Dettol Apologizes After Ad Backfires in China
Wednesday, 2026/06/24135 words2 minutes1496 reads
British hygiene brand Dettol has apologized for a controversial advertisement in China. The five-minute ad was designed like a short drama to criticize sexism, but it created the opposite effect.
The advertisement showed a man searching for a partner who is "clean" and "not tainted by other men." At the end, his girlfriend calls him out for his misogyny and ends the relationship. Dettol then appears as a solution to clean up "toxic men" who are compared to bacteria.
The ad sparked outrage on Chinese social media. Many users accused it of objectifying women and comparing people's "purity" to cleaning products. Some called for a boycott of the brand. Dettol removed the ad and issued an apology, saying it recognized the offense caused, especially to women. The company promised to review its content creation processes.
