UN Unilever NV

Suave(R) Is On a Mission to Put Beauty Back on Mom's 'To-Do' List CHICAGO, May 2 /PRNewswire/ -- New lunch box or lip gloss? Dance classes or a new hair-do? Because of the never-ending demands of family, work and household duties, moms often struggle to fit beauty into their hectic lives. However, this selflessness is reaching desperate proportions, according to the Suave(R) Beauty Monitor Survey(i), which polled moms across the country. The survey found that a startling 75 percent of moms have skipped their own showers to take care of their children's needs -- with one-fourth confessing that they have actually gone three days or longer without showering! If that's not hair-raising evidence that a beauty intervention is in fast order, nearly half of moms claim that they have gone seven months or more without a haircut, and almost two-thirds (61 percent) admit to wearing sweatpants or ponytails more often now that they're moms. So, Suave is on a mission to uncover the beautiful woman inside every mom and help moms put beauty back on their to-do lists. The Beauty Lowdown on Mom's To-Do List While it's not overly surprising that moms across the country are putting their children and families first, somewhere in the unwritten guide to motherhood, beauty has definitely been pushed to the backburner -- only 13 percent of moms say that beauty has not taken a backseat to their family's needs. In fact, when asked to rank activities on their regular to-do lists, taking care of appearance falls close to the bottom of most moms' lists -- with doing the laundry, having leisure time and shopping for herself falling below it. And, the result of this selflessness is taking its toll as 50 percent of moms admit that their personal appearance has become worse or more difficult since having kids. "On our show, I see moms all the time sacrificing their beauty and personal needs for the benefit of their families," says Stacy London, host from TLC's popular makeover show, What Not to Wear. "The truth is that personal beauty does have a place within motherhood and all moms should look like they have it all, including looking their best." Beauty at a Price Despite this desire to feel beautiful, more than half of moms (55%) view spending time on their beauty as a luxury. And, the Suave Beauty Monitor Survey revealed that it's not just about lack of time. When asked what they would do with an extra $50 in their monthly budgets, 59 percent of moms said they would spend it on items for the kids and family such as clothes or shoes for the kids, groceries for the family or toys and school supplies for the children. A mere 14 percent said they would spend it on themselves -- with even less (2%) saying they would spend it on beauty products. "First off, let's be honest that looking good does take at least some investment of time and money. But, that doesn't have to mean big bucks or long hours slaving away in front of a mirror," says London. "Some small, simple steps can go a long way in helping mom get beauty back on her list. For instance, I suggest using beauty products like Suave that work, but don't cost an arm, leg and your child's college tuition." Giving Moms a Beauty Wake-Up Call Because Suave offers mom guilt-free beauty with a wide range of great performing products at a great price, mom doesn't have to make any tradeoffs when it comes to caring for herself and caring for her family. Therefore, the brand is urging moms across the country to make a commitment to themselves to embrace motherhood and beauty simultaneously. By logging onto http://www.suave.com/ , moms can pledge to put beauty back on their to-do list and also enter for a chance to win a Head-to-Toe Mommy Makeover, which will award one lucky grand prize winner a one-hour consultation with the style experts of TLC's What Not to Wear plus a $5,000 shopping spree in New York City. And, you'll even get $500 for childcare because we know that moms can't just up and go! Ten first place winners will receive a $1,000 gift certificate for their own personal shopping sprees. The Head-to-Toe Mommy Makeover runs for six weeks from April 21 through June 2. About Suave: Suave(R) offers more than 300 personal care products including hair care, anti-perspirants/deodorants, body washes, body scrubs and hand and body lotions. A Unilever Home & Personal Care Brand (NYSE:UNNYSE:UL), Suave is available nationwide in food, drug and mass outlet stores. Suave, a name that has been trusted for quality and value for more than 60 years, is purchased by 61 percent of American households each year. More than 18 Suave products are sold every second. Unilever (NYSE:ULNYSE:UN), one of the world's largest consumer products companies, aims to add vitality to life by meeting everyday needs for nutrition, hygiene and personal care. Each day, around the world, consumers make 150 million decisions to purchase Unilever products. The company has a portfolio of brands that make people feel good, look good and get more out of life. In the United States these brands include recognized names such as: Axe, "all," Ben & Jerry's, Bertolli, Breyers, Caress, Country Crock, Degree, Dove personal care products, Hellmann's, Lipton, Knorr, Popsicle, Promise, Q-Tips, Skippy, Slim-Fast, Snuggle, Suave and Vaseline. All of the preceding brand names are registered trademarks of the Unilever Group of Companies. Dedicated to serving consumers and the communities where we live, work and play, Unilever in the United States employs more than 15,000 people in 74 office and manufacturing sites in 24 states and Puerto Rico -- generating more than $13 billion in sales in 2005. For more information visit http://www.unileverusa.com/ . (i) Suave(R) Beauty Monitor Survey was conducted in December 2005 by Kelton Research. The telephone survey included 1,000 moms age 25-39 with two or more children, and at least one child between the ages of 3-9. DATASOURCE: Suave CONTACT: Jillian Cusimano of Weber Shandwick for Suave, +1-312-988-2164 Web site: http://www.suave.com/ http://www.unileverusa.com/

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