Nivea (, stylized as NIVEA) is a German personal care brand that specializes in skin and body care. It is owned by the Hamburg-based company Beiersdorf Global AG, who also makes the Eucerin brand. Nivea comes from the Latin adjective niveus meaning "snow-white".

In the 1930s, Beiersdorf produced various products such as tanning oil, shaving cream, shampoo, facial cleanser, and toners. During World War II, the trademark "NIVEA" was expropriated in many countries. After the war, Beiersdorf repurchased the rights. During the 1980s, the NIVEA brand expanded into a wider market.

History

Paul Beiersdorf established Beiersdorf AG on 28 March 1882. Beiersdorf collaborated with dermatologist Paul Gerson Unna to produce gutta-percha plasters in his laboratory based on his patent, laying the foundations for modern plaster technology. In 1890, pharmacist Oscar Troplowitz took over the company and collaborated with Unna, who recommended Isaac Lifschütz, inventor of the lanolin-based emulsifier Eucerit, which was patented in 1900. Nivea soap was released in 1906, and in 1911, its signature creme was introduced.

Timeline

  • 1900: Patent application for Lanolin, an emulsifying agent. Eucerit was the basis for Eucerin and, later on, for NIVEA Creme.
  • 1906: The first overseas branch was established in London.
  • 1909: Labello was launched on the market. It was the first lip care product in sliding tube packaging. "Labello" is derived from the Latin for "beautiful lip" (labea = lip; bello = beautiful).
  • 1911: NIVEA Creme – the first stable water-in-oil emulsion – was introduced. The emulsifying agent Eucerit is made from lanolin, found in sheep's wool, and is the key to NIVEA Creme's unique properties.
  • 1918: The deaths of Oscar Troplowitz and his partner Otto Hanns Mankiewicz resulted in the formation of a formal company on 1 June 1922.

1920s

thumb|Nivea (1924–2010)

  • 1922: Willy Jacobsohn took over as chairman of the executive board of the newly formed stock corporation. The first self-adhesive plaster was introduced under the name Hansaplast.
  • 1925: NIVEA is relaunched in a new packaging: a blue tin with a white logo.
  • 1928: Beiersdorf shares were listed on the Hamburg stock exchange for the first time. Over 20 production sites worldwide were already in operation.

Nazi period in Germany and aftermath

  • 1933: Under pressure of Nazi propaganda, the Jewish members of the executive board stepped down. Willy Jacobsohn, the former chairman of the executive board, headed the foreign affiliates from Amsterdam until 1938.
  • By adopting a policy of "honorable tactics", the Beiersdorf Executive Board, under the leadership of Carl Claussen, steered the company through the Nazi period. Although Beiersdorf retained its business culture, it cooperated with the regime.
  • 1936: tesafilm, an innovative transparent adhesive film, was launched.
  • 1941: tesa was introduced as the umbrella brand for self-adhesive technology.
  • During World War II, marketing manager Elly Heuss-Knapp distanced the brand from Nazi ideology. Rihanna's song "California King Bed" was featured as a part of the "100 Years of Skincare" commercial campaign.

Controversies

In 2011, NIVEA was fined $900,000 by the US Federal Trade Commission for falsely claiming that consumers could slim down by regularly applying NIVEA My Silhouette! cream to their skin. The same year, NIVEA published a world map on its website that omitted Israel; Simon Wiesenthal Center protests.

In June 2019, the marketing and media industry journal Ad Age reported on 26 June 2019 that FCB, Nivea's long-time ad agency, had ended its relationship with the company. Among the primary reasons cited was NIVEA's rejection of a proposed ad that featured two men's hands touching because, according to a NIVEA executive, "we don't do gay at NIVEA." Crain's Chicago Business reported that FCB had ended the relationship of more than a century. Noting that the breakup occurred at the end of LGBT pride month, Crain's noted that FCB would be forgoing the management of NIVEA's $21.8 million US advertising budget. It represented 1% of FCB's revenue globally.

See also

References

  • NIVEA's History