MatttthewGeorge wrote:atomeyes wrote:boney wrote:
I also agree with Portwood. I really like Nickel Brook, but the image on the current Naughty Neighbour cans really needs to be retired.
their tonedeafness on NN and Immodest packaging has resulted in me not buying a single beer of theirs in a long, long time.
first, Naughty Neighbour's current can looks ugly REGARDLESS of the "sexy" drawing.
the drawing clearly objectifies women.
but worse?
the "full bodied" quote below it.
it all comes together like some 1930s clusterfuck of a marketing scheme and really needs to go. not sure why Nickelbrook insists that it's "playful" or fine.
perhaps only a small percentage of we consumers feel strongly about it or find it to be dumb or offensive. but at least listen and have dialogue.
in the end, it's an ugly can and the brewery should look at cool art like, for example, what the Alchemist has on their cans, and not art that uses a woman's cans to sell cans. if they can't see why it's not needed in this day and age, then shame on them.
I get not liking the can (I don't particularly care for it but don't feel as strongly as you) but I don't think NB has been mute on the subject. Our marketing guy was interviewed for Ben's Blog just recently and had perhaps the largest segment of the breweries interviewed.
prior to Ben's blog post (and maybe partially inspiring it?), i complained to NB (via twitter) about their cans and how bad they were.
i received an email back from a woman that worked with NB. it was relatively tone deaf, if i recall correctly. like, "sorry but not sorry at all" tone deaf.
Nickelbrook's quote from Ben's block is even more damning, in my opinion:
“Yeah, it was a girl shushing people. When we switched from that to the current label, our sales went up something like 250 per cent. I’m not saying “screw you women” but it’s an effective label and it is effective advertising. So we have to look at “what’s our imaging and what’s our brand image.....At the end of the day, our job is still get as much beer to as many people. If we’re finding that people are saying, “I love this beer but I don’t drink it because of what’s on the can,” then it’s something that we have to change. As it stands right now, our sales are strong across the market.””
so, people have pointed out to them that the label's a bit offensive. but, man, their sales!! they're through the roof! and not everyone's offended.
we can look at the political situation happening south of the border as a barometer that perhaps public opinion isn't the best barometer for what's offensive, and we can hope that companies can use their brains to realize when they're doing something not 100% kosher and act
responsibly on their errors and make the appropriate changes.
Garnet's quote (Side Launch) is the most telling of quotes and summarizes why, yes, this is why we need to be hypervigilant. Nickelbrook ain't as bad as "Farmer's Daughter's Melons" or that stupid Niagara Brewing Co's beer, but, honestly, it's not far off. and the fact that they can't own their mistake and make a change, frankly, puts them closer to the Bud 1980s girls-in-bikinis commercials/images than it does to craft beer.