Apologise Like A Virgin

This week Virgin Voyages have sparked some concern and have been forced to issue an apology before they have even taken to the sea.

The newest cruise line in the in market, headed up non other than Richard Branson himself, this week released a new slogan for their marketing campaign which was:

“With spaces that transform to your given mood, you can live like a rock star or indulge your inner OCD, we don’t judge – we’re just giving you a luxurious place to do it.”

Now on my first glance, I wasn’t sure what could be offensive about this statement, I was actually a little perplexed with what people could be calling out from this. It is the mention of the illness OCD or obsessive compulsive disorder that is causing the offence as Virgin Voyages appear to have taken this serious illness lightly for their own benefit.

Since the online backlash Virgin Voyages have been forced to issue an apology and have withdrawn the slogan from any of their future marketing campaigns:

“Clearly on this occasion we have fallen short of the high standards we set ourselves but would like to use this as an opportunity to apologise and learn more about how we can support the mental health community. With this in mind we have reached out to OCD-UK to open up dialogue so we can better understand the issue.”

This isn’t the type of press you would want for a new cruise line that has yet to even sail their first voyage. I don’t think it will affect them though as they have been quick to respond and modify their marketing accordingly.

Although OCD is a serious issue, do you agree with the online backlash with the use of their slogan? Is the world becoming too sensitive and reacting at the slightest thing that could possibly cause offence?

Let me know in the comments below.