简体中文
“Don’t call me mom if you can’t get a boyfriend.”
This line from IKEA’s latest commercial in China sparked outrage on Internet recently, as many people considered that it sent out wrong messages and values to the public.
The commercial featured a mother speaking to her daughter. She was complaining about how her daughter didn't have boyfriend yet. Then the doorbell rang, and a decent man showed up at the door. After the daughter introduced him as her boyfriend, the mom changed her attitude dramatically and redecorated their apartment with IKEA furniture right away.
Screenshot from IKEA commercial
After its release, the commercial received lots of criticisms on Chinese social media. Some netizens claimed that this commercial makes people feel uncomfortable and that they’re very disappointed at IKEA as a brand featuring comfortable lifestyle.
The commercial also sparked a discussion over the topic of “leftover women,” which has long been a controversial topic in Chinese society that commonly expects women to get married on their twenties.
This commercial expresses discrimination of “leftover women,” a netizen named Jing Bei told a local media.
“This commercial is stupid. It’s not a crime to stay single,” commented @laoMn on Chinese social media platform-Weibo.
Photo from IKEA's official Weibo account.
Facing pressure from the public, IKEA released a statement on Tuesday and apologized for “giving the wrong perception”. It also promised to withdraw the commercial from nationwide broadcast.
(CGTN)
