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FCUK goes without a logo.
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Fashion retailer French
Connection -- whose FCUK logo has caused a stir, particularly
with Britain's Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) -- goes
without a logo altogether in a new 60-second commercial that
debuts in the U.K. on Monday. Instead, the commercial --
created by TBWA/London and directed by agency creatives Trevor
Beattie and Bil Bungay -- features an anti-advertising
voiceover and dead air where the logo would normally appear.
The French Connection brand is never mentioned.
"The time for the old fashioned arguments over logo size
has passed," Beattie explains in a statement. "It's the time
for clients to ask for something much deeper from their
marketers. Clients should be challenging agencies on the tone
of voice being created for their brands. If every brand had a
clear enough tone of voice, there'd be little need for the
ubiquitous logo and its associated 'size' arguments. As things
stand, I can only think of a tiny handful of brands capable of
doing this. Luckily, but not surprisingly, FCUK are first."
In the run-up to the campaign, French Connection began
removing the FCUK logo from its stores, fueling speculation
that the marketer was knuckling under to pressure from the
ASA, which has been vetting all of the marketer's ads in
response to complaints from the public. New print and outdoor
executions will have fun with this idea with lines like
"Something beginning with F" and "Don’t make us say it."
