‘SATO 2531’ takes home Gold for Dentsu Digital Tokyo in the Creative Strategy Lions: Dove’s Decades-Long ‘Real Beauty’ takes Grand Prix
Dentsu Digital Tokyo’s “SATO 2531” for Asuniwa has been awarded a Gold in the Creative Strategy category.
The campaign has won multiple Lions this week including a Gold in Creative Data.
The Creative Strategy Grand Prix went to ‘Real Beauty: How a Soap Brand Created a Global Self-Esteem Movement’ for Dove by Ogilvy UK, London.
To help more women feel more beautiful every day, Dove has framed everyday women as ‘Real Women’, representing real beauty. ‘Real Beauty’ is now more than a creative idea. It is the combination of a distinctive point of view that repeatedly fuels new campaign ideas.
Jury President Pats McDonald, Global Chief Strategy Officer, Dentsu Creative, said: “In a world where millions of young women struggle with anxiety, Dove’s 20-year commitment to self-esteem has never been more urgent. From a simple but devastating insight (just 2% of women describe themselves as beautiful) and a humble bar of soap, it accelerated across categories and continents. Dove embraces culture, collaboration and community while maintaining absolute consistency at its core – demonstrating the extraordinary commercial impact of true brand purpose allied to lasting business commitment.”
For over two decades, Ogilvy and Dove have fundamentally redefined beauty with the enduring “Real Beauty” campaign, a powerful platform born from the revelation in 2004 that only 2% of women considered themselves beautiful. Led by Ogilvy UK with dozens of offices across the Ogilvy global network contributing over the years, “Real Beauty” helped transform a simple soap brand into a $7.5 billion power brand, according to Kantar, driven by the purpose of making women feel more beautiful every day. Through groundbreaking and iconic campaigns like the original “Campaign for Real Beauty” (2004), the visually striking “Evolution” (2006), the deeply moving “Real Beauty Sketches” (2013), and recent powerful statements such as “Reverse Selfie” (2020), “Courage is Beautiful” (2020), and “#TurnYourBack” (2023), the partnership has consistently shattered conventional beauty standards and driven significant social change. These efforts have not only fostered self-esteem among women and girls worldwide but have also firmly established “Real Beauty” as the gold standard for long-term marketing effectiveness in the industry.
Zoe Hamilton, Ogilvy’s Global Chief Strategy Officer for Unilever: “Twenty years ago, Dove decided it wanted to stand for something bigger in the world – simply put, to make more women feel beautiful every day and to challenge whatever gets in the way of that. This Grand Prix recognizes a platform that has been unwavering for two decades. The Campaign for Real Beauty built a brand and a business; it shaped culture and changed lives. This truly honors the conviction and passion of so many people within an incredible partnership that have championed a unified purpose every step of the way and it is our greatest privilege to be that partner.”
.Other Gold winners include Impact BBDO and Annahar Newspaper’s “The New President”.