Maybelline New York is kicking its Brave Together initiative into high gear.
At the onset of Mental Health Awareness Month, the brand’s mental health program — which currently operates in 34 countries to offer free mental health support — has inked a new partnership with the World Health Organization Foundation.
Maybelline has pledged $1.8 million in funding to the organization over the next five years to provide that support to 2 million people. At the program’s onset, the brand’s goal was to provide services to 10 million people and donate $20 million by 2030.
Those efforts are being highlighted in a BBC-produced docuseries called “Healthier Together,” which features three of Maybelline’s NGOs in different markets: the Jed Foundation in the U.S., the Bond Project in Japan and Sangath in India.
“Each one of our countries adapts the way they deliver mental health support to the cultural context of the country. For example, mental health is very stigmatized in India, so the way the NGO we work with there operates is extremely confidential,” said Trisha Ayyagari, Maybelline New York’s global brand president. “They’ve spotlighted U.S., India, Japan — all of which have very different approaches to delivering this free one-on-one support.”
Ayyagari said the brand was on track to meet its broader commitment. The program debuted in 2020 when conversations around mental health reached a fever pitch. “Maybelline’s mission is to give everyone the self-confidence to express their beauty, that’s the DNA of the brand,” she said. “Makeup can be a part of that, but the real work starts on the inside, so we started working on the program pre-pandemic.”
Working on the docuseries — which included sending her teams abroad for filming — was its own reward. “The recognition of BBC and the World Health Organization even wanting to feature Maybelline is a huge accomplishment in itself,” Ayyagari said. “This was more about the impact of the program itself. Brave Together is an ongoing commitment that we have, and there’s still so much work we can do.”
Maybelline has also been hitting sales highs. As reported, parent company L’Oréal’s consumer products division, which encompasses Maybelline, L’Oréal Paris and others, was a key growth driver in the first quarter.
“In 2023, we had an extremely good year. We were gaining market share almost everywhere in the world, our launches were really successful,” Ayyagari said of the brand’s performance. “There are some economic differences from market to market, but we’re starting 2024 strongly.”
