 |
SINGAPORE, June 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Turning views from its SK-II STUDIO™ films into action to further its brand purpose #CHANGEDESTINY, global prestige skincare brand SK-II activates its #CHANGEDESTINY fund to support women-owned small businesses and entrepreneurs that have been impacted by the pandemic in Tokyo, Japan.
Mai Odashima, owner of kimono store KIEN
Reika Yasuhara, owner of Japanese 'wagashi' confectionary DAISANMANENDOU HANARE
Ai Hashimoto, owner of flower shop ON FLOWERS
Naoko Yoneyama, owner of Japanese rice ball store NY CAFÉ
Natsuko Shiraki, owner of ethical jewelry store HASUNA
With SK-II's launch of SK-II STUDIO™, SK-II has set up a #CHANGEDESTINY Fund, contributing US$1 for every view garnered on each SK-II STUDIO™ film in support of women in pursuing their destiny to create positive change as part of its brand purpose. To date, SK-II's SK-II STUDIO films have amassed over 700 million views globally. Total contribution to the #CHANGEDESTINY Fund has been capped at US$500,000 this year.
Proceeds from the #CHANGEDESTINY Fund, worth US$500,000 will go towards a year-long program supporting participating women-owned small businesses and entrepreneurs in Tokyo with Shibuya City and MEETALK—a Tokyo-based women entrepreneurship network to equip them with digital and social skills, business networks and platforms to build and keep the business of their dreams alive in these unprecedented times.
The program will take on a three-pronged approach "Learn", "Connect", "Access" to tackle top challenges women-owned small businesses and entrepreneurs face in these unprecedented times, with its first one-month workshop commencing on July 21st 2021.
"Learn" involves a tailored training bootcamp and one-to-one business consultation on topics like building digital presence, social commerce and even international expansion with the support of Facebook Japan and Google Japan. "Connect" involves connecting women-owned small businesses and entrepreneurs to a wider network and matching them with relevant role-models. "Access" involves giving women-owned small businesses access to a wider audience and unique brand building experiences via SK-II platforms like the "SK-II CITY"—a virtual city inspired by Tokyo that transports visitors to the middle of a bustling urban intersection with all the sights, sounds and sense of discovery of Shibuya Crossing.
Inaugurating the launch of the #CHANGEDESTINY Fund program are Mr. Ken Hasebe, Mayor of Shibuya City & Markus Strobel, President P&G of Skin and Personal Care.
"Today, Shibuya City and SK-II formalize our partnership agreement in support of female entrepreneurs and small business owners in Tokyo. With this, we will facilitate the growth of social infrastructure to become a start-up hub where female entrepreneurs and small business owners can rise above the current challenges to shine." shared Mr. Ken Hasebe, Mayor of Shibuya City.
SK-II presents SK-II STUDIO™ as its brand's first film studio division dedicated to tackling social pressures impacting women today. SK-II STUDIO's debut film "The Center Lane" features the inspiring story of swimmer Ikee Rikako's return to competitive swimming by award-winning director Hirokazu Koreeda. SK-II STUDIO's second installment—'VS' Series—is an animated anthology series of six films that explores what it takes to take destiny in your own hands through the real-life stories of Olympic athletes—gymnast Simone Biles, swimmer LiuXiang, table tennis player Ishikawa Kasumi, badminton players Ayaka Takahashi and Misaki Matsutomo, surfer Mahina Maeda, and Hinotori Nippon[1], the Japan Volleyball team.
"In these unprecedented times we are in, consumers have a much higher expectation towards brands and businesses. We know that we have an even larger social responsibility to the communities we operate in and be a force for good," shared Markus Strobel, President P&G of Skin and Personal Care. "#CHANGEDESTINY is at the heart of our brand purpose at SK-II. For years, we have celebrated how destiny is not a matter of chance, but a matter of choice through the stories of courageous women around the world. We thank all the consumers who have joined us in this journey. The launch of our first #CHANGEDESTINY Fund program with Shibuya City and MEETALK is big a step forward in our #CHANGEDESTINY journey. It means a lot to us, as the Worldwide Partner of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, to be able to turn inspiration and views from our SK-II STUDIO™ films into action with the #CHANGEDESTINY fund to support women-owned small businesses and entrepreneurs who are fighting to keep the businesses of their dreams alive."
To find out how you can help women-owned small businesses and entrepreneurs as part of the #CHANGEDESTINY Fund program, please visit http://city.sk-ii.com/.
If you are a woman-owned small business or female entrepreneur based in Tokyo interested in participating in the #CHANGEDESTINY Fund program, please sign up here: https://meetalk.org/sk2changedestiny/.
[1] The "VS Limitations" by SK-II Studio was filmed in 2019 with the Japan National team Hinotori Nippon of 2019. The athletes appearing in the films share SK-II's brand purpose of #CHANGEDESTINY and have real-life destiny-changing experiences, often while under intense scrutiny, pressure and judgement. Their selection is completely independent from Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. |
About SK-II
For nearly 40 years, SK-II has touched the lives of millions of women around the world through skin and life transformation. The fascinating story behind SK-II began with a quest to understand why elderly sake brewers had wrinkled faces, but extraordinarily soft and youthful-looking hands. These hands were in constant contact with the sake fermentation process. It took years of research for scientists to isolate the miracle ingredient PITERA™[2], SK-II's exclusive and naturally derived ingredient crafted from a proprietary fermentation process of a unique yeast strain. Since then, SK-II with PITERA™1 has become a special secret shared by celebrities all over the world such as Tangwei, Ni Ni, Chun Xia, Haruka Ayase, Kasumi Arimura, Naomi Watanabe, Chloe Grace Moretz. For the latest news and in-depth information, please visit http://www.sk-ii.com.
About #CHANGEDESTINY
#CHANGEDESTINY is at the heart of the SK-II brand philosophy that celebrates how destiny is not a matter of chance, but a matter of choice. Inspired by the stories of women from around the world, #CHANGEDESTINY sheds light on the pressures they face and the universal 'box' they are put in to be perfect in society's eyes. Award-winning #CHANGEDESTINY campaigns include 2016's "Marriage Market Takeover" that put a spotlight on the labels of "Sheng Nu" or "Leftover Women" in China, 2017's "The Expiry Date", 2018's "Meet Me Halfway" and 2019's "Timelines" a docu-series in partnership with Katie Couric about the evolving and controversial topic of marriage pressure and societal expectations women face globally.
