Background

Dove was already an established personal-care brand within Unilever when the company expanded into the men’s grooming category. This strategic move responded to growing demand for products specifically formulated and marketed to address men’s grooming needs.

Dove Men+Care was officially introduced in 2010. Unilever’s launch announcement identified it as Dove’s first product line specifically formulated for men. The initial concept focused on helping men achieve “total skin comfort” while presenting masculinity through everyday experiences, relationships, and personal milestones, rather than exclusively through conventional macho imagery.1

The launch was substantial in scale. Unilever’s 2010 annual report stated that Dove Men+Care was rolled out in more than 30 countries, generating over €120 million in sales during that year. The introduction received significant marketing support, including a Super Bowl campaign in the United States and an award-winning advertising initiative.

Early positioning

The original Dove Men+Care proposition asserted that men require effective grooming products that also care for their skin while performing their intended function. This approach differentiated the brand from traditional men’s grooming marketing, which often emphasized toughness, athleticism, or exaggerated masculinity.

The early portfolio concentrated on body washes, cleansing bars, deodorants, and antiperspirants. Dove’s established reputation for moisturization and skin care was integrated into this men’s range.1

Dove Men+Care subsequently expanded beyond basic body and underarm products to offer a more comprehensive grooming system.

2013: Hair care

In 2013, Dove Men+Care entered the men’s hair-care category with shampoos and 2-in-1 shampoo/conditioners. These products were positioned to strengthen and maintain healthier-looking hair, including solutions for thin-looking hair and dandruff.1

2013: Facial care

In the same year, the brand introduced its first dedicated face-care range. This lineup included facial cleansing, shaving, post-shave, and moisturizing products, expanding the brand’s scope from shower and deodorant items to a complete grooming routine.1

2014: Expert shaving

In 2014, the brand launched its Expert Shave range. Dove Men+Care stated that it collaborated with barbers and dermatologists to develop these products, reinforcing its positioning of effective grooming combined with skin care.1

Over time, the portfolio evolved into a broad men’s personal-care system covering the body, face, hair, and underarms.

The contemporary Dove Men+Care portfolio is significantly broader than at launch.

Body cleansing

Body and face cleansing remains a core category. Products include body washes, body-and-face washes, cleansing bars, exfoliating products, 3-in-1 formulations, whole-body products, and plant-powered body washes. The brand emphasizes cleansing that maintains skin hydration, historically incorporating Dove’s moisturizing philosophy and MicroMoisture technology in parts of the range.1

Current product families include Clean Comfort, Extra Fresh, Deep Clean, Charcoal + Clay, and various plant-powered or essential-oil-inspired body washes.1

Deodorants and antiperspirants

Deodorant and antiperspirant products constitute another major segment. The portfolio includes stick antiperspirants, aerosol/dry-spray antiperspirants, deodorant sprays, deodorant creams, aluminum-free products, clinical-strength products, and sensitive-skin-oriented variants. The fundamental proposition is to provide sweat and odor protection without neglecting underarm skin care.1

Hair care

The hair-care portfolio comprises shampoos, 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioners, anti-dandruff products, strengthening products, styling gels, and styling pastes. Dove Men+Care describes these products as designed to strengthen and fortify hair while addressing concerns such as dandruff, thinning-looking hair, and styling needs.1

Facial and skin care

Depending on the market, Dove Men+Care offers face washes, facial cleansers, moisturizers, shaving products, post-shave care, body lotions, and facial skin-care products. The broader catalog currently spans categories from face cleanser and moisturizer to shaving and body lotion.1

A primary distinction between Dove Men+Care and many traditional men’s grooming brands is its interpretation of masculinity. Rather than presenting care as incompatible with being masculine, Dove Men+Care argues that caring is part of strength. Its current mission states that caring for others begins with caring for oneself, connecting personal grooming with wider concepts of well-being, family, and social responsibility.1

This philosophy manifests in several interconnected themes:

Self-care

Dove Men+Care encourages men to regard grooming and personal well-being as normal aspects of everyday life rather than exclusively feminine behaviors.

Positive masculinity

The brand promotes a less restrictive definition of masculinity, asserting that men should be able to express care, vulnerability, responsibility, and emotional involvement without these qualities being viewed as incompatible with manhood.1

Fatherhood

Fatherhood has become central to the brand’s communication. Campaigns portray active fathers and argue that involvement in children’s lives is an important expression of masculinity. The brand has also advocated for policies including paid paternity leave.1

Community and social care

Messaging has expanded beyond individual grooming to address racial equity, representation, and men’s roles in their families and communities.1

The word Care serves as the organizing principle of Dove Men+Care, operating at multiple levels:1

• Physical care: Skin, hair, body, and underarm products.
• Personal care: Grooming, confidence, and self-maintenance.
• Emotional care: Mental well-being and breaking down stereotypes about men’s emotions.
• Family care: Fatherhood and involvement with children.
• Social care: Community participation, representation, and racial equity.

Consequently, the brand’s communications extend beyond product advertising. Dove Men+Care explicitly describes its mission as helping men and fathers care for themselves and the people they love.1

Dove Men+Care’s advertising has historically diverged from stereotypical men’s grooming advertisements. Instead of relying exclusively on images of hyper-masculine athletes, models, or “alpha male” characters, the brand frequently focuses on ordinary moments that demonstrate care.

“Manthem”

One of the brand’s most notable early campaigns was “Manthem,” associated with its 2010 launch and Super Bowl advertising. The campaign depicted a man’s life through a series of moments involving relationships, family, and fatherhood, helping to establish the idea that masculinity could be represented through both strength and caring relationships.1

This launch campaign became integral to the brand’s early identity alongside the international product rollout. Unilever later reported that the campaign won a Silver Lion at Cannes and was supported by innovative digital advertising.

Dove Men+Care primarily targets men who purchase personal-care and grooming products, though its positioning extends beyond simple utility. The typical consumer proposition suggests that men want products that work effectively while also enabling them to take better care of themselves.

The brand particularly emphasizes men who:1

• Want simple everyday grooming routines
• Care about skin health
• Want effective sweat and odor protection
• Want convenient hair-care products
• Are becoming more interested in skin care
• Want grooming products without an overly macho identity
• Identify with modern fatherhood and family involvement
• See self-care as part of overall well-being

Current communications explicitly address men and dads rather than restricting the brand to a narrow demographic definition.1

Dove Men+Care inherits characteristics from the wider Dove brand while applying a masculine visual and communication treatment.

Name

Dove provides continuity with the parent beauty and personal-care brand. Men+Care communicates two ideas simultaneously: that the products are designed specifically for men, and that the brand’s purpose extends beyond grooming to encompass care. The “+” symbol can be interpreted as conceptually connecting men’s grooming with a wider philosophy of care.

Visual identity

Packaging generally employs a more masculine visual language than mainstream Dove products, featuring darker colors, strong typography, and straightforward product communication. Simultaneously, the Dove name and emphasis on moisturization maintain a connection to the broader brand heritage.

Dove Men+Care is not an independent company but a men’s-focused range within the Dove portfolio of Unilever. The relationship follows the hierarchy: Unilever → Dove → Dove Men+Care. Dove provides the broader brand heritage in personal care, skin care, and moisturization, while Dove Men+Care adapts these principles for men’s grooming. Unilever has explicitly described Dove Men+Care as the first Dove range developed specifically for men.1

Dove Men+Care operates in a competitive market alongside brands such as Axe, Old Spice, Nivea Men, Gillette, L’Oréal Men Expert, American Crew, Harry’s, and Dr. Squatch. However, its positioning remains distinct. A simplified comparison of market positioning includes:

These distinctions represent broad marketing positioning rather than strict boundaries, as individual product lines often overlap.

The contemporary identity of Dove Men+Care extends into social issues. The brand campaigns for paid paternity leave, active fatherhood, racial equity, positive masculinity, men’s self-care, and more inclusive representations of men. Its stated objective is to challenge restrictive stereotypes and encourage men to participate more fully in caring for themselves, their families, and their communities.1

This represents a significant evolution from the original 2010 positioning, which focused primarily on men’s skin comfort and grooming.

Dove Men+Care states that it does not test on animals and has received PETA approval. According to Dove, the brand has maintained a global policy prohibiting animal testing and has not tested or commissioned others to test its ingredients since 2010. The brand also highlights Unilever’s work on alternative, non-animal safety-testing methods.1

Specific regulatory and product-testing requirements vary by country, so these claims are best understood within the context of Dove’s stated global policy.

The development of Dove Men+Care can be categorized into four phases:

Phase I — 2010: Men’s skin and grooming

The brand launched with body wash, cleansing, and deodorant/antiperspirant products, emphasizing skin care combined with masculine grooming.1

Phase II — 2013–2014: Complete grooming

Hair care, facial care, and shaving products were introduced, transforming Men+Care from a shower and deodorant range into a broader men’s grooming portfolio.1

Phase III — Broader men’s well-being

The meaning of “care” expanded from skin and grooming to include self-confidence, personal well-being, and everyday self-care.

Phase IV — Modern masculinity and social purpose

The current brand increasingly connects care with fatherhood, positive masculinity, racial equity, community, and men’s well-being.1

The contemporary Dove Men+Care portfolio is organized as follows:

BODY

• Body wash
• Cleansing bars
• Body + face products
• Scrubs
• Lotions

FACE

• Face wash
• Cleansers
• Moisturizers
• Shaving
• Post-shave care

UNDERARM

• Antiperspirant sticks
• Dry sprays
• Deodorants
• Aluminum-free products
• Clinical products

HAIR

• Shampoo
• 2-in-1 products
• Anti-dandruff
• Strengthening/thickening products
• Styling products

LIFESTYLE / PURPOSE

• Grooming advice
• Self-care education
• Fatherhood campaigns
• Positive-masculinity initiatives
• Social-impact campaigns

Exact products and names vary by country. The U.S. catalog, for example, currently lists more than 100 Dove Men+Care products across bath/body, hair, deodorant, and skin-care categories.1

Dove Men+Care is significant for helping shift men’s personal-care marketing away from the notion that “men’s products must simply be tougher” toward the proposition that they can be both effective and caring. Its primary strategic contribution is the redefinition of what “care” means for male consumers.

The brand essentially argues that taking care of oneself does not diminish masculinity but can make a man a better partner, father, friend, family member, and member of society. This concept allows Dove Men+Care to connect a conventional consumer-goods category with a broader cultural conversation about masculinity.

Dove Men+Care is a men’s personal-care brand owned by Unilever and launched in 2010 as Dove’s first product range specifically developed for men. Beginning with body wash and deodorant products, it expanded into facial care, shaving, hair care, skin care, and styling. Its core commercial proposition combines grooming performance with skin care, while its broader brand philosophy argues that “care” is a strength and that men should feel comfortable prioritizing their own well-being. In recent years, Dove Men+Care has extended this philosophy beyond personal grooming into positive masculinity, active fatherhood, self-care, racial equity, and community involvement.1

1. Our Mission | Dove Men+Care