Tala's founder Grace Beverley hid her own brand's ads — the ASA banned them

In May 2024 the UK's Advertising Standards Authority banned six social posts by Grace Beverley — two Instagram reels and four TikToks from October 2023 — promoting a coat from Tala, the activewear brand she founded in 2019. The ASA ruled the posts breached CAP Code rules on recognition of marketing communications: they were not obviously identifiable as advertising, and they could not appear again in their current form.

The case turned on whether Beverley's identity counted as disclosure. She was Tala's founder and director — paid as an employee — and her representatives argued she was so synonymous with the brand that her audience would know the posts were marketing. The ASA disagreed: users who did not follow Beverley closely would likely be unaware of her connection to Tala, and the 'aggressive marketing' language in her bio and first-person posts did not make the commercial nature clear. More than 50 complainants had challenged the posts.

Beverley, 27, had built one of Britain's biggest creator businesses — a million Instagram followers, 150,000 on TikTok, a Forbes 30 Under 30 listing in 2020 — and Tala was the centerpiece. Her response was cooperative: she said she was 'respectful of the ASA's work' and wanted 'conversation, clarity and transparency'; Tala said it 'has always endeavoured to follow ASA guidance.' The ruling set a precedent that a founder's fame is not disclosure — the paid relationship must be stated.