Nivea denies firing Rihanna amid marketing strategy confusion
Nivea parent company Beiersdorf has reportedly had to deny firing brand ambassador Rihanna, who joined forces with the brand last year.
The move comes after the new Beiersdorf chief executive Stefan Heidenreich told a German newspaper that “Rihanna is a no go”.
“I do not understand how to bring the core brand of Nivea in conjunction with Rihanna. Nivea is a company which stands for trust, family and reliability,” he was quoted as saying.
Nivea’s corporate and brands communications vice-president Thomas Schönen left Beiersdorf shortly after the arrival of Heidenreich a few months ago, and the job is currently being an interim corporate communications person.
Now the brand is saying that it has changed its strategy to return to its core values.
“In 2011 Nivea worked with the artist Rihanna in the context of the brand’s 100th birthday anniversary campaign,” explained a spokesperson.
“From the beginning this music co-operation was scheduled for one year and ended as planned at the end of 2011.
“Within the future brand positioning Nivea focuses more than ever on its core values. This leads to a change in advertising strategy as well as marketing campaigns.”