SK-II and Olympic Athletes Challenge Us to End Toxic Competition in Beauty

Jan 22, 2021 9:15 AM ET

P&G 2020 Citizenship Report

Competition brings out the best in us. It pushes us further, drives us harder and makes us stronger. We celebrate it and revel in it. But there is one place where it does not bring out our best — beauty. It is the one competition that no one signed up for, but still many feel the pressure of competing beauty standards, rules and limitations. These toxic competitions dictate how we should look, feel and act, which can hold us back in our daily lives.

P&G’s SK-II brand partnered with top Olympic athletes including Simone Biles, the world’s most decorated gymnast, Liu Xiang, world-record holder swimmer, Kasumi Ishikawa, table tennis player and two-time Olympic medalist, Ayaka Takahashi and Misaki Matsutomo, badminton duo and Olympic gold medalists, Mahina Maeda, surfer and Hinotori Nippon, member of the Japan volleyball team, to call out toxic competition in beauty and share their personal experiences on their social channels. They sent a powerful message: “We won’t compete anymore. Beauty is #NOCOMPETITION.” Since its launch at the 2020 MAKERS Conference, “Beauty is #NOCOMPETITION” has sparked a global conversation and become a rallying cry for women to call out these toxic competitions and define what beauty means to them.

Read more in the P&G 2020 Citizenship Report