A “sexist” online shoe advert featuring topless women has been banned by the advertising watchdog.
Redfoot Shoes, which trades as Goodwin Smith based in Bacup, Lancashire, ran a campaign that included images of women covering their breasts with shoes.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said it was sexist and degrading to women and must not appear again.
Goodwin Smith said the campaign in August portrayed a “fantasy concept” and “had not meant to degrade women”.
It said there were two versions of the video and the one with topless women had a warning about explicit content.
The explicit advert was featured in email marketing, on Facebook and on YouTube, and used the tag line “Bucking good shoes”.
Banned shoe advert is ruled ‘degrading’ to women https://t.co/AuxaF3TGW4 pic.twitter.com/w9j0LNkx82
— Will Corry (@slievemore) November 16, 2017
The YouTube video featured three men, who were fully dressed, and three women wearing black underwear in some scenes and topless in others.