The encyclopedia · Advertising & PR · Marketing decision · 2021
'#iworkwithprimark' is not an ad label — Gabby Allen's post banned
Primark's influencer contract produced 'Feeling fab but chilled… #iworkwithprimark'. The ASA banned it: 'work' is not 'ad'.
Primark · 2021-10
What happened
On 1 August 2021 influencer Gabby Allen posted a photo on Instagram captioned 'Feeling fab but chilled Wearing these jeans and top from one and only @primark #iworkwithprimark'. The post was made under her contractual obligations to Primark, which paid her to wear and promote its clothes.
Primark said '#iworkwithprimark' was unambiguous — consumers would understand 'work' as referencing the commercial relationship — and cited the CAP Code's expectation that ads be interpreted in context and as a whole. Gabby Allen said the post had since been updated to include the label '#ad'.
On 27 October 2021 the ASA upheld the complaint. The post was not obviously identifiable as a marketing communication: '#iworkwithprimark' did not clearly communicate that the post was advertising. The post breached CAP rule 2.1 and must not appear again in that form.
Why it happened
- A hashtag naming a workplace relationship is not a disclosure — 'work' reads as an endorsement, not an ad label.
- The label sat at the end of a long caption — the recommendation arrived before the fine print.
- The '#ad' appeared only after the complaint — the fix trailed the post by months.
- A contract is not a label: the paid relationship existed, but the audience couldn't see it.
The lesson
A disclosure must say what it is: Primark's paid influencer post closed with '#iworkwithprimark' — the ASA ruled that naming the work relationship is not labelling the ad.
Aftermath
The ASA told Primark and Gabby Allen to make future marketing communications obviously identifiable, with identifiers such as '#ad' clearly and prominently displayed.
Sources
spotted an error? The club wants to know.
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