South Africans show support for TRESemmé product removal

09 September 2020 - 09:54 By Cebelihle Bhengu
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EFF members danced and sang protest songs outside the Clicks store in the Mall of Africa.
EFF members danced and sang protest songs outside the Clicks store in the Mall of Africa.
Image: Thapelo Morebudi/The Sunday Times

TRESemmé is trending on Twitter after Clicks announced on Tuesday that its products will be delisted and removed from its shelves.

This follows a racist online advert by the Unilever brand which sparked outrage and protests across the country after it labelled black, natural hair as “dry and damaged” and blonde, straight hair as “fine and normal”.

The beauty and health retailer will replace the brand with locally sourced hair care products.

Some welcomed the decision, particularly the support for local hair care products, while others said removing the brand from Clicks shelves should be a start as they want a total ban of the brand.

TRESemmé apologised about the discriminatory advert . The company said it will investigate how the advert was approved and was not picked up.

“We are very sorry the images used in a TRESemmé SA marketing campaign on the Clicks website promoted racist stereotypes about hair. The campaign set out to celebrate the beauty of all hair types and range of solutions that TRESemmé offers, but we got it wrong.”

Clicks stores will remain closed on Wednesday as they continue to be affected by EFF protests. The retailer on Tuesday said 425 stores have been affected by the protests nationally.

Here's a glimpse into the reactions:

- TimesLIVE


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