Mad Butcher cleared of misleading claims
The Advertising Standards Authority has declined to uphold a claim that the Mad Butcher's logo “Best Price; Best Quality” claim is misleading.
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Hawke’s Bay
The Mad Butcher has been vindicated of misleading advertising claims the day it went public on the NZ Stock Exchange.
The Advertising Standards Authority has declined to uphold complainant R Prosser’s claim that a statement in the Mad Butcher’s former logo “Best Price; Best Quality” is misleading.
The phrase is not used in the new sleek black Mad Butcher's logo, but does appear on storefront advertising.
Complainant R Prosser says the “Best Prices” claim could not be substantiated.
“I see it as misleading, lacking social responsibility and not respecting the principles of fair business and competition.”
The Mad Butcher brought in a lawyer to argue the phrase was not a substantive claim, but an aspirational statement.
“We submit to interpret the phase as a 'superlative claim' as asserted by the complainant rather than an aspirational mission statement would be a pedantic and overly technical interpretation.”
The Mad Butcher's lawyer also submitted evidence to substantiate why the separate claims "Best Price" and “Best Quality” are not misleading in the event the ASA required the company to prove so.
However, the ASA says the phrase as a whole was not superlative, and it was satisfied with evidence that it was a genuine mission statement. This meant the it did not need to consider the Code for Comparative Advertising and check whether the claim could be substantiated.
The Commercial Approvals Bureau also responded to the complaint, as the logo had also aired in TV advertisements.
The CAB decided there was absolutely no basis on which to uphold the complaint and noted the branding for the Mad Butcher was being changed in preparation for its float on the New Zealand stock exchange.
Victoria Young
Thu, 09 May 2013
Thu, 09 May 2013
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Mad Butcher cleared of misleading claims
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