Market Wise

Ahead of International Women's Day, issues related to women rights and discrimination against women have been coming to the fore.

By GREER FAY CASHMAN
women 88 224 (photo credit: Courtesy)
women 88 224
(photo credit: Courtesy)
WOMEN STILL have to market the concept of equal rights, including the right of a woman to receive the same salary as a man if she's doing the same work. Ahead of International Women's Day on March 8, issues related to women rights and discrimination against women have been coming to the fore this past week and will continue to do so next week in numerous events. One such event which may become an annual feature on the calendar was the first Herzliya Conference for Women that took place this week at the Air Force Center, Herzliya, under the auspices of the Women's Administration in the Herzliya Municipality. Although women are invited to participate in the Herzliya Conference which is organized by the Interdisciplinary Center , Herzliya, they are vastly outnumbered by men. But this week they were definitely in the majority, when some 200 of them gathered to focus on issues related to women. It was not surprising that the Herzliya Municipality took this initiative given that it's one of the few headed by a woman - in this case, Yael German, who was among the many speakers. Some of the others were retired Supreme Court Justice Dalia Dorner, who seems to be busier in retirement than she was on the bench; Edna Beckenstein, President of the Tel Aviv Magistrates Court; Mirit Danon, Chairperson of the Authority for the Advancement of Women's Rights and Prime Minister's Advisor on the Status of Women , who last year headed the Israel delegation to the 51st UN Commission on the Status of Women; Rina Bar Tal, Chairperson of the Israel Women's Network. Other prominent figures included journalists Ayala Hasson-Nesher, Lihi Lapid, Billie Moskona-Lerman and Carmella Menashe. Beckenstein noted that until the appointment of Miriam Ben Porat, who later became State Comptroller, the Supreme Court comprised only men. Today, there is more equality, with five women justices including Supreme Court President Dorit Beinisch. Dorner, said that although the courts had contributed to equality in the status of women, Beinisch is constantly under attack, precisely because she's a woman. Bar Tal commented that in 95 percent of the commercials for luxury goods and services such as state-of-the-art motor vehicles and banks, the presenters are men. Hasson-Nesher, who was in Japan last week with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, formed an impression of the long-suffering Japanese wife whose husband does not come home immediately after work, but goes to a geisha house or some other place where he can relax. Apparently it's not a purely Japanese trait. There was a general consensus that husbands don't particularly want to come home. Lihi Lapid was the exception to the rule, as she commented: "I wouldn't say so. My husband loves to come home." TEL AVIV, Haifa , Ashdod and Modiin have been selected by Blue Bird as locations for four new stores to be opened at an investment of $1 million. SUPERPHARM IS featuring a new brand name on its shelves. The hair care products of British celebrity hair dress John Frieda are being launched in Israel in conjunction with a beauty contest in which Mediline, the Israel distributor for John Frieda, is the main sponsor. John Frieda products which are marketed in more than 30 countries will be available exclusively at Superpharm branches across Israel. Initially there will be nine products, but the number will grow over a period of time. Mediline has invested NIS 1 million in creating John Frieda awareness. John Frieda began his hairdressing career at age 17 in 1968. His first venture in marketing his hair products was in 1988, when they were displayed at Boots, one of Britain 's best known chains specializing in beauty products. Some time later, Frieda began selling to the American company KAO Brands, and since then, he hasn't looked back. Mediline has been operating in Israel since 1983. AMERICAN MALE model and nightclub manager Saville Dorfman who has modeled fashions and accessories bearing brand names such as Versace, Castro, Lee Cooper, Fix and Prince, to name but a few, has been commissioned by Revero to head its spring/summer 2008 campaign The budget for the campaign is NIS 500,000. IT'S THE third time around for gymnast Ira Risenson and model Dudi Belser, who once again have been paired to be the presenters for MegaSport and will pose for the photo shoot some time next week. STILL DOING a commute between Italy and Israel is Moran Attias, whose travels are being made worthwhile by Gali. For the third consecutive season Attias will be modeling for Gali's new shoe season campaign, for which she will receive $110,000. SHOES ARE also helping Adi Neuman to pay her bills. But she's getting a lot less than Attias for being the presenter for To Go shoes. Neuman will receive only $50.000, possibly because the To Go chain of stores stock the most inexpensive but fashionable shoes that allow people on a tight budget to be up-to-date in their footwear. The problem is that their shoes, which are not very well made, seldom last a full season before they have to be discarded. On the other hand, at those prices, it really doesn't matter, and it means that there will always be room for more on the shoe rack in the closet. IT'S HARD to tell on what basis presenters are paid. Some are getting huge sums for doing very little while others are working very hard for a lot less - but of course far more than the basic wage. Television hostess and model Einat Erlich will receive $80,000 for being the presenter for prestige kitchen designers Effeti & Ziv, who represent a collaborative Italian-Israeli design venture. The company is mounting a marketing campaign, the total cost of which has been budgeted at $700,000. THE PROOF of the pudding is in the eating. When Strauss Israel CEO Gadi Lessin visited the set for the shoot to promote the new Strauss salads, he thought they shouldn't go to waist, so he sat down with presenter, well known singer Raymonde Abecassis, (who is the mother of actress Yael Abecassis) and proceeded to eat them.