Coors pulls B.C. billboards mocking Toronto
Last Updated: Tuesday, August 18, 2009 | 6:50 PM PT
CBC News
Billboard ads in British Columbia for Coors Light beer are being taken down after complaints from Toronto residents offended by the message.
About 30 billboards throughout the province show a can of cold Coors Light and the words: "Colder Than Most People From Toronto."
Adam Moffat, Coors Light manager of brand and marketing public relations, said Tuesday the company has received about 10 calls and emails over the billboards, and most of them were complaints.
"I've been on the receiving end of a few emails," he said. "Clearly we've struck a chord with Toronto civic pride…. People are saying they're proud Torontonians and feel it's not fair to be treated in this way."
Moffat said the company apologizes for any offence and that no slight was intended.
"We were playing up local humour and regional rivalries and having a bit of fun with that," he said.
Newmarket resident Kathryn Morton, who grew up in Kamloops, told the Toronto Star that she saw the billboard while on a camping trip a few weeks ago.
"That's pretty insulting to such a large group of people," she told the paper. "We hear stuff about Toronto people all the time but we couldn't believe anyone would put it on a billboard."
Moffat said the ads will start coming down Tuesday and should completely disappear within a week.
