Leading beauty and personal care company Avon will partner with Forbes’ Woman Africa Leading Women Summit to participate in this year’s commemoration of International Women’s Day, which will be hosted on March 06 at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli ICC complex in Durban.
Avon will join other companies and organisations that have been part of this initiative. Avon will use the event to avail its ubiquitous digital platforms to give women an opportunity to document and share with the world their experiences, success and challenges in line with the 2020 Avon global theme for International Women’s Day, which is HerStory.
The International Women’s Day is a global women’s day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day presents women around the world with an opportunity to amplify their voices and intensify the struggle for inclusion across multiple dimensions of society where they still remain under-represented.
The fifth edition of the Forbes Woman Africa Summit is expected to attract a delegation of 1000 leading women from across a range of industries and professions who will engage in discussions and deliberations around the 2020 theme: The Ceiling Crashers 2.0: Power with Purpose.
Avon’ is encouraging thousands of its Beauty Entrepreneurs, employees and customers to commemorate the day by documenting their stories on video, sharing them with the world and reading life experiences of others on www.AvonHerStory.com and using the hashtag #herstory #speakout.
“The stories of many women still remain untold and through this initiative, we are giving women the platform to raise their voice and share their experiences. Women’s voices have been silenced for far too long by the shackles of patriarchy and misogyny. This initiative is a reaffirmation of our brand promise to Stand4Her by harnessing the ubiquity of our digital plans and the reach of our brand to support initiatives that seek to empower HER.
As a company that stand for women, Avon believes that behind every woman, there is a compelling and inspiring story to tell.
“We are giving women the platform to have their voices heard and heeded, not overlooked and ignored. We believe that we can draw inspiration and fortitude from the experiences of other women which will propel us to move forward with purpose and determination towards the goal of empowering women,” says Mafahle Mareletse, Group vice president for Avon Justine Turkey, Middle East & Africa (TMEA) and Managing Director of Avon Justine South Africa.
Renuka Methil, Managing Editor of FORBES WOMAN AFRICA, says the partnership with Avon is indicative of a meeting of minds between two organisations that have a proud pedigree of championing women emancipation and advancement.
“We are excited to be partnering with Avon for the FORBES WOMAN AFRICA 2020 Leading Women Summit in Durban. For generations, patriarchal systems have stopped women from believing in – and harnessing – their full potential. The women at the summit have defied convention and cultural stereotypes to rise to who they really are: bold, beautiful and brave,” says Renuka Methil, Managing Editor of FORBES WOMAN AFRICA.
As part of its co-sponsorship of the Forbes Woman Africa Leading Women Summit, Avon will be the official makeup sponsor for all women guest speakers, will sponsor the price giving a gift at the gala dinner, and will include Avon and Justine products in the delegate’s bags.