Yesterday, news of Andy Hui’s cheating scandal has rocked the Hong Kong entertainment industry, dominating the headlines of almost every Chinese publications.
As the news is going viral, local brands have decided to take full advantage of the scandal to sell their products and also discreetly mocking the 51-year-old actor and his cheating partner, Jacqueline Wong.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tj_19_Rp8Hc
To give you a quick backstory, Hong Kong singer Andy Hui (許志安) was caught getting intimate with 30-year-old TVB actress, Jacqueline Wong (黃心穎), in a taxi cab. Hui is married to Hong Kong celebrity Sammi Cheng (鄭秀文) since 2013, while Wong is dating TVB actor Kenneth Ma since 2017.
After a 16-minute leaked video of Hui and Wong getting intimate gone viral, Hui immediately held a press conference to admit his mistakes and apologise, followed by an apology by Wong on social media.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BwWcPPIHlOH/
Seeing this opportunity, some of the biggest brand in Hong Kong decided to use this opportunity to market their brand in a creatively sarcastic manner.
KMB Hong Kong
Hong Kong’s public transport company KMB warned passengers that their transports are filled with cameras so the passengers shouldn’t secretly eat on board. The text has a lot of hidden and double meanings. For one, the photo of the two mice wearing matching hat mask seem to represent Hui and Wong, and not to mention, Hui is nicknamed as “Mouse” among his friends and fans. Even the term “偷食” (eating secretly) is a slang word for cheating.
Klook
Klook questioned, “Why do you want to eat secretly?” (cheat). Promoting their couple’s love buffet, the company warned guests from taking cabs alone and secretly eating the food from the buffet, saying that the buffet must be eaten with romance partner or friends.
Kraft Heinz HK
The snack company talked about how some people cannot stand not eating their peanuts, but advised that there are time and places to eat peanuts. Just so y’all now, eating peanuts is a slang for gossiping in Cantonese. The salty entry is filled with puns and references about the scandal, and it also makes reference to Wong’s boyfriend Kenneth Ma, who starred as a taxi driver in the movie “The Exorcist’s Meter 2.0”.
Mercedes-Benz HK
Mercedes-Benz subtly poked fun at the scandal by asking customers if they’re tired of “hiding in the shades”. But with the car’s sound proof window and tinted windows, passengers no longer need to sneak around. (Geddit?) The post is incredibly subtle and netizens may not even get it if the brand didn’t tag Lei Yue Mun for the post’s location. That’s the same location where the scandal took place.
HK Express
HK Express told passengers that they shouldn’t secretly bring and eat food from the outside. Just order online and they can eat the food with ease. The words “安心食” (eat with ease) is a play on the term “安心偷食” (cheating with ease) and also a play on Hui’s name.
EF English Centers
The Hong Kong learning center directly slammed the cheating couple when it explained the meaning of the term “Be in the dark” in of their latest post. “You thought no one would notice because it’s dark. Young lad, you are too naive. Oopps, you’re not young anymore. Everyone must remember that heaven’s eyes are everywhere.” The post also asked its readers to beware of those wearing “green hat”, a slang for having been cuckolded.
Lee Kin Driving School
https://www.instagram.com/p/BwUI1pVB4pv/
The driving school encourages people to become taxi drivers as they will be able to broaden their horizon and get high payment. This is because the taxi driver who filmed the scandal received a large amount of payment from the tabloids. The ad also cheekily include a cap and mask, symbolising Hui and Wong.
Source: Marketing Interactive
