This March coinciding with International Women’s Day, Monki joins forces once again with Body Dysmorphic Disorder Foundation (BDDF) to further raise awareness around body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), a distressing psychological condition where a person becomes very preoccupied with one or more features in physical appearance.
In collaboration with BDDF, the Swedish fashion brand is launching a limited-edition underwear collection featuring positive affirmation messages, serving as a reminder to the wearer that they are unique, and that they are more than their reflection and what they see on the outside. The capsule includes two mesh bras and briefs. One set features positive affirmations on the inside of the underwear for the wearer to read, but also reflected the correct way when looking at the mirror, for an instant confidence boost. The second set features various body illustrations, one of the brand’s signature prints.
Photo: Monki
As part of the ongoing partnership between Monki and BDDF, a donation is made to support BDDF’s work and expand educational resources. Monki will also showcase a series of personal portraits from three media volunteers who have suffered from BDD and have used their experiences to educate and inform the public about this underdiagnosed and distressing disorder. They describe how it started, how it manifested, their lowest point, and how they have gotten to the other side. They also share advice on how to support someone potentially going through this or someone who knows a person that is suffering from this disorder. The purpose is to enlighten inform, educate on the disorder, and encourage them to seek help, and never give up.
Via its social media platforms, the brand will encourage its community to ask questions to representatives from BDDF. Monki will also share video clips of the BDDF media volunteers’ personal journeys along with advice, tips, and other helpful resources on how to navigate this topic.
“The purpose of the campaign is to raise awareness of the disorder and how it affects a person’s psyche, well-being, and self-confidence. As a brand that creates fashion for girls and young women, we have a responsibility to our community to be as inclusive and transparent as possible when it comes to body and beauty representation. Diverse casting and transparent retouch guidelines are two of the areas we have worked with since day one. That’s why this ongoing collaboration with BDDF is important to us — we strive to empower women to feel good about themselves without aspiring to unattainable norms,” says Simone Van Starkenburg, Brand & Marketing Director at Monki.
Photos: Monki
In November 2021, BDDF, supported by Monki, started a petition directed at the EU Parliament calling for transparency on altered images on social media. This pushed for changes to ensure that organizations, companies, and influencers are legally required to state when images have been manipulated for paid content online. This tapped into an already important and ongoing movement where we in recent years have seen changes in law changes to legislation in Norway and France.
Since the petition’s launch, UK-based BDDF has managed to accumulate over 40,000 signatures— but it doesn’t stop there. So far, the petition has been a catalyst in pushing for a similar UK legislative change, which is why it is still important to support BDDF by signing the petition. More info about BDD and the petition can be found on monki.com and on bddfoundation.org.
The limited-edition underwear capsule will be available online and in all stores in Europe from March 2023.
