Kering champions women’s causes ahead of International Women’s Day

French luxury conglomerate Kering Group is commemorating International Women’s Day on March 8 through its “We Are Women” campaign and by lending support to the United Nations.

The campaign support is part of Kering’s three-year partnership with the UN Women French National Committee, in which the conglomerate provides financial support and actively participates in the organization of its global efforts. Throughout the year Kering vocally promotes women’s issues with the help of its stable of brands, and it is this ongoing dedication to these causes that reads as authentic among consumers.

Standing up for we
The Kering Foundation, led by Francois Henri Pinault and a signatory of the Women’s Empowerment Principles in 2010, works tirelessly to combat violence against women. The Foundation, through the help in those in the group, promotes initiatives focused on women’s access to leadership positions and equality in the workplace, among many other causes.

Kering also practices what it preaches, as the Group’s employees are nearly 60 percent female and more than a half of its managers are women.

Although the UN Women French National Committee’s international campaign, HeForShe, is committed to gender equality and female empowerment, the movement works to benefit all genders.

The HeForShe campaign promotes gender equality by including men in the conversation. By condemning sexist stereotypes and taking action to change gender roles and behavior, real equality between the sexes can be achieved.

To do so, the UN Women French National Committee has developed initiatives for advocacy, education, raising awareness and mobilizing resources for programs in more than 90 countries.

“The global HeForShe campaign has already generated great enthusiasm,” said Fanny Benedetti, executive director of the UN Women French National Committee. “We want it to be a vehicle for commitment among French men, both on a personal and professional level.

“Through the influence of a powerful group such as Kering, which has agreed to support the campaign, we are looking to motivate other companies,” she said. “By becoming standard-bearers for gender equality, they are joining forces to demonstrate that this change is truly possible.”

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Also for International Women’s Day, Kering has teamed with a number of its French peers to spread awareness.

The We Are Women effort brings together nine French corporate foundations to support women’s causes, a first for all involved. Participants in addition to Kering include Air France, Chanel, Elle magazine, Orange, Raja-Daniele, Marcovici, Sanofi, Espoir, Sisley-D’Ornano and Solidarity AccorHotels.

We Are Women includes 11 short films, produced by Imagissime and directed by Nils Tavernier. The films will be broadcast on all French Televisions channels and Web sites March 5-13. The content is also visible on Kering Foundation’s Web site and across Kering’s social accounts.

The series introduces the viewer to women in China, Cameroon, Senegal, Nicaragua, the United States, Ethiopia, France, Cambodia and Brazil. Each intimate portrait explores the paths taken by women in the face of adversary, filmed in their homes with their loved ones.

We Are Women’s portraits also capture the work carried out by the participating foundations. The foundations, despite coming from different industries, are committed to improving maternal health, fighting violence against women and encouraging economic empowerment through training, education and human rights.

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Each woman featured in the 11 films also has a direct relationship with the participating brands as they have benefitted from their individual dedication to women’s causes.

As of press time, Kering has shared two of the We Are Women’s portraits on social media. The first tells Samantha’s narrative, a victim of rape from the United States, who is now involved with the “It’s on us” campaign to combat sexual violence on campuses across the country.

The second shared tells the story of Xia Ying from China who was the victim of domestic violence. After pressing charges against her husband and following a lengthy legal battle, she won her case, but has not been allowed to see her young son for two years.

Campus sexual violence (see story) and domestic abuse (see story) have been causes, among many others, that Kering has rallied around in its effort to protect the rights of all women.