I can’t be the only person to have picked up on the fact that the latest advert for Asda has an instrumental version of the theme tune to Dad’s Army running in the background.
The advert makes reference to a survey that says rival Tesco has a load of cheap prices. It then goes on to say that, in fact, the same survey shows Asda has even more cheap prices.
The lyrics to the music, which everyone knows but which are removed from the advert, are “Who do you think you are kidding Mr Hitler?” It’s perhaps a little heavy-handed to imply that Tesco’s level of deception is on a par with that of the Fuhrer but it’s more-or-less accurate, I suppose.
The only problem is that Asda is owned by Wal-Mart, which is clearly even more evil than Tesco. Or Hitler, come to that.
The Conversation {8 comments}
I dont understand why you say Evil in your article. I work for Asda and we’re definitely not eveil. Sure, we make a lot of money but only because we are genuinely hard working and helpful people. We don’t make so much as the ‘hitler’ company here in the UK. And we (the people who make the company what it is) are responsible for making items cheaper for people (granted there can be issues with that – it depends who you talk to as to the acceptability of various chicken mass production methods – but even Jamie Oliver messed up by selling battery eggs in his restaurant this week. Pot calling the kettle!)
Of course there’s a good reason for doing the right things like charitable work, but it’s not just good business it is the right thing to do. I love the fact that we have a history of supporting Children in Need and especially the fight against cancer.
The advert is a bit of fun, two fingers to the giant Tesco who blatantly fix their research to show a swingometer last year. Good to see we’re not sitting back and letting them get away with it.
“The ‘Hitler’ company” – entirely fair description of Tesco there, James… whereas me calling Asda Wal-Mart “evil” is completely out of order. “The giant Tesco”, by the way, is actually significantly smaller than the plucky wee champ of a retail behemoth that you, yourself, work for. Wal-Mart, of which Asda is a wholly-owned subsidiary, is the world’s largest public corporation by revenue according to the Fortune Global 500. Tesco ranks a mere 54 places lower on the list. So why is Wal-Mart spending its UK ad budget breezily comparing Tesco to Hitler? If anything, it’s the other way round.
Im glad you have spoken up and said this,i thought it was only me that thought it was the dads army tune!Seems a bit much for any supermarket to be mentioning hitler just to sell and advertise products.I wonder what world war 2 soldiers and victims of concentration camps and the like think of it?Hitler certainly isnt “a bit of fun” as someone else has stated.I dont mind dads army but this is a bit much and to be quite frank i’m sick of hearing it!!!
Whatever the rights and wrongs of a particular retailer there is no doubt that Tesco are very heavy handed in their business dealings. My girlfriend (who pointed out that the tune was Dad’s Army to me) had the “priviledge” of working for a company on a Tesco contract for eighteen months and she described Tesco as a company that has got too big too quickly and as a result dealing with them is like “dealing with a petulent child…” [edited]. Their management is prone to throw teddy out the pram if they don’t get what they want yesterday no matter how unrealistic the request. So you’ll understand that in the industry in general not just among Tesco’s rivals, that they have very much gained a reputation that makes that tune seem quite appropriate to many people.
I work for ASDA,s and in my view IT IS fastly turning into a sweatshop labour camp ..As far as i am concerned . It is heading towards as near as a dystopia vision of the future as you can get..I don,t work in store i work in one of the warehouse,s …Did you know that every employee has to sign a gag order when applying for work ..and that nothing that can be used in a dispute can be allowed into the public arena ..Recently ASDA workers have been informed NOT to mention ASDA,s on Blog sites or on the net ??? OH YES BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU …The New World Order is alive and well …Not only are you filmed on camera all night …But you are electronically monitored all night to watch your performance and know when you come to a halt …Performance targets are a sliding goal post ..Middle management and upper middle management are a joke ..Do yourself a favour and steer clear of ASDA ..Its mostly Agency workers now on half wage compared to full time workers with out health benefits ..As soon as i can find a alternative i,m out of there
Not only is this advert an insult to the greatest comedy written it creates a connotation of petty and unimportant supermarket battles between sales to the Second World War! This is an insult to the men that fought for our freedom and the fall apart of the Nazi state of Germany.
Estimates for the total casualties of the war suggest that some 60 million people died in the war, including about 20 million soldiers and 40 million civilians. The Soviet Union lost around 27 million people during the war, and around six million Jews, were systematically killed in the Holocaust.
Can this kind of loss really be compared to the loss of a few customers and a drop in sales? When did this ever kill anyone?
And if anyone makes the point that Dads Army itself is an insult to the war then consider that every actor and producer within the programme fought in the war and know what those kind of conditions are like the same cannot be said for Asda or Tesco.
And to add to this Asda is now American owned and what the hell do they know about the events of the war within Europe and who do they think they are prying in our affairs?
I wondered if it was referring to German supermarket chains ? Like Lidl and Aldi ?
Just a thought
JR
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