Avon Products has announced the launch of "Kiss Goodbye to Breast Cancer," a cause-related marketing initiative with a goal of raising $100 million for breast cancer research and prevention by the end of 2002, the New York Times reports.

The New York City-based cosmetics company will donate $1 of every $4 it earns from the sale of six new lipstick shades being introduced in mid-September to the research effort. To promote the new product line, Avon has enlisted the help of celebrities such as Cuba Gooding Jr., Lisa Ling, and Venus and Serena Williams. The company has raised nearly $150 million for breast cancer research since 1993, when it launched the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade.

"This is something that goes beyond just marketing," said Carolyn Aishton, Avon's vice president for corporate programs in New York. "This is something that everybody in the company feels strongly committed to, and it's become personal. Every single person out there has in one way or another been touched by breast cancer, so it penetrates to the grassroots level."