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As NIVEA celebrates it’s 100th birthday, we look back at the milestones that made the humble moisturising cream the trusted brand it is today.
1911: NIVEA Crème was born
Pharmacist Dr Oscar Troplowitz and dermatologist Professor Dr Paul Gerson Unna met with chemist Dr Isaac Lifschutz to develop an emulsifier called Eucerit” into a cosmetic skin cream. The entrepreneurial Troplowitz called the cream NIVEA, from the Latin word nivis, meaning snow”. Sold in a yellow tin, NIVEA Crème was an instant success with female consumers, who only had the options of water, soap and powder at the time.
1922: NIVEA caters to men
Men soon picked up on the benefits of NIVEA Crème and started applying it after shaving. NIVEA recognised this opportunity in the men’s skincare market and introduced its first product tailored to the needs of the male consumer in the form of the shaving soap.
1925: The blue and white NIVEA tin
After WWII Juan Gregorio Clausen, head of advertising at Beiersdorf (the company that owns NIVEA), decided the brand needed to develop a modern advertising and design concept. In colour psychology, blue represents clarity, honesty, stability and trustworthiness, while white symbolises innocence and purity. Clausen chose these two colours to translate the key brand values into a new and timeless design.
1936: NIVEA delves into sun protection
By this stage, an athletic and lightly tanned body had become fashionable, which meant sun bathing became more popular among men and women. Recognising this, NIVEA scientists conducted research into the effects of the sun on skin and NIVEA Nut Oil and Ultra Oil were launched.
1958: NIVEA Sun Spray launch
At the conclusion of WWII, growing prosperity and the increased availability of cars saw more and more people travelling to sunny Southern Europe on holiday. NIVEA developed the Ultra Oil Spray, an innovative product that became a success on beaches everywhere.
1975: NIVEA sun care
As people began baring more skin, safe sun protection became increasingly more important. To help consumers compare products, a standardised sun protection factor rating system – based on a Beiersdorf concept – was developed. The technology soon became a worldwide standard.
1978: NIVEA launches first shower product
By the late ‘70s, irregular baths had been replaced by daily showers. Recognising this latest trend in personal hygiene, NIVEA launched its first shower product.
1980: NIVEA’s After-Shave Balm
NIVEA developed a mild after-shave balm for men – the first of its kind that didn’t use alcohol as an ingredient. It’s little wonder the product quickly developed a cult following among male consumers.
1982: The NIVEA umbrella brand
As the cosmetics market boomed, the early ‘80s saw specialist products become more and more prominent. New product segments were developed under the NIVEA umbrella brand, the first being NIVEA Visage, with a line of face care products in 1982. This was soon followed by NIVEA For Men (1986), NIVEA Hair Care (1991), NIVEA Body (1992), NIVEA Sun (1993) and NIVEA Bath Care (1996).
1994: NIVEA Soft and NIVEA Vital
A lighter, younger version of the tradition NIVEA Crème was developed in response to consumer demand from young women of the time. NIVEA skin researchers also recognised the needs of mature skin, leading to the launch of NIVEA VITAL. It was the first time a range has been specifically targeted at women over the age of 50.
1998: Q10 revolutionises NIVEA Visage
Beiersdorf used advancing technology to develop an active ingredient that’s also found in human skin. NIVEA Visage with Q10 became the best-selling anti-wrinkle cream of all time. Today, two NIVEA Visage Anti-Wrinkle Q10 day creams are sold around the world every second.
2005: NIVEA introduces UVB and UVA balance
Consumer awareness of the importance of sun protection continued to grow, and pale skin became more fashionable once again. NIVEA sunscreen products incorporated broad-spectrum UVB and UVA filters, providing consumers with maximum protection from the effects of UV rays.
2011: NIVEA continues to develop new products
This year, NIVEA is preparing to launch NIVEA Visage Pure Effect, a product line for young consumers combating skin impurities. Meanwhile, the organic beauty product market is booming as a result of consumers becoming more and more environmentally aware. NIVEA’s Pure & Natural product range is the brand’s first made up of only natural, organic ingredients.
NIVEA Crème is now bought almost 150 million times a year, and the NIVEA brand has about 500 products in its product stable. Pretty impressive figures for a brand that started with humble beginnings 100 years ago.