Reitmans becomes 'Reitwoman' for International Women's Day

By

Jennifer Braun

Published
Mar 6, 2020

Canadian retailer Reitmans is temporarily changing its brand name to 'Reitwoman' for International Women's Day. 

The name change will appear for a few days leading up to International Women's Day on March 8, on Reitmans' website, social media platforms and email newsletters. 

The storefront logo itself will also be changed in two high-volume, recently renovated stores, including at Carrefour Laval located just outside Montreal and at Bayshore Shopping Center in Ottawa, Ontario.

"This was above all another step in showing our customer that she is what inspires us,” explained vice-president of marketing and visual presentation, Valérie Vedrines.

“Women are the most important part of our brand and we want to empower them, to give them confidence. We think it is important to take any opportunity to shine a light on this. It is also a way to unite our amazing community of women and show the strength that comes from gathering together and standing up together.”

As the name Reitmans, which the brand has held since its founding in 1926, contains the word "man", a clear opportunity was identified to replace it with the word "woman", giving the temporary name Reitwoman.

The name change also follows the launch of the company's brand platform, dubbed 'Really You', which casts a positive and empowering light on the beauty found in the uniqueness and realness of all types of women.

It also operates the Beyond Looks x Reitmans project, which is an online hub that gathers and shines a light on the causes and organizations supported by the brand. 

Since the launch of this project, Reitmans has collaborated with The Canadian Women's Foundation and Plan International Canada for their Girls Belong Here seat share program, amassing over $100,000 to date from these endeavors.

Reitmans has also taken a stand, through these initiatives and others, against unrealistic beauty standards. The brand signed a non-retouch agreement for its marketing campaigns, attesting that no modifications will be made to the models' body shapes.