In 2025, Sanex ran a TV ad for shower gel that showed a Black woman’s cracked, itchy skin as the “before” and a white woman’s smooth, hydrated skin as the “after”. The tagline promised that “relief could be as simple as a shower”.

Ever stepped into a fitting room and felt your confidence drop instantly? That reaction isn’t personal. It is a well documented response shared more widely than most realise. Millions of shoppers experience insecurity, frustration and disappointment in fitting rooms, and most assume it is an individual problem. In reality, it is the environment itself, intentionally designed to trigger predictable psychological responses.