JOHN Lewis has been branded “dystopian” after advertising was spotted in one of the company’s stores telling customers to “succumb” to its sale.
One shopper spotted the marketing in their local store yesterday, which loomed overhead in one of the aisles.
Making no effort to mince the advert’s words, the in-store signs attracted a host of comments from Brits, who were divided over the very direct approach.
An image of the signs shows them hanging from the ceiling by the store’s kitchen appliance section.
One of the signs is a deep red with pale red lettering, whilst the other looks to be a shade of white, with words in red.
In bold lettering and block capitals, the signs simply read: “Succumb to the sale.”
Resembling something from a George Orwell novel rather than a department store, the signs even appear to have a spotlight directly on them, further highlighting the hypnotic messaging.
The signs were snapped and shared to social media yesterday with the caption: “John Lewis’ sale marketing feels a bit dystopian.”
The post quickly received over 1,400 likes and more than 75 comments from Brits quick to offer their own opinions on the brazen marketing.
One user said: “It’s kind of nice to see a shop drop all pretence of a value proposition.”
Another added: “We are definitely barrelling towards a dystopia.”
A third wrote: “John Lewis is a joke. They’ve lost all credibility and don’t even know who their customers are anymore.”
Another commented: “I have come here to chew bubble-gum and buy kitchen appliances, and I’m all out of bubble gum.”
A fifth replied: “They control what you see. They decide what you hear.”
