International Women’s Day 2024: Three Key Campaigns

Published 07 March 2024

Authors

Marta Mąkolska

Saska Graville

4 min read

In the US, 73% of women believe supporting women-founded businesses matters, making brand engagement with International Women’s Day (March 8) a key occasion to back. From a significant name change (John Lewis & Partners), a founders’ hall of fame (Whole Foods UK) and repurposed company trucks (PepsiCo), we showcase three impactful campaigns.

At A Glance

Topics

Key Stats

IWD 2024

67%	Sixty-seven per cent of British women believe it’s important to support women-owned businesses
3/4	Three in four British women aged 25 to 39 believe it’s important to support women-owned businesses
72%	In the UK, 72% of 18- to 24-year-old women believe it’s important to support women-owned businesses
78%	Gender equality in the workplace is the top concern British women want brands to champion (78%), followed by gender equality in the supply chain (66%) and in advertising and media (62%)
73%	In the US, 73% of women believe it’s important to support women-owned businesses, with most support (83%) coming from women aged 65 and over
3%	Just three per cent of funded British businesses are women-founded
81%	The majority (81%) of British 11- to 18-year-olds can’t name a woman entrepreneur
>3/4	More than three in four women globally have experienced ageism throughout their careers

John Lewis Turns Partners into Sisters

British department store John Lewis & Partners becomes John Lewis & Sisters on social platforms (TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, X) from March 8-10 2024. An online International Women’s Day hub invites women designers, producers and founders wanting to be stocked for Christmas to pitch via a dedicated Calling Women Makers email address. Women who have shaped the retailer are also showcased online, including the late Sarah Lewis (women’s suffrage activist and the store’s deputy chairman until 1951) and Dipali Goenka, chief executive and managing director of India’s Welspun, one of the world’s largest home textile companies and John Lewis supplier.
Whole Foods UK Boosts Women Founders’ Visibility

Amazon-owned Whole Foods UK is partnering with campaigning group Buy Women Built to champion its women-founded brands across seven London stores and Instagram. Just 3% of funded British businesses are women-founded (see Key Stats).

Until April 3, the Kensington store windows become a founders’ hall of fame, including Ella Woodward of plant-based food brand Deliciously Ella and Nirali Buch Mankodi of peanut snacks Superfoodio. A dedicated Buy Women Built aisle lands on the brand’s Deliveroo page, and in-store shelf stickers highlight brands to try. Instagram features some of the 40 founders, alongside Buy Women Built co-founder Sahar Hashemi explaining her mission.
PepsiCo’s Trucks’ Messages of Support

Celebrating the American food and beverage giant’s women in frontline roles globally, the She is PepsiCo campaign rebrands company trucks across North America with their portraits. The initiative has boosted women applicants for frontline roles by 6% since its launch in 2022, says PepsiCo. Recognising the impact of ageism on three in four working women globally (Women of Influence+, 2024), the 2024 campaign focuses on women aged 50 and over, including Joni Woitas, a company CO2 tank filler operator with 32 years of experience.

John Lewis & Partners

Whole Foods UK

PepsiCo