The Body Shop's Ruby Poster

I don’t remember the Body Shops Ruby, Sharon Haywood does and wonders what would have happened if she’d become three-dimensional.

In 1997, the socially-conscious international cosmetics franchise created Ruby: a chubby-cheeked, chestnut-haired, computer-generated figurine. Ruby was the brainchild of The Body Shop’s self-esteem campaign, “Love Your Body.” Her size 16 image was accompanied by the caption, “There are 3 billion women who don’t look like supermodels and only 8 who do.” She sent the message that you should love what you’ve got, not loathe it.

If you’re familiar with Ruby, you know that she’s not easy to locate. So, where’s this confident and curvaceous character been hiding? You can find her at www.bestrejectedadvertising.com under the category of “Banned,” courtesy of Mattel. The U.S. toy manufacturer thwarted the innovative campaign in its early days by serving The Body Shop with a cease-and-desist order; all posters had to be removed from American shops. Why? In Anita Roddick’s own words: “Ruby was making Barbie look bad, presumably by mocking the plastic twig-like bestseller… Mattel thought that Ruby was insulting to Barbie.” Outside of Roddick’s explanation on her website, no other information regarding Mattel’s specific legal grounds can be found online. We can surmise that Ruby’s rolls and less-than-perky breasts were the offending culprits. Sharon Haywood, Anybody.

It’s a shame The Body Shop didn’t challenge Mattel’s cease-and-desist order, but who can afford to take on a corporation with deep pockets?