WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Some are survivors, some are warriors. Others are preventers, still others are supporters. But all eight of the HanesBrands employees “facing” breast cancer in the company’s national, in-store awareness campaign have been touched by the disease.
More than 200 of the company’s retail stores in the United States and Puerto Rico, which operate under the HanesBrands, Hanes, Maidenform and L’eggs-Hanes-Bali-Playtex nameplates, today launched the campaign that will run during October. Amid swaths of pink and messages including “You Matter” and “Always Lifting Women Up,” the employees are featured in window and store signage wearing “I Am A …” T-shirts that communicate each person’s personal experience with breast cancer.
Leah and Janice are survivors; Mary and Annette are warriors currently battling the disease; Milagros and Breanna are preventers who have taken proactive measures due to family history of breast cancer; and Chris and Garnett are supporters who have helped family members with the disease. From hoping for a new, lifesaving treatment to opting for a preventative mastectomy to helping both a mother and father with the disease, the employees embody the strength and stress, faith and fear, and hope and heartbreak associated with breast cancer.
“I have seen the devastated lives this disease leaves in its wake,” said Garnett, a distribution center manager in North Carolina, whose parents both had mastectomies. “And I’m a proud supporter of those who persevere with uncommon courage.”
Uncommon courage is exactly what it took for the eight employees to participate in the campaign, according to Missy Sage, vice president of retail operations for HanesBrands.
“It is incredibly brave to stand up for our other employees and our consumers across the country facing breast cancer with the desire to provide support, even if unspoken,” Sage said. “As one of the world's largest manufacturers of intimate apparel, we touch the lives of millions of people every day – and many of them likely have their own stories of being a warrior, survivor, preventer and/or supporter.”
Recognizing this and to further support breast cancer awareness, HanesBrands is giving retail outlet store shoppers one of the four “I Am A …” T-shirts of their choice while supplies last this month with any bra purchase – including two post-surgery bras that are new to the company’s retail stores.
Bali and Playtex are among the first national brands to introduce post-surgery bra styles. Both the Bali One Smooth U Post Surgery Comfort & Support Wireless Bra and the Playtex Cotton Comfort Front & Back Close, Easy On & Easy Off Wirefree Bra factor in the myriad types of surgical procedures performed to treat the disease and focus on patients’ three most requested features – soft comfort, wire-free support and pockets for prosthetics.
Janice, who works for HanesBrands as a store sales associate, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer at stage three in 2010. It took a mastectomy, chemotherapy and radiation – along with sheer determination – to help her beat the disease.
“As a HanesBrands store sales associate, I am able to help others who’ve had the same disease get properly fitted and taken care of,” said Janice, a New York-based employee, noting that all store associates have special training in fitting post-surgery breast cancer patients. “Sharing my story and being able to relate to theirs is what makes my job so impactful.”
Both Bali and Playtex have an ongoing partnership with nonprofit Earlier.org to promote the importance of early-stage breast cancer detection. Earlier.org is the nation’s only breast cancer charity focused exclusively on supporting research for an innovative biological test that can detect breast cancer five to eight years before current methods – and possibly before a tumor has formed.
“My message to all women is that you should listen to your body and get your annual checkups, including mammograms,” said Annette, a retail operations manager in Colorado, currently battling the disease. “If caught early, breast cancer can be cured – and every year, more advancements in medical knowledge and treatments make it possible for us all to live long, productive lives with this disease.”
To read the employees’ stories in their own words or for more information on HanesBrands’ breast cancer awareness initiatives, visit Hanes for Good.
HanesBrands
HanesBrands is a socially responsible leading marketer of everyday basic innerwear and activewear apparel in the Americas, Europe, Australia and Asia-Pacific. The company markets T-shirts, bras, panties, shapewear, underwear, socks, hosiery, and activewear under some of the world’s strongest apparel brands, including Hanes, Champion, Bonds, Maidenform, DIM, Bali, Playtex, Bras N Things, Nur Die/Nur Der, Alternative, L’eggs, JMS/Just My Size, Lovable, Wonderbra, Berlei, and Gear for Sports. More information about the company and its award-winning corporate social responsibility initiatives may be found at www.Hanes.com/corporate. Visit our newsroom at https://newsroom.hanesbrands.com/. Connect with the company via social media: Twitter (@hanesbrands), Facebook (www.facebook.com/hanesbrandsinc), Instagram (@hanesbrands), and LinkedIn (@Hanesbrandsinc).
