The Moodie Report turns pink to support Breast Cancer Awareness

The eye-catching advertising visuals of The Estée Lauder Companies 2010 Breast Cancer Awareness campaign

INTERNATIONAL. Today, 1 October, sees The Estée Lauder Companies enter its 18th year of battling against breast cancer. The group’s long-running Breast Cancer Awareness (BCA) Campaign continues to spread the message that early detection saves lives.

All over the world, October is now firmly established as Breast Cancer Awareness Month – with the iconic Pink Ribbon as its symbol (since 1992 more than 110 million have been distributed worldwide).

This year’s campaign message is being conveyed via an eye-catching ad visual designed to push the boundaries of breast cancer discussion. The accompanying slogan is: “Connect. Communicate. Conquer. Prevent breast cancer one woman at a time. The Pink Ribbon. Wear it. Share it.”

The Moodie Report is turning its whole multi-media portfolio pink this month to support both the campaign and one of our key brand partners,The Estée Lauder Companies. For the second year running our website’s home page headlines and masthead are all in pink for the month, while our weekly e-Newsletter and pdf (The Moodie Report 7 Days) will also see a marked change of colour from next week.

The 2010 BCA Campaign aims to reach more than two billion people in over 70 countries from five continents; illuminate more than 200 global landmarks in pink lights; and involve more than 40 celebrities, politicians and other high-profile influencers via the BCA Campaign’s World Pink Ribbon Ambassador (WPRA) initiative.

This year’s BCA Campaign theme draws its inspiration from The Estée Lauder Companies’ heritage when, in 1946 Estée Lauder’s “High-Touch” method of reaching consumers was “Telephone, Telegraph, Tell-A-Woman.”

No more time for whispering

I have met many brave women who are battling breast cancer. The common element that stands out among them is not their condition but their dignity.

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Senior Corporate Vice President Evelyn Lauder’s approach to conquering breast cancer aims to reinterpret this powerful medium of messaging into a philanthropic mission for today’s modern and fast-paced culture. The campaign, which now incorporates online and digital media, encourages women and men to “Connect” with everyone they know and “Communicate” the importance of breast health and early detection.

But the BCA Campaign raises far more than just awareness – by October 2010, the Campaign and its retail partners will have raised US$45 million since 1993 for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF), a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to funding innovative, clinical and translational research – and finding a cure.

Sales of the Estée Lauder Companies’ special Pink Ribbon Products have proved a key fund-raising platform to date. This year the group will sell 20 Pink Ribbon products through 14 of its beauty brands (Aveda, Bobbi Brown, Bumble & bumble, Clinique, Darphin, DKNY, Donna Karan, Estée Lauder, Jo Malone, La Mer, Lab Series Skincare for Men, Michael Kors Fragrance, Ojon® and Origins).

The 2010 eye-catching BCA campaign visual was conceived by MAC Senior Vice President, Creative Director James Gager, and MAC Vice President Design Toni Lakis. The image was shot by photographer Michael Thompson.

Left to right: Leonard Lauder, Elizabeth Hurley, Evelyn Lauder and Philippe Houzé at the Beauté et Sérénité photography exhibition in Paris. All proceeds were donated to fund research projects run by The Breast Cancer Research Foundation

“When I launched The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign in 1992, breast cancer was only spoken about in whispers,” noted Evelyn Lauder. “Eighteen years later, countless survivors, supporters, politicians and celebrities have joined us in our mission. Major strides have been made, though we still have a long way to go. We continue to make a real difference, and through our combined efforts of raising awareness and raising funds for research, breast cancer will become a distant memory.”

COMBATING CANCER WTH BEAUTÉ AND SÉRÉNITÉ
Earlier this year, in June, Evelyn Lauder and Philippe Houzé, President of Group Galeries Lafayette, hosted a press luncheon and private view of Mrs Lauder’s 10-day photography exhibition entitled Beauté et Sérénité.

The exhibition – which ran from 2-12 June – featured more than 60 colour photographs that focus on the “essence of beauty and the splendour found in nature”. Each of the photos represents Mrs Lauder’s personal favourites spanning 30 years of photography (1980-2010). All proceeds raised from the exhibition will help to fund future Paris-based research projects run by The Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF).

Evelyn Lauder’s 10-day Beauté et Sérénité photography exhibition was held in Paris from 2 to 12 June

The exhibition featured more than 60 photographs that focus on the “essence of beauty and the splendour found in nature”

On the eve of the exhibition, Mrs Lauder was honoured at a private cocktail reception for more than 600 guests, at La Galerie des Galeries at Galeries Lafayette in Paris. In turn the reception was followed by an exclusive dinner hosted by HSBC, and was attended by Mr Leonard Lauder, Elizabeth Hurley and her husband Arun Nayar, plus prominent social, political and business figures from France and around the globe.

“Nature nourishes us: it soothes the spirit and the soul,” explained Mrs Lauder. “When I create an image that helps someone – even just myself – find peace, then I’ve attained my goal. In selecting the photographs for this show, I looked back to my favourite works over the past 30 years. The uniting element is beauty, but the show can be categorised into a few distinct themes: flowers and foliage, rhythms and patterns in nature which when blown up are almost abstract, landscape, and the lady head vase series. This exhibition represents to me the crème de la crème of my work and a window into my lifelong conversation with beauty.”

She added: “It is important to mention that, in keeping with my belief in the healing power of beauty, all of the proceeds from the sales of exhibition photographs benefit research projects in France funded by The Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

Each of the exhibition photos represents Evelyn Lauder’s personal favourites spanning 30 years of photography

“BCRF grant dollars have provided crucial support for clinical studies that have resulted in the development of successful new breast cancer treatments such as Herceptin and Avastin; the finding that low levels of Vitamin D may cause increased risk of breast cancer; and the nutritional study known as WINS (Women’s Interventional Nutrition Study), which has shown that a low-fat diet can prevent breast cancer from developing or recurring.”

Mrs Lauder concluded: “BCRF grants have also funded important laboratory studies that are crucial to the eradication of breast cancer such as the discovery of new genes that may protect against developing cancer, and others that conversely may increase risk, as well as the discovery of how breast cancer origination cells (cancer “stem cells”) develop and how tumours may “seed” themselves and spread.

“All proceeds from Beauté et Sérénité will support BCRF research in France. Cumulatively, BCRF has awarded nearly US$1.5 million in grants to support research projects in France. Currently BCRF is funding the research of Dr Rosette Lidereau, Research Director, Centre René Huguenin (CRH) in Saint-Cloud, France. Dr Lidereau has been a BCRF grantee for three years, and we have awarded over US$650,000 thus far to Centre René Huguenin for her research.

“Dr Lidereau and her team are working to identify and characterise which genes are involved in breast cancer organ-specific metastasis (i.e. to which specific organs the breast cancer will spread). If doctors knew at first diagnosis to which organs the cancer was most likely to spread, they would be able to design a better and more appropriate care plan for the patient. Knowledge of organ metastasis would help doctors select the correct targets for emerging preventative treatments.”

Sales of the Estée Lauder Companies’ special Pink Ribbon Products have helped raised millions of dollars for the BCRF

LEADING THE WAY WITH LIGHT
In 2000, The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Awareness (BCA) Campaign expanded its efforts and launched the Global Landmarks Illumination Initiative to spread the life-saving message about early detection and treatment in a new, exciting and dramatic way.

This October, it will celebrate its 11th anniversary with more than 200 famous buildings, monuments and landmarks joining in this effort by illuminating in glowing pink lights to stand as international symbols of hope to empower and enlighten millions of women everywhere.

Evelyn Lauder noted: “In the last 11 years, our Illumination effort has been transformed from a handful of prominent landmarks to more than 200 worldwide. Each year we are so appreciative to have the support of these world-renowned buildings, landmarks and monuments that join forces with us to cover the world in pink to help raise awareness in order to conquer this disease in the not too distant future.”

The Estée Lauder Companies’ Global Landmarks Illumination Initiative has lit up hundreds of famous buildings, including Belvedere Castle, Austria; The Arena, Italy; and Los Angeles International Airport, USA

The lit-up list includes:
-The Concert Hall, Amsterdam
– Taj Mahal Palace & Tower Hotel, India
– Sydney Opera House, Australia
– Chords Bridge, Israel
– Congreso de la Nación, Argentina
– Leaning Tower of Pisa, Italy
– Belvedere Castle, Austria
– Marino Palace, Italy
– Niagara Falls, Canada
– Las Condes City Hall, Chile
– Tokyo Tower, Japan
– Nan Pu Bridge, China
– Kuala Lumpur Tower, Malaysia
– The Water Cube, China
– SKY Tower, New Zealand
– The Legation Quarter, China
– Taipei 101 Tower, Taiwan
– Presidential Palace, Dominican Republic
– Maiden Tower, Turkey
– Paris City Hall, France
– Tower of London, UK
– Brandenburger Tor, Germany
– JFK International Airport, USA
– Museum of Cycladic Art, Greece
– Los Angeles International Airport, USA
– Chain Bridge, Hungary
– The Empire State Building, USA