Oops! Vespa pushes the boundariesVespa, throughout their history have been known to push the boundaries of advertising.
Earlier this year the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) in New Zealand considered a complaint from a M Gerrard and J Barry.
This was over an ad for the the “GTS 300 SUPER. THE FASTEST VESPA EVER” that was published in NZ Rush Hour magazine. The ad depicted a cheetah that appeared to have been run over by a Vespa scooter.
The complainants were upset that the picture implied that "the mode of transport can be used to run over big cats".
In response the advertiser said:
"The theme of the advert was to express that the Vespa GTS300 is a fast scooter. The use of the cheetah was a tongue in cheek reference to this, not to imply that the scooter can run over a big cat, or any animal for that matter. The Vespa GTS300 advert is intended to be humourous, and not to offend or cause distress.”
After consideration the ASA, "took into account the darkly humorous and hyperbolic reference to speed, the cheetah being one of the fastest land animals in the world, and concurred with the Advertiser that there was nothing in the advertisement to suggest that the incident was real, or that would encourage reader’s to try and run over animals on their scooters. It noted the surrounding environs appeared to be a desert or other desolate off road area, and was certainly not a sealed road where a scooter would be driven".
The complaint was not upheld
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