DIY Artclub responds rudely to women after criticism of sexist Facebook and Instagram advert

[Bebeemerald]

So DIY Artclub decide to run a questionable ad across Facebook and Insta. When women point this out - instead of acknowledging it could be interpreted poorly and putting forward their thinking for the ad, instead they double down with snarky comments. Who wants to bet this account is run by a male prick?

photos uploading

No photos yet OP. If they are really questionable will MN allow them?

They’re not questionable in that way. It’s a sexist ad trying to appeal to women during the World Cup I.e suggesting women don’t watch football and want to drink wine and paint whilst their partners watch. No idea why they’re taking so long. Maybe they think it’s an actual ad I’m posting!

How is it sexist?

Well when it uploads you can see!

Well as a woman who is a football fan and who has attended many many games over the years I would find it quite offensive if the message is only men are interested in the World Cup.

The team I was a home and away supporter of for many years had a large percentage of women supporters. And I've attended matches at most levels of Scottish football and there are always quite a few women there.

So yes it is sexust to suggest men watch the football and women occupy themselves with art and wine.

The ad addresses women as ‘girlssss’ and has an image of a man in the background watching the football.

I mean, the ad is misjudged, it happens, but it’s the fact they didn’t acknowledge all the comments pointing this out in a positive way but went on a snark fest. They could have said ‘fair point, we wanted to reach those women who didn’t like football.’ But no. They’re being arseholes.

‘girlssss’ ?????

Now you have really made me angry!

How absolutely patronising.

If I was being generous I would wonder if it's a very badly balanced advert based on the lionesses already winning previously. But that's a stretch.
I'll be watching football tonight as are most of my friends I've spoken to about the world cup.

Indeed. And their responses to the ‘girlssss’ that have pointed this out to them is equally as patronising.

I actually bought something from them a month or two ago, hence why they’re probably targeting me now. But next time I get a painting set I’ll go to one of the many other brands that aren’t sexist pigs.

You can view the ad in the picture

I’m a woman who hates football and loves art and wine, but I still strongly object to this advert.

I genuinely thought we’d moved past this kind of lazy stupid sexism.

There was an advert on our local Facebook page last year that the organiser, a woman, was advertising as a great day out for " girls".
I actually asked her if the event was a children's event. Oh no, for adults was the reply.
I can't even begin to understand why a woman would try and attract other women to an event by calling them children. It's bad enough when men patronise and belittle us by calling us girls but it makes me especially angry when women do it to themselves and other women.

Good on you for taking your business elsewhere OP.

It looks like they have an automated thing responding to the comments. Which is a mistake in this case as it comes across as snark.

Their replies aren't rude but some of the posts they're replying to certainly are.

Persephonia1966

It looks like they have an automated thing responding to the comments. Which is a mistake in this case as it comes across as snark.

This op, I don’t think they’re responding rudely, I think it’s an automated reply!

None of the screenshotted comments are rude.

This sort of thing infuriates me.
There’s a place local to me which is currently advertising ‘wifey daycare’. Apparently all men need to do is drop their wife off with their credit card and they’ll take care of her so he can enjoy a couple of hours peace and quiet.

Hard to believe it’s 2026

Well, more fool them for a)choosing to use a bot and not considering it might be inappropriate and b) not monitoring their social media - the moment you saw one or two scathing comments they should think oh shit better turn the ai responses off, its not making us look good!

latetothefisting

That’s true but op made it sound like they were being rude- they’re not!

They have terrible TrustPilot reviews too - 34% 1 star. They seem to be drop shipping product from China. And I would question how much generative AI they are using. This is their (AI) response to a TP review:

"We work with a combination of artists, designers, and digital tools — including AI-assisted processes — to create a wide variety of designs and creative styles for our customers. Many of our artworks involve collaboration between artists and AI as part of the creative process, rather than being purely AI-generated."

This has, I jest you not, been stated very recently by Kingston (-upon-Thames) Council: "Electric bikes may increase women's access to cycling and physical activity by making it easier for women to meet their traditional domestic responsibilities, as well as stay looking "nice" on a bike". It was in an Equalities Impact Assessment (MN thread below):

E-bikes, Kingston Council and the impact on women. | Mumsnet

I love (and am intrigued by) your name @latetothefisting 🤣

Also completely agree with you re. the bot

If I were desperately looking for something to get indignant about, I doubt this would be it. 🙄

Is that not about meeting reality as it is though? It depends if it's based on an assumption in some (man?s) head or actual research. E.g. research has shown that teenage girls are put of exercise/PE in schools because they don't want to look/get sweaty, looking unnatraxtice especially in front of the opposite sex. A way round that, providing eg female only exercise classes or better showering facilities or different forms of exercise might help. You could argue "girls shouldn't care about looking sweaty that's sexist". But if they do, they do.

Likewise women spend more hours per week on housework than men on average. That might be wrong. But it probably isn't in an e-bike providers power to fix it. Whereas if women have trouble scheduling time every week to exercise it can help.

This advert is different because it's just I'll thought through click bait. No-one has researched this and thought "I have a solution".