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JOY’s Disastrous Christmas Ad Campaign Just Got Worse

British clothing shop JOY has been widely criticised for their Christmas advertising encouraging women to dress like "marriage material", and cover their breasts to stop their father in law from having a "heart attack" when they visit their S.O.'s parents during the festive period.
But it turns out that's not the only bit of questionable marketing the company has put out this Christmas.
We spotted a sign in the retailer's Brixton branch last month that read: "Q. Why is Santa always so jolly? A. He knows where all the bad girls live."
The question seems particularly insensitive in a year when Donald Trump was slammed by millions for boasting about grabbing women "by the pussy", and numerous girls and women accused him of sexual harassment and assault.
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Photographed by Natasha Slee.
Refinery29 has reached out to JOY for comment on the store front but is yet to respond.
The retailer, which has 25 stores across the UK, was lambasted earlier this week after it sent a "sexist" email advert to customers that many believed harked back to the 1950s.
In an email entitled "Meet the Parents", a description of a Christmas day outfit seemed almost too offensive and tone-deaf to be true.
"Show your boyfriend's Mum you're the girl to take care of her little prince in beautiful dresses that scream marriage material," the ad read.
"Knee length skirts exude class while respectable necklines mean Father-In-Law won't have a heart attack when you lean across the table for a second helping of roast potatoes."
Numerous customers took to the company's Facebook page to vent their anger at its sexist message. Many disgruntled comments have received hundreds of likes.
Addressing customers' concerns, a JOY spokesperson said the ad was "satire" and that it had been prompted by a real-life exchange in one of its branches, when a women wanted advice from its employees about what to wear for a "meet the parents" dinner.
"We acknowledge that we missed the mark with our phrasing and apologise deeply to all our customers who feel offended, as this was certainly not our intention. We treasure and value our customers greatly," a JOY spokesperson told MailOnline.
"We would like to reiterate to all our customers that this was not intended to upset you or to demean anyone in any way, and we are deeply saddened to have inadvertently promoted a misogynistic view that we do not stand by nor follow."
The store came under similar fire in 2014 for a Twitter exchange between a customer and the brand's official account that appeared to mock people with bipolar disorder.
Maybe JOY should think about doing some market research on its customers lest it offends them again.

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