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Specialized Turbo S "Playboy Edition"Specialized confirms controversial Playboy e-bike won't be sold
US bike brand Specialized has confirmed to road.cc that the controversial limited edition Playboy electric bike it unveiled at a bike show in Berlin earlier this month will not be on public sale because “it does not align with our brand values.”
The Morgan Hill, California-based company had been accused of sexism after pictures were circulated on social media the weekend before last of two women dressed as Playboy Bunnies promoting the bike at the trade show.
Some 40 examples of the black and gold e-bike were offered for sale on the German market. But in an emailed statement, the company told road.cc today: “‘The Limited Edition Turbo in collaboration with Playboy will not be sold.
“We are a brand for all riders and acknowledge this brand partnership does not align with our values.”
Specialized had already apologised for the PR stunt, with chief marketing officer Slate Olson saying the brand “stands strong with female riders and we do not support the objectification of women in any way, in any region.”
The company added that “this market activation was carried out locally by the regional marketing manager, and was not discussed with or approved by our global marketing team.”
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- don simon fbpe 17 min 57 sec ago
Either way, got to be better than being a professional prick.
- Rendel Harris 2 hours 10 min ago
It was a bit more complex than that I think, the Badger had already been suffering from tendonitis for quite some time before (many said due to his...
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That's going to make life needlessly difficult when I want to (perfectly legitimately) filter through traffic or indeed get through my front door...
- Bmblbzzz 3 hours 54 min ago
Where are Zebedee and Ermintrude when you want them?
- Steve K 4 hours 7 min ago
Update on this: apparently it's all their Ti frames ever, except the HT Ti (no, no idea why). However, it's not transferable.
- Oldfatgit 4 hours 40 min ago
Cough *plotaroute.com*
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5 comments
'The company added that “this market activation was carried out locally by the regional marketing manager, and was not discussed with or approved by our global marketing team.”'
Pull the other one.
So, they managed to put together the bike, including designing, producing decals, promotional material, etc, in Germany, without anyone elsewhere becoming aware?
Yeah, right.
I bet their regional marketing manager is looking for another job now.
I'm glad they've realised what a stupid idea that was.
Lol.
Sehr gut, ja?
Pathetic.