TORONTO – Marketing experts say brands that have advertised themselves with a nod to CTV host Lisa LaFlamme’s recent dismissal should beware of blowback.

Retail analyst Bruce Winder says companies that integrate news moments into their branding run the risk of being seen as opportunistic.

He says every brand has skeletons in their closet and should prepare for added scrutiny from customers and employees when they take a stand on hot-button issues.

Winder’s remarks come after fast-food chain Wendy’s changed the profile photo on its Canadian Twitter account on Thursday to its mascot bearing grey hair instead of her usual red locks and captioned the photo with LaFlamme’s name in hashtag and a note about a star always being a star despite their hair colour.

Media reports have tied LaFlamme’s ousting from the Bell Media network she worked at for 35 years to her pandemic decision to stop dying her hair.

Earlier this week, Dove Canada alluded to LaFlamme’s dismissal with a campaign called Keep The Grey that proclaimed “age is beautiful” and said women should be able to age on their own terms and without consequences.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 25, 2022.

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