Gender Marketing Is Like A Bad Tan - It’s Just Not Right

This male-owned, fake tanning company has made it clear that gender-based marketing is not a thing of the past -- and they have a clear preference.

Facebook @BondiSands / Via Facebook: BondiSands

Let’s get some things straight, do we REALLY need gender specific tanning foams? I mean come on, can’t we all just tan without having to think about our anatomy?! Well, apparently Australian Self-Tanning company Bondi Sands doesn’t think so!

Bondi Sands / Via sydneysocial101.com

Its regular product line consists of gender-neutral tanning foams, lotions, mists and oils (some pictured above). But that changed in January of 2017, with the launch of the “every day for men” campaign for their male-exclusive tanning foam.

Bondi Sands / Via notey.com

All human beings have epidermis, defined by Biology-Online.org as “a protective outer covering of many plants and animals.” So, if the whole point to self-tanning is to temporarily darken that “outer covering,” aka skin, how does a person’s gender impact the potency of such tanning product? Well... it DOESN’T!

Herald Sun, Shaun Wilson (left) and Blair James (right). / Via heraldsun.com.au

Bondi Sands has it all WRONG! In a Huffington Post interview, the company’s co-founder Blair James (pictured above) said, "many of my guy mates were already using our Gradual Tanning Milk and they were asking for a product that did not leave a sheen on the skin, dried faster and did not have such a sweet fragrance."

La Petite Pirate / Via lapetitepirate.tumblr.com

You read that right ladies! You have to really like glitter, enjoy waiting 10 min for your skin to dry before getting dressed, and love the smell of sugar. Otherwise, if you want a Bondi Sands product, you’ll have to buy a tanning foam for MEN.

Cheezburger / Via me.me

Is there any research that suggests creating a specialty product, a campaign for men, and none specifically for women, is a reasonable investment? The answer lies in James’ own words, “We simply believed that those guys who already tanned or wanted to start tanning would enjoy a product more tailored towards men's preferences," in other words, their assumptions.

Tokyoloop / Via theodysseyonline.com

Instead of assuming, why don’t they consider that we are all equal, and create a “new” gender-neutral, unscented, fast drying, shimmer-free product to add to their current line? But no, they’d rather presume that men and women want to contradict each other, and have yet to launch an equal gender specific self-tanning product for women.

The odissey online / Via giphy.com

That’s not all folks. Sandi Bond’s Self Tanning Foams for Men (225ml) are priced at $17.95, while their regular gender-neutral Self Tanning Foams (200ml) are priced at $19.95.

Bondi Sands / Via bondisands.com.au

It makes one wonder if they were to create a women-only Self Tanning Foam, how much more could they get away with charging females? After, all it seems to be quite popular to charge men less for the male counterparts to ladies’ products. Does this have to do with the fact that both founders are male? The world may never know.

giphy.com / Via giphy.com

This is just one of millions of gender marketing disasters out there. See how Lego failed at winning the “girl market.”