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Original poster

To feel vindicated that John Lewis has pulled its awful ad with the boy in the dress trashing the house?

503 replies

Clymene · 27/10/2021 18:42

I wrote to the ASA and complained. I said the ad was misleading (as into insurance will cover wilful damage), sexist (with a boy rampaging through the house and destroying his mother and sister's things, and sexualised.

I also called John Lewis and told them I hated it and why.

They've withdrawn it.

GOOD

To feel vindicated that John Lewis has pulled its awful ad with the boy in the dress trashing the house?
OP posts:
Suddenlyfamily5 · 27/10/2021 22:58

Glad it’s gone, dreadful in so many ways.

Rhannion · 27/10/2021 22:58

@OrangeJuiceAndNoodles

Gosh, it's been a good week hasn't it?!

Priti Patel telling the police not to record male crimes as female, the BBC and the Mail covering The Cotton Ceiling. And now this!

I hope this isn't a blip but actually the start of things changing.

Oh definitely the wall is tumbling down brick by brick and not a moment too soon.
BeaucoupFish · 27/10/2021 23:02

Nice one OP

FreedomFaith · 27/10/2021 23:03

@emptyvesselsmakethemostnoise

I'm glad, I have John Lewis insurance and there's no way they'd pay out for wilful damage. Totally misleading
I have to wonder what kind of person would actually believe ANY insurance company would pay out for deliberate damage without paying a fortune for insurance. None of them do. Anyone who actually believed that advert is very naive.
OrangeJuiceAndNoodles · 27/10/2021 23:05

I wonder what they've lined up for their Christmas ad

Probably Desmond is Amazing strutting down a catwalk in a festively decorated nightclub, flanked by Rudolfs and Santa's all latexed and gimp-masked to the nines.

Can't wait.

SpindleWorl · 27/10/2021 23:08

@turnthebiglightoff

"I hope they fold" 80,000 people are employed by them. Lovely.
Tbh, the last time I spoke to a JL employee in customer services they were very rude and aggressive, and extraordinarily unhelpful. They presumably didn't have to be like that? Or is that the script?

Anyway I was done with JL after that.

This ad is just the fly on the shitcake.

mustlovegin · 27/10/2021 23:10

Bear in mind that JL used to refer to it’s employees as partners in the business

I believe employees are actual shareholders, as they hold shares? I wonder how all of this has gone down

pelosi · 27/10/2021 23:14

I had a Saturday job at John Lewis, was a bit awful. Treated like a worker ant whilst management sucked up to rich customers.

The only good thing was the subsidised canteen.

BrutusMcDogface · 27/10/2021 23:16

@Clymene

Haven’t read the whole thread but thank you, and well done. I wonder how many other complaints they got?

SpindleWorl · 27/10/2021 23:20

I have to wonder what kind of person would actually believe ANY insurance company would pay out for deliberate damage without paying a fortune for insurance. None of them do. Anyone who actually believed that advert is very naive

But we're not naive. That's why we complained about it being misleading to the appropriate bodies.

But some people don't like them apples either apparently.

Rhannion · 27/10/2021 23:30

It shows that complaining works and is often worth doing about important stuff.

needanewlaptop · 27/10/2021 23:31

Just watched it for the first time and agree it’s awful.

They could have made it work somehow by the boy doing some actual accidental damage but such a fuck up on their part.

somewhereoverthechipshop · 27/10/2021 23:32

Well done op and others that complained. Thank you! So glad it’s gone..There were a lot of subliminal messages in that ad in my opinion. Hope the talented little guy in the ad doesn’t feel too sad, not his fault.

lisaandalan · 27/10/2021 23:34

I sent the insurance people of John Lewis an email myself explaining it was misleading.

puddlebubble · 27/10/2021 23:36

a woke fairytale just got cow pied. The non-accidental damage aspect, nobody noticed during the advertising agencies brainstorm,, where it was put forth as a wonderful idea; so eager were they to shoehorn in the dress and the boy and the be who you want to be. It is so cringy.

The only thing is, if you were to think, there was a genius mastermind at that brainstorm, they could be saying look at the non-recoverable shit this crap is creating.

Anyway dumb ad.

FreedomFaith · 27/10/2021 23:38

@SpindleWorl

I have to wonder what kind of person would actually believe ANY insurance company would pay out for deliberate damage without paying a fortune for insurance. None of them do. Anyone who actually believed that advert is very naive

But we're not naive. That's why we complained about it being misleading to the appropriate bodies.

But some people don't like them apples either apparently.

It's highly misleading, but anyone who believed it needs to get their head in the real world. It was never going to be true. Never. And even if people hadn't complained and got it taken down, no one would have got a payout from it.
DukeofEarlGrey · 27/10/2021 23:45

Well done OP. I’m glad you had ‘nothing better to do’ than campaign for important issues.

SpindleWorl · 27/10/2021 23:52

It's all a bit Scooby Doo, really.

Maybe JL would have gotten away with it if it weren't for those pesky adults with 'nothing better to do' that recognise a potential mass insurance swindle and ridiculously sexist exploitative mind-fuck.

somewhereoverthechipshop · 27/10/2021 23:57

@SpindleWorl

It's all a bit Scooby Doo, really.

Maybe JL would have gotten away with it if it weren't for those pesky adults with 'nothing better to do' that recognise a potential mass insurance swindle and ridiculously sexist exploitative mind-fuck.

😂
SolasAnla · 28/10/2021 01:12

@FreedomFaith
It's highly misleading, but anyone who believed it needs to get their head in the real world. It was never going to be true. Never. And even if people hadn't complained and got it taken down, no one 1would have got a payout from it.

Read the notice JL published.
Financial companies include the FCA in statements because they have to

The FCA have politely told JL people would get a payout if they have to adjudicate an actual complaint.

Piglet89 · 28/10/2021 06:04

I reckon this ad never got run by JL in-house Legal (or, if it did, the members of that Legal team have no experience in Financial Services Regulation and, therefore, of the FCA’s protecting customers objective).

They’ll learn a lesson there. All stuff being published, be it document or advertisement, should be looked at by A Legal Drone, sitting down in his tiny, stuffy office in the basement.

www.law.com/international-edition/2020/02/03/john-lewis-reinstitutes-general-counsel-role-in-legal-team-shake-up/?slreturn=20210928010116

Does look like leadership in their in-house legal team has been chopped and changed a bit, tho. Legal should really be seen as a strategic partner to the business, working alongside to provide guidance not just on legal risk, but also on likelihood of reputation damage.

Doesn’t look like that happened with the project to create this advert.

Arrowheart · 28/10/2021 06:12

Good. Ridiculous advert.

Arrowheart · 28/10/2021 06:16

@Getyourarseofffthequattro

Have you nothing better to do?
Judging by your input on this thread it seems you can now ask yourself your own question 👍
Terfydactyl · 28/10/2021 07:26

I said it wasn't a personal attack, which it wasn't

Well obviously it identifies as a not personal attack. It clearly was, we can read you know.

thebuswontfit · 28/10/2021 07:27

JL and others are trying too hard with their smug advertising campaigns

I can't stomach all the cheesy xmas ads we are about to endure

Each trying to outdo one another with an ad about food plus smarmy messaging about being kind