rin, Wheel, Vim, Comfort and Surf Excel, which are used to clean dishes and clothes.
The trend, said Narasimhan, was largely seen in urban households, which struggled to get domestic help during the lockdown. This, she said, increased the burden of work, especially as they continued working from home.
HUL’s ad campaign for liquid Vim featuring Sehwag debuted during the annual cricketing event, the Indian Premier League. “Our take on this was to normalize the fact that men are in the kitchen,” Narasimhan said. This is the first Vim commercial featuring a man.
On Thursday, a report, titled Sentiments of India, by consultancy EY, revealed the impact of covid on home makers in India. It said load sharing became a trend with 63% homemakers saying that they were receiving help from their spouses or other family members.
EY surveyed 385 homemakers from different age groups, family types, and cities.
Family members are now sharing responsibilities and are more cognizant of the value homemakers add to their lives, the report said. As much as 19% of those surveyed in nuclear families, or those without children, reported that their spouse was helping them with household chores. “This indicates that couples are moving towards a more equitable partnership,” according to the findings of the report. Children are also actively supporting their mothers, making homemaking a more shared responsibility, EY said.
The pandemic has also reset consumer behaviour and spurred demand for packaged foods, home cleaning and kitchen products.
In its June quarter earnings, Jyothy Laboratories, which sells Pril and Exo dishwashing liquids and bars, said it saw an unexpected surge in use of these brands, as men, new to washing dishes, used more liquid. Even though the country has opened up, people still continue working from home in most large cities.
HUL expects men to appreciate the woman’s role in running households, even after normalcy returns, Narasimhan said.
India is a laggard when it comes to men sharing the burden of household chores. That’s because the typical role ascribed to men is that of a breadwinner while women are often seen as caregivers. For years now, however, marketers have been trying to bring to fore more equitable gender roles and integrate them into their ad campaigns
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First Published:4 Nov 2020, 02:48 PM IST
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