Absolut Vodka's commercial ad sparks hot consumer reaction in S. Korea

By Park Sae-jin Posted : December 12, 2016, 11:11 Updated : December 12, 2016, 11:11

[Courtesy of Absolut's Facebook page]


A global brand of premium vodka produced in Sweden has received an unexpected consumer response in South Korea, good or bad, with an advertising image depicting a candlelit rally sparked by a corruption scandal engulfing President Park Geun-hye.

The image uploaded by the Korean branch of Absolut Vodka on its official Facebook page Saturday has drawn some 7,800 reactions, more than 670 comments, and 3,470 shares in less than two days.

In an aerial view, a candlelit march on the avenue leading to the presidential Blue House was visualized as the shape of a vodka bottle with a copy reading "THE FUTURE IS YOURS TO CREATE" on top and "ENJOY RESPONSIBLY" at the bottom.

Absolut owned by French group Pernod Ricard is the world's third largest brand of alcoholic spirits after Bacardi and Smirnoff. It has published advertisements visualizing the shape of the vodka bottle, adopting images that represent a certain city or a country.

For its earlier version, Absolut used an image of Korea's traditional kite with a bottle-shaped hole in the middle. Its new image was uploaded a day after Park was impeached in parliament.

Consumer reaction was unusually hot, reflecting the gravity of the scandal that has seen millions of citizens taking to the streets every weekend in Seoul and elsewhere to press their demands for the ouster of Park, who took office in early 2013 as South Korea's first female president.
 

[Courtesy of Absolut's Facebook page]


Many showed a positive response, but some consumers expressed displeasure, accusing the vodka company of commercializing a serious political event.

"I actually like their clever use of the image, but I love the statement (and encouragement to Korean people) that "the future is yours to create", not politicians', any bystanders' or outsiders'," Chang Oh wrote in an English post.

"This ad is proper as it targets foreign countries which have little knowledge of Korea," said Lee Jung-hoon, praising Absolut for highlighting a peaceful civic revolution.

Lukasz Jan Cybulski, a Polish resident in Seoul, said he felt uncomfortable because the vodka company used South Korea's political situation for "commercial gains".

"Sewol memorial used in an advertising campaign? Ouch, that won't do well for sales in Korea," Paul Flaherty, a British resident in the western city of Incheon, said, referring to the sinking of a ferry packed with high-school students in 2014.

The ill-fated Sewol ferry sank off the southwest coast on April 16, 2014, with the loss of more than 300 lives. The disaster -- blamed on the ship's illegal redesign and overloading left unchecked by regulators -- prompted calls to overhaul the nation's lax safety standards. Government officials and coastguard authorities were criticized for failing to take quick steps.

Despite her repeated denials, unconfirmed new reports suggested Park had not been in command of a crucial rescue operation for several hours at that time due to personal affairs.

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