
Gendered Pricing Policies: Pink Tax
Chapter from the book:
Dişli Bayraktar,
E.
(ed.)
2025.
Gender Equality in Marketing: Theoretical Perspectives and Applications.
Synopsis
The target audience of businesses may vary according to their marketing objectives and products. For this reason, businesses use various variables in the segmentation of products. The gender variable is also a factor that is generally used in the segmentation of products. In particular, the gender variable is applied in different marketing mix strategies for female consumers, who have a significant impact on all consumer purchasing decisions. However, price, which is expressed as a revenue-generating element among the marketing mix elements, appears as a discriminatory practice in gendered pricing strategies. Price differentiation against women in similar products sold for men and women is called pink taxation. Pink taxation, which is on the agenda in many countries around the world, refers to the price difference between men's and women's products in various categories such as clothing, hygiene, personal care and health. This concept, which is referred to in the literature as pink taxation, is used to differentiate the prices of some products subject to marketing in a gender-sensitive manner. In particular, products marketed to women are sold at higher prices than similar products marketed to men. It is stated that it is called pink taxation because the colors of the products where price differentiation is observed according to gender are usually pink. In this part of the study, the conceptual and theoretical framework of pink taxation, which is a sexist pricing policy, is analyzed.