SilkSilky is being forced to take down an advertisement after a community panel at Australian firm Ad Standards upheld a complaint against the international business.
According the brand’s website, SilkSilky has teams all over the world in places such as Coronado in the United States and Shanghai and Suzhou in China. The brand was born in 2012.
The advertisement in question contained six images of women wearing a silk sleep gown, and the text "A gift that makes her prettier" underneath each. A complainant said the text and imagery objectifies women.
The community panel found that the advertisement could be construed to contain sexual appeal. When asked if the advertisement uses sexual appeal in a manner that is exploitative, the panel “considered that the images alone are not exploitative of women given the product being promoted is the sleepwear they are wearing.”
“However, the panel considered that the text on the image stating that the sleepwear (a product which is short, low cut, and has a thigh split) would make the women, and women in general, more attractive is a reference which reduces them to an object to be improved. The panel considered that the advertisement was exploitative.”
Finding that the advertisement did employ sexual appeal in a manner which is exploitative of an individual or group of people, the panel determined that the advertisement breached Section 2.2 of the AANA (Australian Association of National Advertisers) Code of Ethics.
SilkSilky has not provided a response to the panel's decision. Ad Standards will continue to work with the relevant authorities regarding this issue of non-compliance.
The latest upheld complaint follows a recent decision by an Ad Standards community panel against Honey Birdette.