Article: The “Pink Tax” and Gender Price Disparity in Personal Care . Image Credit: Firn / Shutterstock The Pink Tax means women pay more for products marketed to them, often due to branding, not production costs. An article published in the journal Encyclopedia describes how price disparities in female personal care products and services impact their purchasing capacity.
Background The Pink Tax refers to higher selling prices of products and services marketed primarily for women than similar or identical products targeting men. This type of gender-based pricing has been observed across various industries. Some essential products used by both genders, such as razors, shampoo, and deodorant, are mostly subjected to the Pink Tax.
Existing evidence indicates a 7% higher pricing of these personal care products for women compared to men. This pricing strategy is often justified through differentiated marketing rather than differences in production costs. Corporations have conveniently maximized profits from a segment of their customers without publicly acknowledging this discrimination.
Packaging and marketing strategies of companies like Unilever have significantly contributed to the persistence of gender price disparity. This pricing strategy is often justified through differentiated marketing rather than differences in production costs. In this study, scientists evaluated to what extent multinational companies influence gender-based pricing and how these disparities can be .