Dove Challenges Beauty Standards in Campaign “Fine (P)arts”

Fine (P)arts

In 2023, Dove launched “Fine (P)arts,” a branded content project with the aim of reconnecting young Spanish women with their bodies. The campaign reinterpreted classic art with a modern, inclusive perspective, celebrating diverse body types and addressing the pressures around societal beauty standards. By partnering with Freeda Media, a leading digital platform focused on amplifying real stories to inspire positive change, Dove managed to change the narrative and reconnect with Spanish young women.

Economic Pressures Spark Creative Solution

In 2023, as Spain faced surging inflation, personal care brands like Dove—owned by Unilever—struggled to compete with cheaper store brands. This economic shift hit the deodorant category hard, but for Dove, the challenge went beyond pricing. The company needed to reconnect with young women, a demographic with which it had been losing ground. Dove has always been focused on creating products to support optimal skin health with an underlying commitment to breaking gender stereotypes — seeking to serve as a source of inspiration to women worldwide. To regain market penetration, the company realized it had to address a deeper issue: the lack of authentic representation of women in beauty advertising.

Tackling Unrealistic Beauty Standards

According to Havas Media Network’s ‘Meaningful Women 2030’ study, 65% of women don’t identify themselves with the models appearing in beauty ads. Young women don’t feel represented and they constantly feel pressured to reach unattainable physical ideals. However, this lack of representation goes beyond mass media. If we go back in history, in art, for centuries, women’s bodies were represented only in a very normative way. Historically, women’s bodies have been depicted through the lens of male artists, reflecting idealized and often unrealistic standards of beauty. Despite Dove’s long-standing global efforts to promote real beauty and self-esteem, the brand had not previously launched a campaign that genuinely resonated with local women —until now. Together with Havas International and Havas Play, Dove decided to develop a campaign that felt authentic to Spanish women’s experiences.

Reinterpreting Classic Art for Modern Women

To challenge outdated beauty standards, Dove decided to change things from the beginning and launch “Bellas (P)artes” or “Fine (P)arts”, a content-driven campaign that reinterpreted classic works of art with a modern, inclusive vision. Content was key because showcasing examples beyond the normative helps people see themselves reflected, identified, and accepted. As deodorant is one of the brand’s most iconic products, the content focused on armpits, a part of the body that is frequently exposed in classic art pieces. The message emphasized that perfect armpits, just like perfect bodies, don’t exist; no matter how hairy, white, dark, or scarred they look, they are all beautiful.

Diverse Talents to Redefine Classic Beauty

To avoid relying on unrealistic beauty ideals associated with celebrities and influencers, Dove enlisted three diverse talents who showcase the plurality of bodies and experiences around acceptance and self-esteem. A curvy model, an illustrator and creative, and a variety artist were the protagonists of the campaign. They recreated Sandro Botticelli’s iconic The Birth of Venus, Velázquez’s The Rokeby Venus; and Francisco Goya’s The Nude Maja, three renowned classic works of art that are globally recognizable. These reinterpretations were captured by a female photographer, further ensuring the campaign’s message of redefining beauty through a woman’s perspective. This shift from a traditionally male gaze to a female-led vision was central to the campaign’s message, that beauty is not defined by societal norms, but by the individuality of each woman.

A Meaningful Partnership

One of the key challenges for Dove was its lack of social media channels in Spain, limiting its direct access to young consumers. To bridge this gap, the brand partnered with Freeda Media. In recent years, Freeda has become a key digital platform in Spain, and one of the most popular media among Dove’s target audience. Their mission is to spread real stories to inspire positive change, using social media as a key driver. Completely in line with Dove’s own mission, Freeda Media was the perfect partner to connect with Spanish young women and fill the gap Dove had in the social media ecosystem.

The campaign launched on June 17th with a teaser video on Freeda’s platforms, building anticipation by introducing the campaign’s protagonists and themes. Shortly afterward, a full-length video was released, featuring the three talents sharing their personal experiences with body image, self-esteem, and the pressures they’ve faced regarding societal beauty standards. The content circulation strategy leveraged all of Freeda Media’s channels – TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube.

A Viral Success with Impactful Results

7.9M

Reach
10.6M

Impressions
9M

Views
+40.000

Interactions

Through a mix of high-quality content and an authentic message, Fine P(A)rts changed the narrative and demonstrated that there is not just one type of woman, or body, or armpit. By reframing beauty through the lens of diversity, Dove not only reconnected with young Spanish women but also reinforced its commitment to promoting real beauty in a market eager for change.

Dove Challenges Beauty Standards in Campaign "Fine (P)arts"