John Lewis Advert

[ChickyEgg]

I like the new advert but the tagline 'For 150 years you've never stood still....' isn't sitting correctly with me. Shouldn't it read 'For 150 years you've haven't stood still'? Please put me out of my grammatical misery...

[ChickyEgg]

Sorry Olivia's DH

[ChickyEgg]

thecat I screwed up by mistyping what I thought it should say in my op. Too many 'haves' going on in my second sentence!

The daisy chain scarf sounds lovely

[thecatfromjapan]

I think it's because "never" is undergoing a transition at the moment, and is used incorrectly/in an evolving way quite a lot. I think it now sounds quite "unhomed" when it is used: correctly or otherwise. Poor old "never".

[oliviafrombolivia]

he maintains artistic licence, after much frowning and defensiveness!

[thecatfromjapan]

I have the daisy chain scarf. The tote bag is lovely but I have a lot of bags.

I think it's great that so many of their suppliers have produced things in the print.

I love John Lewis.

For once, I care not about the grammar. Personally, I think it's fine. You could expand it to be: "We have been around for 150 years and, in all that time, we have never stood still."

Though I will admit that I think it sounds better without the shortening of "we have" to "we've". It would also be better to not repeat the "have": "We have been around for 150 years and, in all that time, never stood still." However, people tend not to do that non-repetition of the first bit of compound-tense verbs any more, do they? So perhaps that's why they went for the repetition option.

By the way, has anyone been looking at the "kin" and "weekend" collections in John Lewis? I really like them at the moment. I really I love all their bags and scarves.

[Partridge]

Isn't it a play on the "...he never stays still that boy..." cosy, nostalgic thing old ladies say to children? A kind of pun? I think in that context, with the perpetual motion of the people in the advert, it kind of works...

However I would say "...he never stands still..."

[usuallysuspect]

[tethersend]

Thank fuck for that- was about to get all indignant on your behalf

[usuallysuspect]

Yes it's me.

[ChickyEgg]

Really Olivia? It's a lovely advert, it's just that tagline......oh well!

[tethersend]

Is that you, usual? Or a similar moniker to usualsuspect(t)?

[maggiethemagpie]

who cares, I love the 150 years products! Got a lovely bag and phone case in the daisy chain print.

[usuallysuspect]

I have no connection to the advert.

I think it doesn't sound quite right.

[tethersend]

My friend is IN the advert, and I'm pretty sure he agrees with me

[oliviafrombolivia]

my husband is part of the team that wrote the advert, he stands by the end line!

[dementedma]

Love the ad though!

[AlpacaYourThings]

Again, agree with tethersend.

[tethersend]

I maintain that you either haven't stood still for 150 years, or you've never stood still.

'Never' means not happened since the beginning of time.

[ChickyEgg]

Yes that sounds better, MaidOfStars

[MaidOfStars]

Perhaps, if they were keen to retain the 'never' theme, it might read better as:

In 150 years, you've never stood still.

[ChickyEgg]

Sorry about the typo. I totally confused the issue by mistyping my idea of what I think it should be and ballsed that up. As Alpaca says, It's the combination of '150 years' and 'never' in relation to 'you' (us) that doesn't make sense.

[AlpacaYourThings]

It's the combination of '150 years' and 'never' in relation to 'you' (us) that doesn't make sense.

They have never stood still in their 150 years of existence. Fair enough.

[ChickyEgg]

I think I might go for a lie down

[ChickyEgg]

Ooh I've just notice my typo in my op For 'For 150 years you've haven't stood still'? Should read For 150 years you haven't stood still' I'm confusing myself now!

[Thymeout]

It isn't a new font. It's one they used to use. At the end of the ad, they show the fonts they've used over the years. I'd guess it's only temporary, just for this anniversary.

OP I can't understand where you're getting the extra 'have' from. 'You've never stood still' equals 'You have never stood still'. Nothing wrong with it.