Ad Regulators Warn FCUK Again for Double Entendre

Lord Brar · #1 (**permalink**) 01-14-2005, 06:34 AM

Quote:

UK advertising regulators signaled a weariness of the double entendre used by French Connection to sell its FCUK brand and warned the clothing chain again, this time over a promotion for its line of fragrances.

In an ad placed for French Connection by Zirh International in the Boots pharmacy chain's magazine, a picture of a young couple sitting on a bed in their underwear included fold-out samples of perfume with the phrases "open here to try fcuk her" and "open here to try fcuk him."

Though it received just two complaints, the UK's self-regulatory Advertising Standards Authority said on Wednesday the advert was likely to cause serious or widespread offence to the magazine's readers and warned the advertisers not to do it again.

It is the 13th time since 1999 that the ASA has published an adjudication regarding French Connection's adverts and the ninth time it has agreed with the complaints submitted.

The company is currently required to submit its outdoor adverts to the ASA for approval before they are posted, the second two-year sanction to which it has been subjected.

...

The FCUK logo has courted controversy since its launch in 1997. Fashion mavens say the rebellious hip factor that helped catapult the brand to success has long since worn off.

French Connection issued a profit warning last November, but blamed a lack of fashion vision rather than the FCUK brand.

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nathan · #2 (**permalink**) 01-14-2005, 09:04 AM

Well it is getting tiresome to see how many ways they can use those particular intials in an ambiguous way.

They are acting like school kids recently discovereing a rude word. They need to get over it and find a new method of advertising. Personally i think they need to grow up and revert to French Connection UK rather than FCUK.

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