Bulmers' dodges ASA ban over Converse competition despite charity concerns over appeal to children
The Advertising Standards Authority has given an on-pack promotion from Bulmers' the all clear following complaints from addiction charity Alcohol Concern – which said that the campaign could hold "particular appeal to people under 18 years of age."
The Heineken-owed brand's #LiveColourful initiative ran throughout the second half of 2015 and encouraged fans to submit pictures of their Bulmers' bottles to win a pair of personalised Converse trainers.
Alcohol Concern contested that as the trainers were associated with youth culture, that the promotion would hold particular interest to those not yet old enough to buy alcohol. However, the ASA disagreed on this point recognising that Converse's customer base was wide-raging.
The watchdog said that the brand was "popular and fashionable" and, referring to a study on purchasing intent from TGI, noted that 92 per cent of respondents interested in Converse shoes were over 18.
It concluded that the website referenced in the ad was age-gated, and that as consumers could only take part the photography competition by buying a bottle of Bulmers', the campaign was "not likely to be of particular appeal to people under 18."