For as long as we can remember, nude tones have only represented a colour spectrum of white to light beige. After a viral tweet from a man describing the emotional feeling of finally finding a plaster that has matched his skin tone, Tesco has taken heed and is launching a new range of fabric plasters that are available in three tones: light, medium and dark. What’s even more shocking – they are the first supermarket to do it.
The tweet was initially spotted by a colleague at Tesco and brought to the attention of the senior team. Development soon followed, and was supported by the ‘BAME at Tesco’ internal colleague network, a network who aim to highlight the importance of culture, inclusion and diversity within Tesco and its products. The plasters were tested on colleagues during development and feedback was also collected.
This is a small but trivial step in the right direction for Tesco as it signifies a stronger focus on their market and customer demographic. The supermarket has high hopes that other retailers will follow suit and place large importance on diversity.
Paulette Balson, Chair of the BAME at Tesco network commented: “One of the main objectives of our network is to help Tesco better serve our customers from all backgrounds and communities. No UK supermarket had ever stocked plasters in a range of skin tones before and we saw this as an opportunity for Tesco to lead the charge and make a genuine difference. Through our research within the network, we know how emotive a product like this can be. For example, one colleague reported that their child had felt self-conscious wearing a plaster on their face to school recently, because it didn’t match their skin tone and stood out.”
Representation is crucial, especially amongst small children. As supermarkets are usually the first point of call when sourcing first aid products, Tesco are essentially paving the way for greater awareness in even the necessities.
Nicola Robinson, Health, Beauty and Wellness Director at Tesco commented: “Our customers are at the heart of everything we do and we continually review our products and services to best meet their needs. As one of the largest retailers in the UK, we also understand that we have a responsibility to ensure our products reflect the diversity of our customers and colleagues. We believe the launch of our new skin tone plaster range is an important step and a move that we hope will be replicated by other retailers and supermarkets across the country.”
The plasters are available from selected Tesco stores, ranging from £1-£3.
