Marks and Spencer support new 'Hooters' in Bristol

[JessinAvalon]

Dear all
This is my first post on here so I hope I am doing this right!

I live in Bristol and, last week, 'Hooters' was granted a licence to open in the city centre. The site is virtually opposite 3 apartment blocks, the lower floors of which are social housing and children are living in them.

What's most disappointing is that Marks and Spencer are leasing the site to 'Hooters'. They have been e-mailed by many concerned people to ask if they will reconsider leasing the building but they have just replied saying it is a "commercial decision" (as if that makes it ok!). In Sheffield, a 'Hooters' didn't even make it to application stage because the developer (Ask Pizza) realised that it would be better not to be associated with a company like 'Hooters'.

Marks and Spencer don't seem that concerned, however. Although they have signed up to the "Let Girls Be Girls" Mumsnet campaign they are not concerned about a company which sells merchandise including babygros which say "Future Hooters Girl" and "Does my butt look big in this?"

I have written to Marks and Spencer telling them that I won't be shopping in their stores again. If you feel strongly about this, please e-mail:

[email protected].

'Hooters' tries to sell itself as a family friendly restaurant but it is anything but. The Hooters in Nottingham attracts mainly stag parties and football fans. Hooters Girls take part in bikini contests and iced wet t-shirt competitions (the t-shirts are put in the freezers before the girls wear them). 'Hooters' has links to Playboy magazine....I could go on.....

I think Marks and Spencer should be shamed for facilitating this company's expansion into Bristol. They are selling women and girls down the river by leasing to this company and all just to make a "quick buck".

Thanks everyone.

The response from M&S is exactly the same e-mail that I had 2 weeks ago from them when I first complained!

Clearly, they're just trotting out the same old e-mail in the hope that we'll just go away.

well, there's a strand of libertarianism within the Lib Dems at the moment (the source of the rape anonymity thing IMO) so I suppose it's not too surprising.

Linking in last month's thread about Hooters in Cardiff. It contains a post by one of Hooter's public relations/marketing people.

Argh my town is on the list. It was bad enough when the local crooks (who previously owned the local football team before running up huge debts and doing tax scams) opened a bar which only employed 'girls' with big enough boobs. Luckily it shut quite quickly but I reckon a big chain like 'hooters' will have enough cash to throw at launching it successfully (or not depending on your point of view).

D'you knwo what fucking enrages me?

The fact that the objectification adn humiliation of women, is not sufficient grounds to stop a planning application. It has to be on some other ground or other - because objectification of women is just something we have to live with.

Can you imagine if it was about any other group? Can you imagine a bar which set itself up with black and white minstrel waiters?

Why are women expected to eat this shit? Is it because we don't cause enough criminal damage? No other group is treated with such open contempt.

One opened in Birmingham, in the atrium under the library, some years ago, and failed fairly rapidly. It was in a fairly heavily-trafficked area, so perhaps the scum that visit it was ashamed of being seen or something. It's a Wetherspoons now (or is it a Nandos? It was one or the other of those spaces).

Standing outside photographing all the men that go in and out seems a reasonable idea: it's a public space, and the information commissioner is quite clear that photographs taken in a public space are not subject to the DPA. Perhaps hooterwatch, containing photographs of men going in and out, might be an interesting idea for a website.

"Why are women expected to eat this shit? Is it because we don't cause enough criminal damage? No other group is treated with such open contempt."

That women are prepared to work there, and not all of them out of utter desperation, is an unfortunately fly in the ointment. You probably couldn't find enough young black men to operate a steppin fetchit themed pub (the Black and White Minstrels were, of course, Welsh, so not the victims of their own racism) and I doubt that even if you could there's a market for it. The horror of Hooters is that women who object are undermined by women who work there (and, astoundingly, in some cases drink there) and that does make the case harder. How to solve that, I don't know.

My reply from M&S is below.

Next stage would be to write to Gallus Restaurants (as well as continuing pressure on M&S)?

"Thank you for contacting our office about the sub-letting of our former Simply Food store at Bristol Harbourside.

We have agreed to sub-let the site to Gallus Restaurants. This is a commercial decision and Gallus has received A3 business use permission from Bristol City Council for the property.

It has been reported that Gallus plan to open a branch of ?Hooters? in the property. I have noted your comments about Hooters, and your concern that the reputation of Marks and Spencer may be tainted by our arrangement with Gallus.

I understand your concerns; however, we do not feel it is appropriate for us to comment on the Hooters brand and I'm afraid that we are unable to disclose the specifics of our store property deals. If contacted directly, Gallus Restaurants may be able to provide more information on their plans for the site.

Thank you for taking the time to share your views with us.

To stop hooters capitalising on being breastfeeding-friendly, the clientele should wear t-shirts with un-hooter-friendly slogans on - I'm sure we could design a few if need be, but there are plenty out there.

And those baby bags are massive - big enough to fit placards to contradict any PR stories from Hooters.

Perhaps I will hire a Sumo suit and appear in person to get my Hooters job...I will have large breast!!

Honestly, some of my friends have responded by saying they've been in one thinking it was a family place(because of Owls and nice colours) and then had trouble getting their Dh's out...as if that's funny, or perhaps I have sense of humour failure.

Lenin. How many variants on that ad can we come up with to satirise M&S's stance on this?

Or, something to the effect that: Normally when M&S support breasts it is via their sensible well-fitted bras, rather than by facilitating their entry into a misguided porn career.

This isn't just the sex trade. This is the Marks and Spencers sex trade.

This isn't just any family friendly silicone breast enhanced in yer face eatery, this is a ...

This isn't just any ethical business policy gone tits-up, this is a scantily-clad M&S ethical policy gone tits-up.

WHAT are M&S thinking?!

I mean, their main customer base has to be middle-class women; the main demographic that is most likely to find Hooters really offensive!

Dear god, I hope this backfires spectacularly for them with some suitably dire publicity as a result. I have an awful sinking feeling though that it won't :(

I personally am ambivalent about strip clubs and the like. But the idea that this is being aimed at families just makes me feel ill. Would expect much much better from M&S.

Not that they seem to care, but we won't be shopping there anymore unless they change their attitude.

Ah man, I do hope they'll reconsider, as I'll miss Percy Pigs! Anything else I can buy elsewhere.

bought dh some t-shirts from Sainsburys today. Normally we buy them from M&S. Put that in your pipe and smoke it Sir Stuart!