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Original poster

Official Complaint to Mumsnet

639 replies

CoconutQueen · 02/02/2023 09:47

Totally inappropriate enormous vibrator adverts now ALL over Mumnset.

What on earth are you thinking of? Is Mumsnet really that short of cash that they have to stoop this low?

Not to mention the ridiculous woke language ie "people with wombs".

Totally inappropriate on ALL levels.

OP posts:
Thread gallery
13
MrsDanversGlidesAgain · 02/02/2023 14:51

ValerieDoonican · 02/02/2023 14:44

@MrsDanversGlidesAgain exactly! I was half way though a long angry post about this earlier when my phone died, so thank you.

Puts me in mind of those creepy older men who tried to persuade teenage me that I just didn't really know what I was missing, declining to sleep with them, and they could show me, if only I would 'relax' about it. Bleurgh

It reminded me of what Germaine Greer said years ago - that a woman's role, whatever she's going through in her life, is to remain fertile, appetising and sexy, whatever her age (might have been in her book The Change).

SometimesNine · 02/02/2023 14:51

And now this shite appears on Instagram too, and I didn't even click on anything before to have it repeated on a loop. I have blocked the account on Insta. Wish I could block it here too.

BoreOfWhabylon · 02/02/2023 14:53

discobrain · 02/02/2023 14:35

The wording is perfectly fine, it's inclusive and those offended really do need to get a grip.

-non binary person with a womb.

Show quote history

You can, of course, choose whatever gender identity you wish.

Your sex, not so much. That remains female.

adamandada · 02/02/2023 14:58

There is something very wrong with juxtaposing baby bottles with sex gear Hmm

YesitsBess · 02/02/2023 15:01

I love how all of the threads about this topic from every board are now all missing from active, but the thread about rimming is on page 1.

EVERYTHING IS FINE. GO ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS.

ShreksEars · 02/02/2023 15:04

I agree that 'Gentle exploration' is a very weird term to use when targeting mothers.

ValerieDoonican · 02/02/2023 15:06

Haha @YesitsBess . We'll put an end to this creepy inappropriate patronising woman-erasing 'partnership' if we have to post on every single thread on the goddam forum. In fact, why don't we start lots of threads with titles about rimming, butt plugs, cock rings, BDSM et cetera, and just post about our disgust with the minty-feathery-stroker people on those?

adamandada · 02/02/2023 15:06

😂

ValerieDoonican · 02/02/2023 15:07

@ShreksEars it almost sounds a bit Peter Tatchell, if you get my meaning 😒

EdgeOfACoin · 02/02/2023 15:08

discobrain · 02/02/2023 14:35

The wording is perfectly fine, it's inclusive and those offended really do need to get a grip.

-non binary person with a womb.

Show quote history

Nobody is 'binary'. We're all 'non-binary' in personality. There's actually no such thing as an internal 'woman' feeling or a 'man' feeling (sorry Shania).

Sex, however, is immutable.

You have a womb and are therefore a woman (or possibly a girl) just like every other adult human female on this planet.

YesitsBess · 02/02/2023 15:09

@ValerieDoonican why not! If it's been unilaterally decided that sex is now in active!

I'm half tempted to buy it and do a review but:

A. No.
B. THIRTY FIVE QUID?!?

ZeroFuchsGiven · 02/02/2023 15:10

Well its no surprise to learn shreks ear was designed by two men.

adamandada · 02/02/2023 15:13

So they've done all that customer insight, yeah, and made some sex toys to allegedly fill a gap in the market (sorry) and solve a customer need. They will have talked to women and new mothers in focus groups and looks at survey data and presumably they have been lurking on Mumsnet threads. They must have a really shit customer insight team, sack them Creepy Smile business.

With all that insight data, they probably know quite a bit about what women go through after child birth but are utterly and hideously tone deaf to the whole bottle v breast feeding theme yet decide bottles are the best icon to run their publicity campaign with. They/them Muppets.

YesitsBess · 02/02/2023 15:13

Shocking. I'm shocked...

Official Complaint to Mumsnet
MrsDanversGlidesAgain · 02/02/2023 15:14

You have a womb and are therefore a woman (or possibly a girl)**

Oooh, cutting.

Constellar · 02/02/2023 15:21

This is grim. I remember the days when [sucks Werthers] —all this were fields— there was no advertising and you could click on a thread and it was a erm, thread not a big advertising campaign . You could read a thread without having to scroll past loads of shite.

Sold out massively MN. If I wanted to read about local mums in my area wanting to get rid of their wrinkles, I’d try and wade through my local “paper” online. Maybe if I looked at loads of porn sites and sex toy sites I’d also get vibrator ads.

FFS MN.

Constellar · 02/02/2023 15:23

screeches to a halt

where are MN saying “people with wombs”???

Fuck right off with that shite. Jesus wept.

CoffeeRightNow · 02/02/2023 15:27

ZeroFuchsGiven · 02/02/2023 15:10

Well its no surprise to learn shreks ear was designed by two men.

Course it is! Two blokes who think feathery strokes and gentle exploration is What Vulva Owners Want [vomit]

Yesthatismychildsigh · 02/02/2023 15:34

YesitsBess · 02/02/2023 13:43

This is interesting:

www.mumsnet.com/talk/site_stuff/4733509-have-some-peoples-hidden-topics-become-unhidden?page=1

The day before launch, lots of people who had chosen to have the 'sex' topics hidden on active suddenly had it appearing. Apparently a "technical issue" but you had to go in manually to change your preferences for what you see.

I think a lot of people who have those boards hidden do so because of previous sexual assault. So was there a blanket revoking of that just so everyone had to look at the vibrator launch thread whether they wanted to or not?

That's absolutely fucking appalling.

I feel sick. It was obvious it was all about the money now, what with the rip of premium. But it never occurred to me they’d sacrifice victims of sexual abuse to make another few pounds. Justine really has lost the plot. I repeat, I honestly feel sick.

SausageInCider · 02/02/2023 15:34

They’ve deleted the people with wombs bit from that article. Directly quoted into another mn post yesterday the original wording was

"We knew from previous activations with our community that sex and motherhood is a deeply-rooted taboo. The lack of conversation and resources on the topic is leaving women and people with wombs feeling side-lined as sexual beings. At Smile Makers, we have been tackling taboos around female sexuality for over 10 years and that was obviously an important one to remove"

ItchySnoof · 02/02/2023 15:39

So what they have done is..... made a bullet vibrator......which have existed for decades.....

Then slapped some misogynistic bullshit on it. Good Job MN.

ItchySnoof · 02/02/2023 15:40

I'd also love to know who you 500 MNers are who were desperately drying out for a product that already exists? You could have popped in to your local Ann Summers and there are hundreds of them.

RightWIthR · 02/02/2023 15:40

These vibrators have been around for some time, no? Boots sell them and Planet organic and Urban outfitters.

Does anyone have information about the business, where is it based, who are the owners and any other business data? Do we know why MN have a 3rd party deal with them?

RightWIthR · 02/02/2023 15:41

Female sexuality ohh, is that the edited version? 🤔

ItchySnoof · 02/02/2023 15:44

"....is leaving women and people with wombs"

That's the same as saying "Women and Women".

Did they forget to get an editor to look this one over? 😁