US department store Bloomingdale’s apologises for ‘date rape’ advert

Department store Bloomingdale’s has been forced to apologise after an advert in its holiday catalogue appeared to reference date rape. The one-page advert, which features a female model laughing and appearing not to notice as a male model looks at her, reads: “Spike your best friend’s eggnog when they’re not looking.” The image first surfaced on Imgur this week, and has been heavily criticised by Twitter users commenting with the hashtag #Bloomingdales.  Bloomingdale’s, based in New York, apologised on its Twitter page,

In reflection of recent feedback, the copy we used in our recent catalogue was inappropriate and in poor taste. Bloomingdale’s sincerely apologises for this error in judgment.

Bloomingdale’s statement

Twitter users questioned why the advert had been sanctioned by the store’s marketing department. One user, @hayleykavanagh, wrote: “Whoever made this should be fired pronto. Date rape is the last thing anyone wants for Christmas. #Bloomingdales." Another, @snwann, wrote: "Hard to believe nobody caught that mess before the ad ran in their catalogs… what a terrible holiday slogan. #Bloomingdales. #epicfail." The store tweeted: "We heard your feedback about our catalogue copy, which was inappropriate and in poor taste. Bloomingdale’s sincerely apologises.”

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