Why are people boycotting Boots? Are you?

[Deadbeatex]

For full disclosure I haven't seen the advert yet, but I'll probably end up searching for it if I don't come across it naturally during viewing in the next few days.

I've seen the #boycottboots and have worked out it's to do with their new Christmas ad. What's the issue? Are you boycotting Boots or do you think people are overreacting?

Randomly choosing the poll options simply because as stated I've not seen the ad so I don't currently have an opinion either way

YABU I'm boycotting
YANBU it's an overreaction

And yes, as black people are very frequently used in ads and no one bats an eyelid

Clearly they do.

It was a crap advert and they’ve tried too hard to be inclusive which is opportunistic. But no, not boycotting 😂

I don’t watch live tv so I hadn’t seen it. I googled it, and my first thought was “what’s wrong with that?!”

I liked it

I don't care who's in it (I didn't actually know who she was until this), I just think it's a shite advert like most of the Christmas ads these days.

I'm also disappointed by the John Lewis advert again this year, apart from the music.

Im boycotting boots because they made my DIL redundant right before xmas knowing she and DS were just halfway through buying a house and I had to bail them out financially.

Christmas adverts these days are shite.

*And yes, as black people are very frequently used in ads and no one bats an eyelid

Clearly they do.*

Well no, clearly they don't or there would be a massive boycott fuss like this over hundreds of ads every day.

Had to Google to find/watch the ad..
and find out what all the fuss was about..

Had success with with the former.
Not so much with the latter..

Personally for me I can't see anything wrong with it, maybe people are reading to much into it and looking for things to complain about that may, or may not be there..

There are lots of different possible objectives for an ad campaign. Raising awareness of a brand is certainly one of them but I doubt Boots need to do that I'm sure most people know who they are.

Imo this ad is about tweaking the positioning of Boots - making it seem edgier, appealing to a younger demographic. It is always a risk when a well known brand does this as it can alienate the existing customer base - see Bud Light and Dylan Mulvaney for example.

Oh yes and their xmas advert with drag queens all over it.

It's all about "The message" for these "progressive" types. They get so caught up in that, they forget to make a decent advert/TV show/film.

Come on. No-ones keeping a tally. You pointed out that in your opinion people were boycotting Boots because a person of colour was in it. I pointed out in my opinion this was bollocks because there were people of colour in most adverts. You clearly don’t like me challenging your opinion, so try to make it into something it isn’t 🤷‍♀️

” open a peevery” 😆

She didn't say "too white" though.

She said "terribly white" - which as posters here (and the dictionary) point out can mean very/extremely just as much as it can mean "badly".

I've just watched it. I think it is pretty good. Definitely nothing to be offended about.

I could open a peevery, I have so many peeves. I think I'm turning into a female Victor Meldrew sometimes. Is it just me or are so many things shite these days ?

Someone who calls out a racist isn’t a bigot

That may be part of it but I don't think it's just that.

Complaints I have seen include:
a) She does not fit the traditional view of Mother Christmas and is played by an actress known for complaining the Royal Family are too white
b) The others in that ad are far more diverse than expected at the North Pole, including queer people and drag queens
c) the use of non-gendered pronouns
d) the implied message that middle-aged white men are useless lazy-arses
The overall problem seems to be the pushing of an agenda that many are not happy with

Personally I am more offended by Boots avoiding tax and ripping off the NHS with sharp practices and prefer to boycott them for being greedy, selfish arseholes

It may or may not be relevant, but one of them actually did marry a non-white person. But wasn't on the balcony. I am aware that there is more than one reason for this. But I do think the random remark about 'terribly white' was an observation not a racist criticism. And it does contrast with all the representatives of the Commonwealth at the Coronation. So I find it hard to see the remark as particularly racist - though there are some who think black women shouldn't have ideas above their station and should be tagged for life because of an unguarded comment. The Tommy Robinsons of this world are cynically exploiting this mistake.

The actress is black,she said the royal family on the balcony were terribly white,do you not understand?? Jesus wept.

I think it's a lovely ad

Thank goodness. Me too.
As far as I can see Father Christmas is asleep and his wife comes in to organise everything.
As far as I could hear the dialogue isn't offensive I watched it on You Tube and didn't hear any comments about the RF.
Have I missed anything?

Yes!
Read the thread

I think it's good to see ethnic and other things like disability or class (though we don't often see that to be honest it's usually middle class people and very rarely do we see visible disability) diversity on tv, but if an advert is going to try make a political point, then at least make it good and not cheesy!

I’ve just watched it and I think it’s quite Christmassy.
no more tick box inclusive than anything else.