Dove's Father's Day campaign emphasizes self-care, includes children's book

Dove has been celebrating fatherhood for some years now with its Father's Day campaign for Dove Men+Care, but this year it's putting the emphasis on fathers caring for themselves, as well as for their kids. 

In tune with the growing social emphasis on mental health, the Unilever brand's initiatives this year include partnering with Headspace to create a curated collection of meditations that includes themes of "Radical Self-Care," "Compassionate Parenting,"  "Letting Go of Work" and more. With the purchase of any Dove Men+Care product until August 31, anyone can upload their receipt to DoveMenCare.com/TryHeadspace for a free three-month Headspace Plus trial.

As part of the campaign, created via BBD Perfect Storm's male marketing division, New Macho, Dove also collaborated on a storybook for fathers, to try to encourage dads to "reset and recharge" during storytime with their kids. "Dads (They Care A Lot)" was created collaboration with author and illustrator Keith Negley; it features in a promotional video, seen here, in which individual fathers are surprised by their kids with personalized versions of the book. 

The brand is also creating a YouTube video series called #DadsCare in which real-life feathers will share their real experiences and advice for other fathers on navigating all stages of the fatherhood journey. Fathers featured include celebrity dads such as tech entrepreneur and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, and there are contributions from social media groups such as Gays with Kids, City Dads and The Dad Gang (whose mission is to change the way the world views Black Fatherhood). 

Dove's message is that by encouraging fathers to look after themselves, the whole family will benefit. Research commissioned by Dove Men+Care in partnership with Promundo-US showed that practicing a holistic care regimen helps men show up more effectively in their relationships and impacts the next generation—for example, when sons see their fathers engaged as full partners in domestic care and work, they are 1.5 times more likely to contribute their fair share of unpaid care work within the household.

"This year has been especially challenging for families and caregivers as they have been navigating the balance of work, home and other responsibilities," said Carlos Gil, global brand vice president of Dove Men+Care, in a statement. "We know how important a dad's care is, and the transformational effect that care has on everyone around him. That is why this Father's Day, we hope to not only celebrate caring dads, but more importantly support them with valuable tools to better care for themselves and those around them."