Centra mickey money advertising scandal

Sparks43

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2012/0703/breaking21.html

A Centra outlet in Dublin, which last year won National Convenience Store of the Year, has been criticised for including alcohol as part of a 'Children's Allowance Day' deals promotion.

Courtney’s Centra in Fairview and East Wall produced flyers entitled ‘Children’s Allowance Day Deals’ and featuring a variety of products on offer including cheese, biscuits and pizza. Two alcohol products were also included in the offer.

A case of Miller beer was promoted for €15, or 75 cents a bottle, while two cases of Budweiser beer were on offer for €25.

So to make it a very happy "Feast of St Penis" they are offering Cheap beer

Its a scandal i tells ya

Nothingbetter2d

but the children need to start drinking young now if they are to be able to binge drink then puke or fight on the streets at 3am when they are 16

Pushtrak

Hey all you non smokers out there who are in favour of restrictions on smoking being brought in, its the same mentality behind such campaigns as are behind the likes of:

Ms Ryan drew attention to the fact that Government is currently examining legislation separating the sale of alcohol and food. She said promotions like this underline the need for tighter regulation. “If we continue to sell alcohol like a grocery in supermarkets and not treat it as a licensed product, then in one way I’m not surprised a retailer would put alcohol in with groceries.”

Don't think this will have as many people supporting it though.

saiint

i dont remember this cheap beer sales centra were doing
probably the reason why i dont remember

ah sure most people dont even spend their childrens allowence on the children
its not really a big shock

Captain Morgan Freeman

I bet he still ended up buying the two crates of Budweiser for €25.

splashthecash

Not good advertising for Centra as a whole - stupid thing to be putting out there...it obviously has something to say about the locale in which it was placed - I doubt we'd see a similar advertising campaign in Blackrock, Donnybrook or Sandymount

Hardonraging

The miller offer was running in Tescos a while ago ... nothing new in the pricing just the blatant exploitation of Children’s Allowance Day in there advertising .


It did get people talking however ...

Tombi!

Looks like I need to get some women pregnant.

shopaholic01

This is unlikey to encourage parents to spend their children's allowance on alcohol - it's unlikey they'll go into Centra for groceries, see the sign and then think 'must buy alcohol'.


It never ceases to amaze me how some people get so worked up over such trivial things.

DarkJager

Article wrote:

Mr McCausland called on the Centra store to make an apology and commit to responsible advertising in future. “I think this is extremely bad taste and I believe they should make an apology or admit it was inappropriate because Child Benefit is a state payment for the benefit for children. To suggest it should be spent on alcohol is appalling.”

No, what's appalling is the fact this guy thinks he has a right to tell people what they should be buying with their money. Its none of his ****ing business if people spend it on baby food or budweiser. Typical self appointed moral guardian.

frag420

Makes me thirsty................Miller Time!!

saiint

shopaholic01 wrote: »

This is unlikey to encourage parents to spend their children's allowance on alcohol - it's unlikey they'll go into Centra for groceries, see the sign and then think 'must buy alcohol'.


It never ceases to amaze me how some people get so worked up over such trivial things.

agreed

just like the hunky dorys posters

lubie76

Do you have to tow a brat along with ya to avail of this offer... Thats discrimination to us non parents!

Richard Hillman

Meath East TD Regina Doherty, who is a member of the Joint Committee on Health and Children, also expressed concerns at the promotion.

“This is a blatant abuse of the standards and codes that the we are using for responsible promotion of alcohol. Child benefit payments are for children and to blatantly advertise alcohol like this contravenes moral standards not alone advertising ones. I think this is a prime example of how self-regulation of the industry is absolutely not working.”

Exactly. Child benefit is for children and not for parents buying alcohol with it.

She should be targeting her ire at the small amount of people that avail of these offers with their child benefit. Although we dont want to be upsetting potential voters do we :rolleyes:

seamus

I think what makes it more fun is that they put them out in Fairview and East Wall.

I mean, fair enough if they put them up in every Centra from Foxrock to Borris-in-Ossory they could call it an oversight, but they were clearly deliberately targetting lower socioeconomic communities.

I think it's a terrible idea in general. Ignoring the fact that this is such a cock-up it's actually hilarious, the only way you could have "children's allowance day" promotions would be to give offers on products like nappies, liga, cheestrings, that kind of stuff. I mean, even having offers on ice-pops and pizzas is in pretty bad taste.

Even if the products were appropriate it's still inappropriate because you're basically saying, "Hey parents, spend your benefits in our shop!".

Boombastic

I hope there were pictures on the leaflet, because I doubt any parent dumb enough to buy alcohol instead of food because they saw it on an advertising leaflet can read.

Nothingbetter2d

op needs to add a poll to this thread

Do you spend your children's allowance money on alcohol?

1. Yes i regularily buy booze with the money
2. Yes i occasionally buy booze with the money
3. No i dont buy booze with the money
4. No i have no kids
5. I buy Atari Jaguar games with it

smash

Relax everyone. It was Miller... it's piss anyway so nobody'd buy it!

Blondini

seamus wrote: »

.... Ignoring the fact that this is such a cock-up...

Touché

Allyall

Richard Hillman wrote: »

Exactly. Child benefit is for children and not for parents buying alcohol with it.

She should be targeting her ire at the small amount of people that avail of these offers with their child benefit. Although we dont want to be upsetting potential voters do we :rolleyes:

Child benefit, is so the parents can look after the children. How in God's name are they expected to look after the children if they can't get a bit of booze into them? I mean, kids can be a handful at the best of times, looking after them sober, is near impossible..

Plus they sleep better when they've a bit of booze in them.

Cee-Jay-Cee

There's no such thing as bad publicity....as they say.

Ice87

The person who put this promotion up should be sacked.


It should have been Dutch Gold over Miller.

Nothingbetter2d

Ice87 wrote: »

The person who put this promotion up should be sacked.


It should have been Dutch Gold over Miller.

nah Dutch gold is too posh these days.

go with tuborg or bavaria

Boombastic

Allyall wrote: »

Plus they sleep better when they've a bit of booze in them.

The kids or the parents? Can't have the kids too drunk, they might injure themselves when out robbing playing:pac:

recyclebin

The way they were talking on the news on the radio makes it sound worse than it actually is. The beer offer is only one small part of the flyer.

SEPT 23 1989

Pubs will be busy tonight

tomomurray1

:pac:

The promotion is being referred to several authorities, including the Office of the Director of Consumer Affairs.
Centra said it takes the sale and promotion of alcohol very seriously and it has instructed the retailers involved to withdraw the promotion.
A flyer was circulated by stores in Fairview and East Wall in Dublin, one store in Kilcoole, Co Wicklow and another in Tullamore, Co Offaly.
Two cheap alcoholic drinks were advertised alongside reduced price biscuits, pizza and ice cream.
Alcohol Action Ireland Director Fiona Ryan described the promotion as "totally irresponsible", especially when "one in 11 children in Ireland are living with a parent with problematic alcohol use".
Barnardos said the campaign sent out the wrong message about what child benefit is designed to do.
Its Chief Executive Fergus Finlay said: "This promotion is insulting to parents and families all over Ireland who are already struggling to provide for their children."
The campaign also drew criticism from Fianna Fáil's Senator Averil Power and Councillor Nick Killian.
Centra said: "The promotion is not part of a national marketing plan or promotional strategy
"Centra fully understands that the abuse of alcohol is a serious issue in Irish society and apologises for the promotion, which although isolated to four stores, is contrary to Centra's belief that retailers have a critical role to play in ensuring that alcohol is promoted and sold responsibly.
"The promotion undermines our genuine commitment to take our social responsibilities regarding alcohol extremely seriously."

LINK

http://www.rte.ie/news/2012/0703/centra-alcohol-promotion.html

mikom

tomomurray1 wrote: »

The campaign also drew criticism from Fianna Fáil's Senator Averil Power

I knew a Father Clint Power once.

Nothingbetter2d

SEPT 23 1989 wrote: »

Pubs will be busy tonight

no they wont... the child benefit money will be spent on cheap booze

pubs dont sell cheap booze

shopaholic01

Nothingbetter2d wrote: »

no they wont... the child benefit money will be spent on cheap booze

pubs dont sell cheap booze

It will be entirely coincidental of course if the publicans agree with the notion that alcohol should not be available for sale with groceries of, or if they agree with the notion of minimum alcohol pricing :rolleyes:.

SocSocPol

CJC999 wrote: »

There's no such thing as bad publicity....as they say.

Wanna bet?:D

Gongoozler

What a load of nonsense. If people are going to squander their childrens allowance on alcohol, they'll do it regardless of special offers advertised with the payments name splashed all over it. These institutions like Barnardos need to stop the nanny state comments, it does no good.

meoklmrk91

Dicky Day Deals they should call it

Nothingbetter2d

meoklmrk91 wrote: »

Dicky Day Deals they should call it

Scumbag Sprog Specials more like

Ficheall

tomomurray1 wrote: »

beno

I find this more depressing than anything else I've read in the thread, to be honest.

BillyMitchel

This is nothing new. Many pubs around Dublin advertise cheap drink or crappy entertainment for children's allowance day.

People are going to spend it on booze regardless.

ejmaztec

Ficheall wrote: »

I find this more depressing than anything else I've read in the thread, to be honest.

At first I thought he couldn't spell Beano.

Nothingbetter2d

many working people also receive child benefit, so why is it wrong that the ones on welfare are getting bashed when some working people also use the child benefit payment to buy booze with.

The PC brigade are slowly creating a two tier value system on people's freedom of choice.

telling people how they can and can't spend their own finances is morally wrong but picking on those on welfare is even more wrong.

why cant the PC Brigade just butt out and mind their own goddam business?

rubadub

Pushtrak wrote: »

Hey all you non smokers out there who are in favour of restrictions on smoking being brought in

Why only mention/call out non-smokers? There's plenty of smokers in favour of further restrictions and who supported the smoking ban.

Just like many drinkers would like far more restriction on alcohol sales & consumption.

fryup

is it sachs hotel that the oul wans go with there mickey money?? or is that an urban myth?

Snakeblood

I've never heard the term 'Mickey money' before. Is that a thing?

Pushtrak

rubadub wrote: »

Why only mention/call out non-smokers? There's plenty of smokers in favour of further restrictions and who supported the smoking ban.

"The smoking ban" as if things are as they are, with nothing being suggested for further bans... While it could be that there'll be smokers who'd be in favour of this, I consider it less likely they'd be in favour of this. Or this. It is the same nanny statism.

WindSock

Oh it is. Micky Money Tuesdays are popular nights out in the city if you're hoping to score some milfs or whatever.

I find this ad hilarious.

phasers

You guys should see my local casino on Child Benefit day, it's fcuking chaos!

On topic, what a stupid thing to get worked up about. it's not as if centra have a sign saying "Buy drink or we'll shoot your kids" or something

Snakeblood

WindSock wrote: »

Oh it is. Micky Money Tuesdays are popular nights out in the city if you're hoping to score some milfs or whatever.

I find this ad hilarious.

I've got to say, the milfs I've seen in Dublin fall some way short of the milfs I've been led to expect by certain films and magazines.

christmas2012

I think the whole thing is wrong but in fairness they usually do their market research before putting out such offers they do target their markets..

Kurz

I just bought a load of booze in Centra and I don't even have any kids! Those suckers.

tricky D

Ice87 wrote: »

The person who put this promotion up should be sacked.

And go straight into the Paddy Power or RyanAir advertising dept.

alan4cult

Look at all the free publicity Centra have got out of it. It's even an item on the news!

Maybe this was their intention all along, as a poster said earlier no such thing as bad publicity.

fryup

Snakeblood wrote: »

I've got to say, the milfs I've seen in Dublin fall some way short of the milfs I've been led to expect by certain films and magazines.

here's one milf i'd like to score with;)

Jester252

Damn half price bacon with free cabbage.
I fail to see the problem