Dove Men+Care and RadioLIVE celebrate real strength in Kiwi men with a brand new initiative

Dove Men+Care has launched a new ‘Real Strength’ initiative to celebrate the caring side of modern men, partnering with Radio Live’s Duncan Garner.

Dove Men+Care and Duncan Garner want to reward Kiwi men showing #RealStrength with specially-tailored rewards. “We are looking for the dad who makes it home to read the bedtime story, small or big it’s the guy who always puts others before himself” (an excerpt from RadioLIVE).

This initiative is part of a wider purpose to celebrate men caring for one’s self and others, as well as challenging the traditional stereotypes of masculinity and conformity to an ideal which is narrow and one-dimensional.

Research conducted with men around the world, under the guidance of celebrated masculinity author and researcher Dr. Michael Kimmel, found that 86 per cent of men agree the concept of masculinity has changed since their father’s generation, and nine out of 10 believe showing care is a sign of strength. Despite this, only 7 per cent of men said they can relate to how masculinity is depicted in the media.

Says Jon McCarthy, marketing director, Unilever: “In the same way that Dove Women has started a global conversation around real beauty, we want to fuel conversation about a man’s true strength. The Dove Men+Care ‘Real Strength’ initiative strengthens the brands purpose to celebrate the caring character of today’s man, recognising how care for himself and others makes him stronger.”

Garner is collecting stories over an 8 week period, now in its 4th week and entries couldn’t be better. New Zealand are really standing up and celebrating the real guy in their lives who exhibit these behaviours, which is more common than not.

Below are some of the men that were rewarded, nominations have come from their children, partners and friends:

Morris King, who will be going to the All Blacks v Wallabies Bledisloe Cup game in Auckland. He takes care of his grandkids although he is still working in the bush.

Dave Robbins, who won $2000 in Mitre10 gift cards so he could finish building his son’s dream playhouse. He is a stay-at-home dad.

Lonny Norton, who is looking forward to a very special Warriors day with money that can’t buy experiences. He works two jobs to supports his wife’s studies. They have four daughters.

Client name: Dove Men+Care

Media Agency: Mindshare