The encyclopedia · Advertising & PR · Marketing decision · 2025
One member's arrest pulled Avène's whole idol-group campaign
A member's arrest pulled Avène's whole idol-group campaign: Avène suspended the group's campaign and Dariya deleted its ads within 48 hours.
Avène (Pierre Fabre Japon) · Dariya · Ae! group · 2025-10-06
What happened
Ae! group is a five-member idol group under Starto Entertainment, the agency that ran Japan's former Johnny's roster. Since February 2025 the group had been the campaign face of Avène, the skincare brand sold in Japan by Pierre Fabre Japon — a campaign built on the group's collective clean image rather than any single member.
On October 4, 2025, member Kusama Richard Keita, 29, was arrested in Tokyo on suspicion of public indecency; his agency Starto Entertainment announced a halt to his activities the same day. The next day, Dariya — whose Parti hair-care brand also used the group in ads — deleted the group's images and commercial videos from its official website.
On October 6, Avène deleted the pages carrying the group's images from its official site and announced that it had decided to suspend all promotional and advertising activities using the group, saying it was consulting with the agency on what came next. One member's arrest had ended an entire group's campaign at two brands within 48 hours.
Why it happened
- Avène bought a five-member group, not five individuals — one member's arrest made the whole campaign unusable, and the brand suspended the entire group rather than swap one face.
- Dariya acted within a day, deleting images and CM videos; Avène's suspension followed the next day — two brands set the pattern before the member was even charged.
- The arrest happened far outside the polished image the campaign sold; the gap between the ad and the headline is what made the campaign unsalvageable.
- Both brands were left with sunk campaign costs and a group campaign they could not continue, with no verdict — or even a charge — on the table.
The lesson
An idol campaign is a joint bet: one member's arrest ends the whole contract. Avène suspended the campaign rather than swap a face — the group's image is the product.
Aftermath
Kusama Richard Keita was arrested on October 4, 2025; Starto Entertainment halted his activities the same day. Dariya deleted Ae! group images and CM videos from its Parti website on October 5. On October 6, Pierre Fabre Japon deleted the group's pages from the Avène site and suspended all promotional and advertising activities using the group, consulting the agency on next steps. The group's campaign work with both brands ended within 48 hours of the arrest.
Sources
- Nikkan Sports — Kusama Richard Keita of Ae! group arrested for public indecency in Shinjuku
- Sports Hochi — Dariya's Parti and Avène delete Ae! group ads; suspension spreads across sponsors
- Nikkan Sports — Avène deletes Ae! group images, decides to suspend promotional and advertising activities
- Tokyo Sports — Skincare brand Avène decides to suspend advertising with Ae! group after Kusama's arrest
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