Call for a Boycott of Splat Toothpaste
A doctor from Kharkiv, Serhii Zamchii, is urging consumers to boycott Splat toothpaste due to its Russian ownership. He has called on Ukrainian retail chains to remove the product from their shelves, denouncing its marketing strategy as cynical. This call to action highlights the heightened scrutiny of corporate structures in the wake of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Dr. Zamchii emphasized that the Splat brand has Russian roots, as it was founded in 2000 by Russians Yevgeny Demin and Elena Belous. The company was originally known as Splat-Cosmetics LLC. While the SPLAT trademark was transferred to the Swiss company IWI AG in 2011, the doctor argues this is not a genuine shift but a Russian ploy to circumvent Ukrainian principles and present a misleading European image.
Production and Market Focus
Zamchii also pointed out that products for the Ukrainian market are manufactured at a plant in Bulgaria.
'Do you understand the cynicism? For them, Ukraine is just another global market. Not a country where people die every day, but simply a sales platform,' the doctor stated.He stressed that every time he used the toothpaste, he felt he was 'personally adding money to the budget of the aggressor country.'
Furthermore, Splat Global maintains two factories in Russia: Organic Pharmaceuticals in the Novgorod region and Capella in the Nizhny Novgorod region. Since 2022, the company has focused its business on CIS and Asia-Pacific markets, which account for roughly 25% of its turnover.
The doctor framed the boycott as a test of Ukrainian dignity.
'This is a test of our dignity. If we are merely a market to salvage their business, then let's show them this market is closed to them forever,' he emphasized.
Thus, questions about the Splat brand's origins and its impact on the Ukrainian market remain pertinent. Through his boycott call, Serhii Zamchii aims to draw attention to the importance of conscious consumption and supporting Ukrainian producers. His appeal underscores a growing consumer movement in Ukraine to reject goods with financial ties to Russia.