How the blue Nivea can once again became a cosmetic star thanks to those under 30

The blue Nivea can is not just a classic.

Given the avalanche of videos, comments, tutorials on the Internet, it is a contemporary star: Nivea was the third most popular cosmetic company on TikTok in 2023, according to the specialized consultancy Beauty Packaging.

The company has managed to make its products transversal and fascinate an audience of different ages.

In a recent video, with more than 1.7 million views, a 92-year-old woman, who looks 40 years younger, swears that her secret is Nivea cream.

Meanwhile, TikTok accumulates proposals from hundreds of

millennials

and

centennials

to hydrate their hair with Nivea as a pre-mask before washing (from mid-lengths to ends, 30 minutes), as an eye contour before makeup, to hydrate hands and nails, for tattoos , for cracked elbows, knees and heels and to prevent stretch marks.

In beauty it happens as with religion: there are many statements that seem to come more from faith than from evidence.

The German brand assures that the eye contour is the “most delicate skin on the face, ten times thinner than the rest of the face,” and that “its moisturizing film is very thin, since we hardly find any sebaceous glands in it.” and sweaty, in addition, “blood microcirculation is slower and drains more poorly.”

“The best thing to do is to use a specific cream, otherwise, as the brand says on its website, we run the risk of the area becoming swollen, puffiness increasing and the eyelids becoming inflamed.

Face moisturizers, like the blue can, are rich in lipids, and are not suitable for this area,” says Alain Valiente, creator of Eleven Obi.

A Nivea advertising campaign in 1973.ullstein bild Dtl.

(ullstein bill via Getty Images)

Buy Nivea Creme for €6.35

Regarding the application as a hair serum, Elena Sánchez, Brand Manager Nivea Body Care at Beiersdorf Spain, makes it clear, “although consumers have shared with us the use of Nivea Creme as a hair moisturizer, we only recommend its use for skin care. .

And what about stretch marks?

“They are prevented thanks to hydration.

The more elastic and nourished, the less chance they will appear.

Specific formulas are loaded with oils.

I am not surprised by this use of the Nivea can as an anti-stretch mark, it probably works perfectly,” says Valiente, from Eleven Obi.

The moisturizer appeared in 1911, but its aesthetics were different.

“The first Nivea Creme design was yellow with Art Nouveau details, such as floral ornaments and typography that imitated manual calligraphy,” Sánchez, from Nivea, tells us.

The legendary blue can was launched in 1925. “Blue is associated with robustness and, of course, the sea,” says Sánchez.

If the cans that have been sold were placed in a line, we would reach the Moon.

“One of the reasons Nivea Creme remains relevant is because of its enormous versatility.

Its hydration capacity allows multiple uses, the most common being general hydration of the body, reinforcement in drier areas such as elbows or heels, facial mask, hand care, prevention of chafing or stretch marks during pregnancy, protection against the cold, or even to keep tattoos in good condition,” says Sánchez.

Journalists with extensive careers in the sector have used it since they were little.

“She has always seemed like first aid to me.

When I was a kid, everyone had a box in their beach bag.

When people burned their noses, they walked around with a white glob on their faces, a gesture that seemed ugly to me then, but now seems very chic,” says Marina Ruíz López, general director at Marina Ruíz Prensa & Comunicación and Associate at Ally Comms.

Ella Ruíz claims that she even managed to “remove a sunspot with the blue can.”

Nivea warns that we do not recommend the use of Nivea Creme as an anti-stain product in any case.

“We have never communicated the use of the cream for this purpose.”

The latest news that has set the Internet on fire compares another Nivea formula with one of the most expensive creams on the market.

Irish DJ Annie Mac stated on TikTok that “Nivea is Crème de la Mer in a different box”;

the first costs between 5 and seven euros;

the second, between 95,000 and 1,255 euros.

Her video went viral and hundreds of people uploaded other similar videos.

Regimen Lab, a Canadian company specialized in verifying the scientific basis and ingredients of rituals and cosmetic proposals that emerge on networks, did the test.

“First, we analyze the two formulas: the base of Crème de la Mer is the same as that of Nivea […].

But the difference is the fermented algae: de la Mer contains botanical oils, a cocktail of active ingredients and vitamins,” say the technicians in the video, who also ensure that the hydration capacity of the two creams is similar.

But the base of the creams is one thing, and the treating ingredients (anti-wrinkle, antioxidants, regenerating...) are another.

Many creams coincide in the formulation of their moisturizing base (oils, water).

La Mer is based on kelp seaweed fermented for more than three months.

It also includes antioxidant lime tea and vitamins (among others).

Once again, faith.