Simple® Facial Skincare and MAKERS Unveil Search for ‘Next MAKERS’

Today MAKERS, an unprecedented multiplatform video experience from AOL and PBS honoring trailblazing women, together with Unilever’s new Simple® facial skincare brand, launch a nationwide search to find extraordinary women in local communities who will become recognized as “Next MAKERS.” For the next six weeks, the public may nominate themselves or women in their own lives who have made a remarkable impact on a local level, are viewed as role models and inspire people around them to take action.

Candidates for Next MAKERS will be considered based on accomplishments large and small, as well as their leadership, activism and positive social impact. Six remarkable women from across the country will ultimately be selected to tell their stories in short videos that will appear on MAKERS.com alongside videos from Supreme Court Justices, Secretaries of State and CEOs, as well as athletes, activists and entertainers. Simple® will join MAKERS in saluting these women who have made America great by awarding each Next MAKER with a $10,000 grant so they can continue to follow their dreams and do great work in their communities. The Next MAKERS will be flown to New York City to attend an intimate dinner hosted by MAKERS and Simple® and film their stories with the award-winning MAKERS filmmaking team.

"Like a tree or a house, all important change starts from the bottom up,” said Gloria Steinem, a leading feminist activist recognized on MAKERS.com. “MAKERS wants to capture the stories of women who are the innovators, models and strategists of justice, conflict resolution, problem solving, contagious kindness and other positive events in their communities. I think it’s important that we all share who we believe should be recognized so her example can spread far and wide."

The six Next MAKERS who are selected will join a prestigious group of women profiled on the digital platform. The authentic, personal and previously untold stories of the Next MAKERS on MAKERS.com will serve as powerful inspiration for people of all backgrounds to continue driving change.

“It takes a one-of-a-kind partner to bring this type of project to fruition, and we’re thrilled to be working with Simple® on this next phase of MAKERS,” said Maureen Sullivan, SVP and General Manager, Women's Content and Lifestyle Brands, AOL. “Since the launch of MAKERS.com in March, we've heard from people everywhere who want to tell us about the extraordinary women in their lives. Now, through the launch of Next MAKERS, we have the opportunity to highlight the groundbreaking women who are making an impact in their community, and ultimately recognize six of these amazing women as Next MAKERS."

“We are proud to present Next MAKERS to celebrate women whose authenticity, ideals and pioneering spirit inspire others every day,” said Alison Clark, Director, Unilever US, Skincare. “Simple® is a new kind of facial skincare committed to educating women that great skincare is inherently connected to overall healthy lifestyle – nurturing the physical and the emotional. This partnership celebrates the women whose physical, intellectual and emotional strength have opened doors, opened minds and inspired change.”

“MAKERS is unique as it serves as a living library of incredible stories of groundbreaking women, and it has always been our mission to add more stories as women continue to make dynamic contributions to our world. Next MAKERS is the perfect evolution, as it will allow us to highlight these everyday heroes who are making a difference in their local communities and beyond,” said Dyllan McGee, the founder of MAKERS.

How to Enter Next MAKERS

Applicants are encouraged to submit an entry for themselves or a woman in their life who they feel deserves to be a Next MAKER on MAKERS.com/NextMAKERS or Facebook.com/SimpleSkincare. Entries can be submitted from 12:00pm ET August 16, 2012 to 12:00pm ET September 27, 2012.

All entries will be judged by a panel of judges to select the six Grand Prize winners. Nominations will be judged equally on the following criteria: nominee’s impact; achievements; innovation; and inspiration.

Entries must meet the requirements outlined in the program rules, and women must be 18 years of age or older to participate. Nominations may include an optional photo, including only the nominee; an optional video (one minute or less) stating who is being nominated and why; as well as any supplemental information the nominator wants to include about the nominee. Visit MAKERS.com/NextMAKERS for more information and to view the complete terms and conditions. No purchase necessary. Limit one nomination per entrant per day.

About Simple

Simple®, a Unilever brand, is the first and only line of mass facial skincare products that is perfect even for sensitive skin. Suitable for all skin types, Simple has no dyes, artificial perfumes or harsh irritants that can upset your skin, just our purest possible skin-loving ingredients with added vitamins, for natural healthy-looking skin. Simple, the UK’s No. 1 Facial Skincare brand,* launched in the U.S. in February 2012 with 13 products - cleansers, moisturizers, eye care products and wipes – that are hypoallergenic, non-comedogenic and pH balanced to gently yet effectively address the needs of the 58% of women with sensitive skin**. Simple is sold at mass-market retailers drug stores and online.

About MAKERS

Produced by award-winning documentary filmmakers, MAKERS is an unprecedented multi-platform video experience that aims to capture the extraordinary impact women have made in America over the past 50 years, through a vast and ongoing collection of original interviews with trailblazing women of all walks of life. MAKERS is founded by filmmaker Dyllan McGee. Executive Producers are Dyllan McGee, Betsy West and Peter Kunhardt. The digital platform is developed by AOL. The 3–hour documentary, “MAKERS: Women Who Make America,” which will tell the story of the modern American Women’s Movement, is scheduled to debut on PBS in February 2013 and is produced by Kunhardt McGee Productions, Storyville Films and WETA Washington, D.C., in association with Ark Media.

MAKERS.com has grown since its launch and now features stories from more than 120 remarkable women, including Christiane Amanpour, Madeleine Albright, Danica Patrick, Nichelle Nichols, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Katie Couric, Ellen DeGeneres, Geraldine Ferraro, Theresa Kane, Billie Jean King, Lauren Bush Lauren, Shelly Lazarus, Alice Walker, Meg Whitman, Vivian Stringer, Gabrielle Hamilton, Diane Nash, Sara Ziff, and Eve Ensler.

For more, visit MAKERS.com/press and follow @MAKERSwomen on Twitter and visit Facebook.com/makerswomen on Facebook.

About AOL Inc.

AOL Inc. (NYSE:AOL) is a brand company, committed to continuously innovating, growing, and investing in brands and experiences that inform, entertain, and connect the world. The home of a world-class collection of premium brands, AOL creates original content that engages audiences on a local and global scale. We help marketers connect with these audiences through effective and engaging digital advertising solutions.

*SymphonyIRI Group UK Non Medicated Facial Skincare Units 52 w/e 10th September 2011

**Lieberman Research Worldwide, December 2010

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