• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI

2

Despite having a $165 million net worth, Scarlett Johansson says work-life balance doesn’t exist—and the first step to success is admitting that

3

Former top Russian official admits the country is over Putin and can 'imagine a future without him' — even elites bail as Kremlin seizes their assets 

1

Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI

2

Despite having a $165 million net worth, Scarlett Johansson says work-life balance doesn’t exist—and the first step to success is admitting that

3

Former top Russian official admits the country is over Putin and can 'imagine a future without him' — even elites bail as Kremlin seizes their assets 
RetailBest of the Year in Business

Hall of Shame: The 9 Worst Marketing Fails by Retailers in 2015

Phil Wahba
By
Phil Wahba
Phil Wahba
Senior Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
Phil Wahba
By
Phil Wahba
Phil Wahba
Senior Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
December 22, 2015, 3:16 PM ET

By the time you see an ad from a retailer, restaurant, or consumer brand, it has been looked over and picked at by countless people at an ad agency and the company’s internal marketing team. The same goes for a piece of merchandise. Products can’t escape the scrutiny of a big team of buyers, merchandisers, and, of course, store workers.

So it’s baffling how often major companies trying to be hip or funny put out an ad or sell a product only to find out it is offensive to countless prospective customers. This past year has been chock full of cringe-worthy gaffes by retailers and restaurants that had them scrambling to apologize and contain the PR damage. Some of them seemed to make light of the Holocaust, while others were interpreted as encouraging rape.

Here is a look back at some of the big marketing and merchandising misfires by top retailers in 2015, in no particular order.

Let these disasters serve as lessons as big brands head into 2016.

1 Walmart bakes an ISIS cake

A Walmart (WMT) worker in Slidell, La., in June baked a cake with the ISIS flag on it, amazingly unaware it was the banner of the murderous extremist group that has taken over large swathes of Syria and Iraq. Turns out the cake was linked to another controversy surrounding Walmart last summer: its decision to stop selling any merchandise with the Confederate flag on it. The Walmart customer in Slidell was angry when the store rejected his request for a cake with the Confederate flag, so he tested the retailer by requesting one with the ISIS cake. The retailer later apologized for the ISIS cake.

2 Nordstrom sells Hanukkah sweater, quickly pulls it

Nordstrom landed in hot water with customers in November over a piece of clothing intended to be humorous but instead offended some shoppers. The upscale department store was selling Faux Real’s ‘Chai Maintenance’ Hanukkah sweater. The product angered some customers, who saw it as playing on clichés about Jewish women and promptly took to Facebook to complain. The luxury store quickly pulled the item from its racks.

3 Urban Outfitters sells tapestry that invokes Holocaust

Urban Outfitters angered many shoppers when it sold a tapestry earlier this year that looked like the uniform that gay prisoners wore in Nazi concentration camps. It was not the first time the fashion retailer got in trouble for selling items reminiscent of the Holocaust: three years earlier, Urban Outfitters was selling a yellow t-shirt with a star on it, the Huffington Post reported in February.

4 Bloomingdale's ad that hinted at date rape

Bloomingdale’s, the luxury department store owned by Macy’s (M), had to apologize for a catalog ad in November that many in social media forums saw as encouraging date rape. In the ad, for Rebecca Minkoff merchandise, a man is seen staring at a beautiful woman who is looking in the opposite direction and includes the caption, “Spike Your Best Friend’s Egg Nog When They’re Not Looking.”

5 Target's OCD sweater

Target OCD sweater.

The discount retailer landed on this ignominious list by selling a red Christmas sweater bearing the slogan “OCD: Obsessive Christmas Disorder.” Many on social media took offense saying it made light of obsessive compulsive disorder. But Target held fast and continued to sell the piece.

6 Starbucks' "Race Together" campaign

Starbucks Race Together cups.

The coffee giant had good intentions in March when it launched a short-lived campaign encouraging customers to engage in discussions about race relations with baristas. The move earned Starbucks (SBUX) some ridicule and brickbats, with many people feeling it's too hot an issue to address in this manner. Starbucks dropped the campaign after six days.

7 Under Armour under fire for Iwo Jima t-shirt

The athletic apparel maker was roundly criticized in May for a t-shirt that harkened to a key World War II battle in which thousands of Marines were killed. The Under Armour t-shirt depicted basketball players raising a hoop in a very similar way in which Marines lifted a U.S. flag during the battle of Iwo Jima, as memorialized in an iconic photograph. Under Armour promptly apologized for the item.

8 McDonald's runs ads invoking 9/11 and Boston bombings

Seeking to insert some gravitas to its ads, McDonald's (MCD) in January launched a campaign that featured messages on McDonald's billboards across the U.S. over the decades. The messages varied from birth announcements to "We Remember 9/11" to "Boston Strong," all with the burger chain's trademark golden arches above them. Many objected to the campaign, accusing McDonald's of trying to capitalize on tragedy. The company said it was trying to have "deeper" conversations with customers.

9 Bud Light accused of encouraging date rape

Anheuser-Busch (BUD) created a social media firestorm when it slapped the tagline "The perfect beer for removing 'no' from your vocabulary for the night #UpForWhatever" on the labels of many Bud Light bottles. The blowback was swift, with countless people accusing the company of promoting rape culture. The company later admitted that the tagline "missed the mark."

About the Author
Phil Wahba
By Phil WahbaSenior Writer
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon

Phil Wahba is a senior writer at Fortune primarily focused on leadership coverage, with a prior focus on retail.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Retail

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Retail

delivery
Retailecommerce
Walmart’s upper hand over Amazon in the $1 trillion e-commerce race: 90% of Americans live within 10 miles of a superstore
By Anne D'Innocenzio and The Associated PressMay 16, 2026
15 hours ago
gamestop
RetailM&A
‘Neither credible or attractive’: eBay slaps down GameStop’s $56 billion takeover bid
By Michelle Chapman and The Associated PressMay 12, 2026
4 days ago
amazon
RetailAmazon
Amazon’s promise of 30-minute delivery collides with memories of Domino’s drivers crashing in the late 1980s
By Anne D'Innocenzio and The Associated PressMay 12, 2026
4 days ago
India’s Gen Z turned Diet Coke into a status symbol. A can shortage just made it a luxury
Asiadiet coke
India’s Gen Z turned Diet Coke into a status symbol. A can shortage just made it a luxury
By Brendan Cosgrove and Morning BrewMay 11, 2026
5 days ago
Content creator Logan Walter
SuccessJobs
This Gen Zer dropped out of college to become an influencer—now he’s a millionaire from selling products like Medicube and Neutrogena on TikTok Shop
By Emma BurleighMay 11, 2026
6 days ago
Investors are betting big on senior housing. There’s just one problem—the baby boomers they’re chasing can’t pay the rent
Real Estatebaby boomers
Investors are betting big on senior housing. There’s just one problem—the baby boomers they’re chasing can’t pay the rent
By Sydney LakeMay 9, 2026
8 days ago

Most Popular

Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI
AI
Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI
By Jake AngeloMay 16, 2026
16 hours ago
Despite having a $165 million net worth, Scarlett Johansson says work-life balance doesn’t exist—and the first step to success is admitting that
Success
Despite having a $165 million net worth, Scarlett Johansson says work-life balance doesn’t exist—and the first step to success is admitting that
By Preston ForeMay 13, 2026
4 days ago
Former top Russian official admits the country is over Putin and can 'imagine a future without him' — even elites bail as Kremlin seizes their assets 
Politics
Former top Russian official admits the country is over Putin and can 'imagine a future without him' — even elites bail as Kremlin seizes their assets 
By Jason MaMay 16, 2026
7 hours ago
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
Politics
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
By Jake AngeloMay 12, 2026
4 days ago
Meet the 20-year-old CEO who launched a company in high school to solve Gen Z's entry-level job crisis
Future of Work
Meet the 20-year-old CEO who launched a company in high school to solve Gen Z's entry-level job crisis
By Jake AngeloMay 16, 2026
20 hours ago
‘You’re not a hero, you’re a liability’: Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary warns Gen Z founders to stop glorifying hustle culture
Future of Work
‘You’re not a hero, you’re a liability’: Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary warns Gen Z founders to stop glorifying hustle culture
By Jacqueline MunisMay 16, 2026
16 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.