Essity, the global health and hygiene company behind Bodyform, Tena, Plenty and Cushelle, has appointed Wunderman Thompson to handle its global ecommerce and user experience design business, along with a diversity and inclusion project for its femcare brands, to help it better address the needs of women.
The WPP agency was invited to take part in a competitive pitch for the global briefs, run directly by the client, on the back of their direct to consumer commerce experience and inclusive design practice.
Wunderman Thompson claims it was the first agency to build an inclusive experience practice, based on the three core principles of inclusive design: recognising exclusion, learning from diversity, and solving for one and extending to many.
The agency has already developed an inclusive deodorant product for Unilever, Degree Inclusive, which won the Innovation Grand Prix at Cannes Lions 2021 and also the Social & Culture Impact category at the SXSW Innovation awards.
Wunderman Thompson was also behind Tommy Adaptive for Tommy Hilfiger, a range of adaptive clothing that gave the brand a new role in culture and went on to win four Cannes Lions.
The agency will also support Essity’s plans to launch a new phase in the evolution of its femcare “brand purpose roadmap”. The project will aim to make the group’s femcare products more accessible and drive the development of product innovation across its portfolio of brands, including Bodyform (Libresse, Nana, Saba and Nosotras globally).
Wunderman Thompson’s integrated offering for Essity will also see it optimise Essity’s D2C website, customer experience and global UX&UI design system implementation.
The agency will start by running a full test and analysis across the brand’s ecommerce services to identify and act on opportunities where the experience can be optimised for Essity’s period pants brand, intimawear.
Essity global marketing and communications director for feminine care Tanja Grubner said: “We were really impressed with the approach to both briefs from the Wunderman Thompson team, their integrated approach and extensive experience and talent across D&I, technology, experience and commerce shone through and we’re delighted to be working together in the next stage of Essity’s evolution.”
Wunderman Thompson UK chief executive Pip Hulbert added: “Essity’s ambitions and future-facing plans for its brands make it an inspiring new partner for us. Bringing together a team of experts from our Wunderman Thompson Commerce and global inclusive design practice we’re excited to partner with Essity to give everyone better accessibility to products that work with their needs.”
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