Just looking at the pictures, I wouldn't have picked up on a Nazi theme..They just look like military inspired, which I don't have a problem with.
But since the ads aren't in English, I can't read them and if they say things about Hitler, then yes, I agree that they are pretty tasteless. I guess, they did get their ads looked at and people talking about them. That's the whole point of ads isn't it? Not trying to justify them for doing it, just making a point..

and they still had the nerve to defend it using nazi analogies???

I'm laughing at the fact that the guy had the audacity to say that Hitler and the Nazis were "revolutionary". Can't believe he wasn't fired on the spot for that one.
It's one thing, brittanyk, to get people talking about your ads. It's another to get them boycotting your company. They've already had to pull the ads, so that is a load of money down the drain for nothing. It was a waste of time because in the end, they had to have known the ads would be pulled.
I have to wonder what they would say to a Western company that used Korean stereotypes or offensive imagery to create an ad campaign. A little sensitivity goes a long way.

Strange to see this ad. I have lived here in South Korea for 2 years and they are usually very sensitive and careful about other countries culture and history, them being in a couple of major devastating wars and all. I think they really did not mean it this way... Personally I do not like this advert because erm.. I cannot link beauty with war at all.

Horrible!

What ad exec let this one go past his desk???

can anybody else not see the pictures?

I don't see the nazi emblem in the pics or anything--but the idea is offensive and unnecessary. There are better ways to sell cosmetics!

I may be going blind in my 30s but I didn't see the swastika anywhere. I may be missing something. Though mentioning Hitler is totally a bad idea in any marketing campaign.

Oh dear! What were they thinking?!

Look at the second picture; you can see the eagle insignia with small swastika there. Even without it, this uniform is straight out of the SS.

Tasteless, I think. Even without the Nazi part, the military uniform doesn't seem the most effective way to sell cosmetic products...

kim jung ils role model? i dont mean that to be offensive by the way. i just think its ironic.

I think it goes without saying that use of Hitler or Nazi imagery in any advertising is inappropriate and insensitive.

However, I hate comments like, "I have to wonder what they would say to a Western company that used Korean stereotypes or offensive imagery to create an ad campaign. A little sensitivity goes a long way."

Are you kidding me? Being Asian in the U.S. (and btw, I am full American born and bred here) means I am bombarded with such stereotypical and offensive imagery in ad campaigns and other forms of mass media on a daily basis. Most recently there is a pinesol ad with a buddhist-looking shirtless and bald Asian man levetating and meditating who then says in Korean: "Wow, that smells good!" as he falls to the ground and looks over at a Korean woman mopping the floors barefoot. The imagery of the barefoot Asian woman cleaning, the exoticized Asian male (and btw the majority of Koreans in Korea are not Buddhist, they are Christian, although I know to Western audiences being Buddhist seems a lot "cooler"), the use of Korean with subtitles, are all offensive to me. Do Western Americans bat an eye at this? I doubt it. Just another add for floor cleaner.

But one ad in a foreign country goes awry, and we get a blog on Bella Sugar. Maybe we can focus first on what's wrong with ads in the U.S. I hate to call myself American and call the kettle black.

Glamorizing a genocidal symbol seems insane. There is nothing sexy or glamorous about killing over a million people. They must be going for controversy not revolutionary. Either way, it was tasteless.

Wow, that's awful!

the slogan on the second pic slogan reads:
'even hitler couldnt have both the east and the west'
which is kinda focusing on the product's dual function, i guess, as the article says
i have to agree, whichever company created this and the person who let it pass did not consider any after effects, nor did they have any world history classes..

This is still a sensitive subject and not something to be joked about no matter how lightly it's supposed to be taken.

Because war is so calming and moisturizing? WTF?

I whole-heartedly agree with anongirl. This advert is inherently wrong, but in America, there are PLENTY of deeply offensive magazine, television, and other types of advertisement that perpetuate stereotypes of Asian people (I know that's not the point of this Korean advertisement - it's just wrong in its own way!) that Asians have spent decades trying to overturn. Yet no one seems to mind ... hmmm ... food for thought?

WTF? This is wrong!

I am disgusted over this--we could sit & discuss all the injustices & stereotupes, however this post was about ONE speciic incident.

bigestivediscuit, i totally agree with u~!

Thx bigenstivediscuit and tokki83 for the support!!

While I know this is about ONE specific incident the point of my comment was: Does anyone in the U.S. notice any of the highly offensive American advertisements????

Or as Americans, is it just easier to pick on other countries?

I agree that there are lots of commercials and ads in the US that perpetuate racial and ethnic stereotypes. (Particularly how "exotic" woman of color allegedly are. That stuff never seems to go away.) And when an American beauty company uses racist advertising, you know I'll post on it. If you've seen any American beauty ads that you find offensive, let me know.

But... I think that using Nazi imagery to sell a beauty product is remarkably horrible. Considering six million people were murdered by Hitler's regime, dressing Park Jin-Hee in the uniform of the SS is unacceptable. I would think that no matter where the ad came from, and it doesn't have anything to do with my being a US citizen. It's just in terrible taste to glamorize Hitler to sell a beauty product.

Disgusting. I think using Nazi imagery to sell any kind of product is unacceptable! What the hell were they thinking?

Coreana cosmetics suck anyway. I always use Amore products.

It's about recognizing artistry, even though it might be deemed offensive. I would not want to live in a world where all "offensive" art was not allowed to exist. Think of all the art we would be missing out on. The whole issue is that no one person can deem what is offensive and what is not. Honestly looking at these photos without the explanation, I wouldn't have thought of Hitler. And, the metaphor is correct... Hitler could not have both the East and the West, and they are claiming their product does. If this ad was offensive, say towards... the people of Tibet and their struggles and genocides, I doubt national embassies would get involved.

If someone is offended, they should not buy the product, say whatever they want about it and not look at the pictures, but I don't think the ad should have disappeared completely.