An update on the Mac/Rodarte Collection Situation

After the mass blogging session the other night many of us bloggers have been waiting patiently, or impatiently in some cases, for some kind of response from Mac and indeed Rodarte. Late last night (UK Time) statements were released by Mac and Rodarte and you can read them below.

STATEMENT FROM M•A•C COSMETICS ON THE M•A•C RODARTE COLLECTION

We understand that product names in the M•A•C Rodarte collection have offended our consumers and fans. This was never our intent and we are very sorry.  We continue to listen carefully to the comments we have received and have the following plans to address concerns:

 We are committed to donating $100,000 to a non-profit organization  that has a proven, successful track-record helping women in need and that can directly improve the lives of women in Juarez in a meaningful way.

We are changing the product names in the M•A•C Rodarte collection.

As we have done in the past, please be assured that we will communicate details regarding our progress in this matter.

STATEMENT FROM RODARTE ON THE M•A•C RODARTE COLLECTION

We recognize that the violence against women taking place in Juarez needs to be met with proactive action. We never intended to make light of this serious issue and we are truly sorry.

Helping to improve the conditions for women in Juarez is a priority for us and we are thankful for all the comments calling attention to the urgency of addressing this situation.

So there we have it. The response we've all been waiting for. I've got several thoughts on this and it may come out as a bit of a brain dump I'm afraid.

Firstly, I'm delighted that the companies involved listened and acted. The power of protest is really special, although I appreciate they will not just have been dealing with our mass blog posts of complaints and Twitter campaign, but also complaints from consumers. I don't think we (the blogging community) can take all the credit, but I feel we did a fantastic job at raising awareness and letting our feelings be known, loudly and clearly which can only have helped to influence the decisions made by Mac.

Personally, I am pleased that the product names are being changed. For some people this was not so much of an issue, but for me, I think this is a fantastic result.

The donation of $100,000 is not nearly enough. Really it isn't. They could have done better. I would also like to know where exactly this money is going, to which charitable organisation. I guess this information may be revealed further down the line. I am disappointed that proceeds from the products are not going to be donated in addition. As such, I won't be purchasing.

I think for me, it is now time to let this subject drop. I suspect there will never be an outcome that will suit everyone, if they were to withdraw the collection there are people who would say that they are missing opportunities to raise awareness, I'm sure that there are people who wish for the whole line to be withdrawn, there are people who will be satisfied with the response at it is, and people, like me, who wished for a little more.

I won't be boycotting Mac entirely, although had the above statements not been issued, I think that would have been my only option. I will be boycotting this collection. It was ill conceived and if my money isn't going directly to the cause then I'm not interested.

As of tomorrow, normal service will resume on my blog, but if there are any further updates, I will be sure to post them.

I would love to hear everyone's thoughts.

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