Pretty can be powerful. Just ask Liz Hurley

globeandmail.com: pink!: "Look Good Feel Better "

One of the founders of the phenomenally successful pink ribbon campaign, Lauder says it was slow going in the beginning. "Talking about breast cancer was taboo until the mid-1990s," she says. "And then there was a breakthrough."

The first step was removing the stigma of the disease. The "pink product" phenomenon has been instrumental in normalizing the discourse; it's also been hugely successful, dovetailing with the happy consumerism of the past decade. Now, even the local hardware store carries pink frying pans and pink duct tape in October, with funds going to the cause.