ASA slams Moben Kitchens over misleading umlaut

A fitted kitchen company has been rapped by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for portraying itself as German, in order to add credibility to its brand.

Moben Kitchens has had a complaint against it upheld by the advertising watchdog for adding an umlaut to its name, which the ASA says could mislead consumers into thinking that it’s a German company.

The kitchen company has been asked by the ASA to remove the design of two dots over the “o” or to add a disclaimer stating that the advertiser is not a German company. BCMB Pilkington Speyer created the press ad.

However, the ASA acknowledged that the two dots were part of a combined logo design for Moben Kitchens, Sharps Bedrooms and Dolphin Bathrooms. It adds that when the logo is not seen in the context of the triple brand logo, consumers are likely to interpret the two dots as a German umlaut and regard the advertisers as a German company.

The “Ditch the Bitch” poster campaign for divorce lawyers, placed in men’s toilets in London bars has escaped the wrath of the ASA. Joslin Shaw created the poster for London-based Brookman Lawyers.

According to the ASA, the ad was unlikely to encourage people who were not thinking of divorcing to do so. It also added that the target market of men frequenting public houses in London were unlikely to be offended by the advertisement.