The encyclopedia · Advertising & PR · Marketing decision · 2025
M&S said a model's pose was 'confidence' — the ASA read prominent collarbones instead
M&S's website ad showed a model with prominent collarbones. M&S said the pose conveyed confidence; the ASA ruled her unhealthily thin and banned it.
Marks & Spencer · 2025-07-23
What happened
Between April and May 2025, Marks & Spencer's website ran a product image showing a female model in slim-fit trousers and a white top, one hand in her pocket with the arm arched outward, the other holding a bag, wearing large pointed shoes.
Following complaints, the UK's Advertising Standards Authority found the pose left the model's collarbones very prominent, an effect emphasized by the arched arm position, while the pointed shoes emphasized the slenderness of her legs.
M&S told the ASA the pose was chosen to convey confidence and ease, not to accentuate thinness, and that the shoes were a stylistic choice. The ASA ruled the ad irresponsible regardless of intent, and M&S amended the ads and removed the images after the complaint.
Why it happened
- A pose chosen for one effect (confidence) can simultaneously produce another (visible thinness) — M&S's stated intent didn't change what the image actually emphasized once styled and shot.
- The ASA's reasoning specifically named the arm's arch and the shoe choice as amplifying factors — small styling decisions, not the model's presence itself, were what tipped the ruling.
- M&S removed the images before the ASA even ruled, once the complaint was raised — a sign the company recognized the risk faster than its own creative brief had accounted for.
The lesson
M&S said a model's pose was meant to convey confidence. The ASA read the same pose as making her collarbones and thinness prominent, and banned the ad.
Aftermath
M&S had already amended the ads before the ruling; the decision was one of several 2025 ASA findings against UK fashion retailers over thin-model imagery, alongside Next and Zara.
Sources
- M&S ad banned for featuring 'unhealthily thin' model — Retail Gazette
- Marks & Spencer advert banned for featuring 'unhealthily thin' model — ITV News
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