“We worked closely with top perfumers to infuse the essence of the Susan G. Komen message into a fragrance that really gives back and brings hope to those suffering from breast cancer,…”
This came from the President of the evocatively named TPR Holdings about the new fragrance PROMISE ME that they are making in cahoots with the House of Komen. The new perfume will retail for about 60$ and comes with a copy of Nancy Brinkers new book about the founding of Komen For The Cure. In a way, this perfume might provide a valuable service – wouldn’t we all like to know what hope smells like?
As one irate blogger noted, most people who go through chemo also go through a long period of chemical sensitivity. That would render an encounter with a synthetic fragrance like PROMISE ME a nausea inducing experience.
But the real sour smell comes from the ambiguity of Komen for the Cure’s long range game plan. KomenWatch so deftly puts it:
Komen’s continued forays into the world of corporate partnerships are looking more and more like the activities of a for-profit corporation interested in staying in business for the long haul. The attention paid to branding; the continued promotion of Komen and it’s founder, Nancy Brinker as the self-styled leader of the global breast cancer movement; the plethora of pink products ranging from dish towels to sporting goods to housecleaning items to food and beverage products to hardware and now, to perfume and cosmetics suggests that the SGK brand – the mother of all cause-related marketing brands – is now being sold as a pink ribbon lifestyle.
We here at The Cancer Show are wondering what breast cancer prevention smells like – wouldn’t that be the scent of hope?
One Comment
1 Mary wrote:
Amen, exactly why I wrote, “I don’t buy Girl Scout Cookies”. My thrust, in charitable giving, is to cut out the middle man and have 100% of my contribution go to the cause, be it the Girl Scouts etc., or breast cancer research and prevention. Shame on Komen for capitalizing on women, with breast cancer, to line their own and their corporate sponsors pockets !