BMW SA wasted no time in apologising following the controversial TV AD.
The Ad features a black woman with the tagline reads: “We are our ancestors wildest dreams” and what irked some of the country’s twitter followers was the word “ancestors” is scratched out.
As a result it was brandished as “racist” yet some did not feel that way.
The Ad is part of the #GenerationJoy campaign created by agency Wunderman Thompson aimed at “targeting new luxury consumers, mostly millennials and GenZs”.
BMW defended the Advert, claiming that it was a “conceptualised to showcase South Africa’s diversity and inclusion, and not to question any person’s belief systems” but also acknowledged that it had offended many South Africans.
Hailey Philander, spokesperson for BMW SA says: “The broader campaign was spun off into a number of smaller out-of-home executions, including the one pointed out by you. BMW South Africa understands the wording of this example might have offended fans of the brand, for which we unreservedly apologise.”
At the time of publishing BMW SA had not responded on whether they will take the Ad down or not.
Radio presenter Anele Mdoda and very opinionated poet Ntsiki Maswai also lamented the Ad of lacking ‘conscience’.
Brand specialist Thebe Ikalafeng, said although the Ad was not meant to cause any harm, the very fact that some in the country are unhappy about it, means there might have been a point missed.
Image (The latest BMW advert featured a black woman standing next to one of the brand’s latest BMW 5 Series models, and displayed behind her, is the phrase, ‘We Are Our Ancestors’ Wildest Dreams’, with the word ‘ancestors’ crossed out).
