E-commerce giant Tmall decided to boost Chinese mothers’ self-esteem with a campaign focussing on pregnancy stretch marks this Mother’s Day.
Tmall teamed up with five brands, including Babycare and beauty brand Amiro, to release products created around the theme of “mum’s decorative patten” – a reimagining of stretch marks as a beautiful embellishment rather than a blemish.
According to Tmall, the objective of the campaign is to “let stretch marks appear in more people’s field of view” so that mothers don’t have to confront the problem alone.
The campaign film shows the emotional arc of mums as they go from concealing their stretch marks to confidently baring them. In the final credits, mums featured in the film share their own thoughts on stretch marks, giving advice to other mums on how to deal with the problem and emphasizing that it is normal.
In addition, Tmall collaborated with Women of China magazine to release a Guide to Stretch Marks, which was shared on Chinese social media. The guide, which was in H5 format, provides detailed answers to questions like “Do stretch marks only grow on the belly?”, and “What should I do when my stretch marks get itchy?”.
The guide equips mothers with useful tips on how to handle these problems, but also offers advice to loved ones: “Many mothers especially mind what others think of their stretch marks…please look after her feelings”.
As of May 15, the campaign hashtag “Mom’s pattern” has garnered an impressive 750 million views on China’s Twitter equivalent Weibo. The comments section on the campaign video was full of supportive comments from mothers recommending scar ointments and sharing their own battles with bodily changes due to pregnancy. Many non-mothers also jumped in to share their appreciation for stretch marks: “This pattern is a medal and a mark of mothers’ love”.
