The world is a different place than it was only a few months ago. With the Coronavirus sweeping the globe and killing thousands of people, the damage it has done is absolutely devastating. It has been officially declared a pandemic, and people all over the world are panicking, hoarding important medical supplies and hand sanitizer. And now there is a shortage of these goods, so much so, that even medical professionals cannot get them and they are on the front lines fighting this illness.
LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault and French President Emanuel Macron
Thankfully, a few beauty and fashion brands are stepping up to try and stop the spread of Covid-19, and to equip our healthcare workers with the tools they need to combat this.
LVMH stepped up to the plate, offering it’s perfume and cosmetics business into a hand sanitizer manufacturing company.
“LVMH will therefore use all the production facilities of its Perfumes & Cosmetics brands (Parfums Christian Dior, Guerlain and Parfums Givenchy) in France to produce large quantities of hydroalcoholic gel,” the company said in a release.
The hand sanitizer will be delivered free of charge to French health authorities starting on Monday in a commitment LVMH will continue to honor “for as long as necessary” in an effort to “enable a greater number of people to continue to take the right action to protect themselves from the spread of the virus.”
Soon L’Oreal followed offering its factories to produce hand sanitizer. La Roche-Posay will provide hydro-alcoholic gel to hospitals, nursing homes and main partnering pharmacies throughout Europe, while its other Garnier brand will dispense millions of units of the gel to all of its European clients in the food distribution channel.
“In this exceptional crisis situation it is our responsibility to contribute in every possible way to the collective effort,” said Jean-Paul Agon, L’Oréal chairman and chief executive officer, in a statement. “Through these gestures, L’Oréal wishes to express its appreciation, support and solidarity with all those who mobilize with extraordinary courage and abnegation to fight against this pandemic.”
On the fashion side, Zara’s parent company Inditex announced that it would produce medical gowns and face masks for both the health care staff and patients in Spain, which is currently on lockdown.
Inditex explained in a statement that it “will make a delivery at least once a week of materials we purchase directly.” And it continued, “(Inditex) already donated 10,000 protective face masks and by the end of this week expects to be in a position to ship another 300,000 surgical masks.”
For all of the devastation that this virus has caused, it has also brought people and companies together to fight this war. What do you think about these brands coming together to combat Covid-19? Do you think more companies will follow?
