SCHWARZKOPF® KERATIN BLONDE RECOGNIZED AS 2024 PRODUCT OF THE YEAR USA AWARD WINNER

40,000 American Shoppers Voted and Schwarzkopf® Keratin Blonde won the Most Innovative Product in the Hair Treatment category of 2024

STAMFORD, Conn., Feb. 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading hair color brand Schwarzkopf® has been recognized as a winner of the 2024 Product of the Year USA Awards. With over 125 years of hair expertise, Schwarzkopf® is bringing professional quality color to blondes with Keratin Blonde, a line of four hair color kits with our Bond Enforcing System, which  empowers consumers to achieve a healthy-looking blonde result at home. Additionally, the new Schwarzkopf® Keratin Blonde Anti-Brass Purple Mask reduces brassiness and yellow tones for a cool blonde result, delivering 3x stronger hair* and leaving hair feeling smooth. Determined through a national study of 40,000 American shoppers in partnership with Kantar, a global leader in consumer research, Product of the Year is the largest consumer-voted awards program centered around product innovation, and Schwarzkopf® Keratin Blonde is awarded the highly acclaimed honor of Most Innovative Product within the Hair Treatment category.

*against combing breakage on damaged hair vs. untreated.

Recognized as a globally established seal of approval, Product of the Year has operated for 16 years in the United States, and over 30 years globally, supporting shoppers as a trusted guide to the best new products on the market, both online and in-store. With more consumers minding budgets and being more selective in their purchasing, the Product of the Year red seal is a distinctive mark that helps consumers cut through the masses of product on shelves to locate the best new products that stand out in the points that matter, such as thoughtful design, quality and innovation. By allowing shoppers to easily identify the top trendsetting products on the market, voted on by 40,000 fellow consumers, the emblem also serves as a valuable marketing tool for brands to build consumer awareness, especially among competitors within their respective spaces.

"With today's consumers looking for ways to cut costs, while still craving new and innovative products, Product of The Year helps to connect them to the latest products worth purchasing that are smarter, more efficient, and easier to use," said Mike Nolan, Global CEO of Product of the Year Management. "Shoppers have confidence trusting any product with our iconic red seal, as they know they are backed by the opinion of 40,000 Americans as the foremost innovative products in their respective categories."

"It is an honor to be endorsed by Product of the Year as a 2024 winner for the Hair Treatment category," said Chris McClement, Senior Vice President of Marketing North America at Henkel. "Knowing that consumers are being more intentional with how they spend their dollars, it's more imperative than ever for us to stand out among our competitors to showcase our unique innovations. We are excited to utilize the widely-recognized Product of The Year red seal within upcoming marketing and sales efforts to not only draw in new consumers to purchase our Keratin Color products, but to further solidify our credibility with existing customers as an innovative product in the at-home hair color industry."   

The full list of 46 winners of the 2024 Product of the Year Awards were revealed at the annual Product of the Year Awards Show on February 8^th at Tribeca 360° in New York City. The celebration kicked off with a red carpet, followed by a night full of entertainment with Saturday Night Live Alums, Rachel Dratch and Alex Moffat, hosting the Award Show.

In tandem with the winner announcement, the Schwarzkopf® Keratin Blonde line is currently featured in a shoppable article on PEOPLE Online created in partnership with Dotdash Meredith, the largest digital and print publisher in America. Additionally, Ensemble IQ, a premier business intelligence resource with revered publications, including Progressive Grocer, Store Brands, Drug Store News, Convenience Store News and CBD Retail Insights, has also shared the news of the 2024 winners in respective categories.

For further information about Schwarzkopf® Keratin Blonde and Keratin Color, visit Schwarzkopf.com. Additional details on the full list of 2024 Product of the Year Winners can be found at productoftheyearusa.com, along with on Instagram, Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) at #POYUSA2024.

About Henkel in North America:
Henkel's portfolio of well-known brands in North America includes Schwarzkopf® hair care, Dial® soaps, Persil®, Purex®, and all® laundry detergents, Snuggle® fabric softeners as well as Loctite®, Technomelt® and Bonderite® adhesives. With sales close to 6.5 billion US dollars (6 billion euros) in 2022, North America accounts for 27 percent of the company's global sales. Henkel employs over 8,000 people across the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. For more information, please visit www.henkel-northamerica.com and on Twitter @Henkel_NA.

About Product of the Year:
Product of the Year is the largest consumer-voted award for product innovation. Established over 30 years ago, POY currently operates in over 40 countries with the same purpose: Guide consumers to the best products in their market and reward manufacturers for quality and innovation. Product of the Year winners are backed by the votes of 40,000 consumers in a national representative study conducted by research partner Kantar, a global leader in consumer research.  The award is a powerful merchandising program for marketers proven to increase product sales, distribution, and awareness.  Winning products are announced in February each year and receive the right to use the Product of the Year logo in marketing communications for two years.  For more information, visit productoftheyearusa.com.

About Kantar:
Kantar is the world's leading marketing data, insight and consultancy company. We know more about how people live, feel, shop, vote, watch and post worldwide than any other company. Working across the entire sales and marketing lifecycle, we help brands uncover growth in an extraordinary world. Kantar is part of WPP and its services are employed by over half of the Fortune 500 companies in 100 countries.

SOURCE Schwarzkopf