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<\/div>\n<\/div>\nScotch drinkers, meet Jane Walker.<\/p>\n
For the first time ever, the top-hatted man who appears on bottles of Johnnie Walker whiskey is being replaced by a woman.<\/p>\n
Johnnie Walker, which is owned by liquor giant Diageo, said Monday that it will launch a special edition of its Black Label blend next month featuring the female logo.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a brand that has stood for progress for nearly 200 years, Johnnie Walker is proud to take this next step forward by introducing Jane Walker as another symbol of the brand\u2019s commitment to progress,\u201d it said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Priced around $34, the special edition bottles will go on sale in the U.S. in March to coincide with Women\u2019s History Month and International Women\u2019s Day.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the latest effort to feminize a well known brand. Last month, country music star Reba McEntire was cast as KFC\u2019s first woman to play its iconic pitch person, Colonel Harland Sanders.<\/p>\n
While some people applauded Diageo\u2019s efforts, some women said they found it patronizing or cynical.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s be SO equal we need a specific bottle. How are people this stupid. HOW?\u201d tweeted Ashley K. Wilt.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t see this as a symbol of gender equality,\u201d wrote Diana Pardo, whose Twitter biography describes her as a communications consultant. \u201cAll I see is a marketing strategy to increase sales.\u201d<\/p>\n
The situation wasn\u2019t helped by comments a Johnnie Walker executive made about the initiative.<\/p>\n
\u201cScotch as a category is seen as particularly intimidating by women. It\u2019s a really exciting opportunity to invite women into the brand,\u201d Vice President Stephanie Jacoby told Bloomberg.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m no feminist but I do not need a woman on a bottle to tell me it\u2019s ok to drink it!\u201d tweeted Jennifer Masson.<\/p>\n
Others felt the critics were taking things too far.<\/p>\n
\u201cFirst you complain how male-centric brand logos are,\u201d wrote Agamoni Ghosh. \u201cWhen something like #JaneWalker is introduced, you cry foul about how they are trying too hard.\u201d<\/p>\n
Johnnie Walker said it will donate $1 for every bottle of the Jane Walker Edition it makes to organizations that champion women\u2019s causes, up to a limit of $250,000.<\/p>\n
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Source: CNN<\/p>\n
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