Reports Of ‘Lady-Friendly’ Doritos Spark Strong Reactions
- 6 years ago
The CEO of PepsiCo recently announced plans to introduce a female-friendly version of Doritos.
The CEO of PepsiCo, which oversees Doritos, recently announced plans to introduce a female-friendly version of the snack. That news was met with little, if any, rejoicing and a great deal of eye-rolling. Word of the ladies-only snack development came during a recent interview with Freakonomics Radio. Indra Nooyi, CEO of PepsiCo, said the company is developing a quieter and more transfer-proof Doritos as women, unlike men, "…don't like to crunch too loudly in public. And they don't lick their fingers generously and they don't like to pour the little broken pieces and the flavor into their mouth." Many took to Twitter to share their concerns. Comments included, "I don't want soggy or chewy chips. This is the pink camo of marketing," and, "In response to Dorito's lady friendly crisps I shall be eating the biggest crisps I can find crunching really loudly burping and carrying a packet of crisps as a handbag." On a more serious note, Tracey Follows, a marketing expert, who spoke with The Guardian pointed out one of the ways in which the idea of "lady-friendly" Dorito's is outright offensive. "This [is] a classic example of almost presenting women as the problem, [to which] their product has found the solution," Follows commented. "Maybe the problem is with the product…If they were going to do this new version, why not market it as a variant that is open to all? I don't understand why it has to be targeted at women."
The CEO of PepsiCo, which oversees Doritos, recently announced plans to introduce a female-friendly version of the snack. That news was met with little, if any, rejoicing and a great deal of eye-rolling. Word of the ladies-only snack development came during a recent interview with Freakonomics Radio. Indra Nooyi, CEO of PepsiCo, said the company is developing a quieter and more transfer-proof Doritos as women, unlike men, "…don't like to crunch too loudly in public. And they don't lick their fingers generously and they don't like to pour the little broken pieces and the flavor into their mouth." Many took to Twitter to share their concerns. Comments included, "I don't want soggy or chewy chips. This is the pink camo of marketing," and, "In response to Dorito's lady friendly crisps I shall be eating the biggest crisps I can find crunching really loudly burping and carrying a packet of crisps as a handbag." On a more serious note, Tracey Follows, a marketing expert, who spoke with The Guardian pointed out one of the ways in which the idea of "lady-friendly" Dorito's is outright offensive. "This [is] a classic example of almost presenting women as the problem, [to which] their product has found the solution," Follows commented. "Maybe the problem is with the product…If they were going to do this new version, why not market it as a variant that is open to all? I don't understand why it has to be targeted at women."