To benefit its Viva Glam Campaign — an effort launched at the height of the AIDS epidemic nearly 40 years ago to raise funds for organizations supporting the LGBTQ community through annual limited-edition collections— Mac Cosmetics is launching it’s first ever “Day of Giving.”
Taking place on June 9, 100% of all lipstick sales will benefit LGBTQ and women’s rights organizations. According to the brand’s senior vice president and global chief marketing officer, Aïda Moudachirou-Rébois, the annual campaign’s new initiative will broaden its reach to include more than 200 lipstick shades and bolster dialogue with consumers and new customers who may be unaware of Viva Glam.
Legendary drag queen RuPaul was the first face of Viva Glam, and over the years, the brand has tapped superstar performers like Lady Gaga, Mary J. Blige, Sia, and Rihanna to helm the campaign and collaborate on limited-edition sets.
To date, Viva Glam has donated more than $500 million to grantees such as the Hetrick-Martin Institute and the Los Angeles LGBT Center, and in 2019 the brand expanded the program to benefit women’s rights organizations as well.
Last year, MAC trialed its Day of Giving in the U.K., raising $60,000 over a 24-hour period and prompting the brand to go global with the initiative, this time with the aim of raising $500,000. “[$60,000] was massive for that market — we need to evolve our initiatives so they can be as impactful, and as breakthrough as they were when they were first born,” Moudachirou-Rébois said.
In March, the brand refreshed its 30-year-old Back to MAC sustainability program, partnering with Close the Loop and Plastics for Change to optimize its packaging recycling processes and support plastic collection workers.
“These issues have changed and evolved over the years, and the technology available to improve on these issues has also evolved — we have the ability now to touch more people,” said Moudachirou-Rébois, adding that 2024 will mark both the 30th anniversary of Viva Glam and the 40th anniversary of MAC’s founding. “From 1994 to 2023, Viva Glam is still the most important part of our brand — that has stayed the same,” Moudachirou-Rébois said.
A Day of Giving will culminate with lipstick sales from both online and freestanding MAC stores.
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