Sunday, May 6, 2012

Local Business Calling You Fat?


Is a local business calling you fat? Buy a bike…somewhere else! 

It usually takes something either extremely touching or extremely offensive to get me blogging on a Sunday evening. Unfortunately, this particular blog is in response to the latter.

I support local businesses. So last year, when I was in the market for a new bike, I browsed at the local bike shops and settled on an affordable and comfortable bicycle from Buzz's bikes, where I've brought my bicycle-related business over the years.

Shortly after buying my bike, I noticed this sign at Buzz's:


Now, I'm no expert in marketing or business strategies, but I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that one of the biggest rules is "Don't outright offend your customers." Attempting to sell bikes to women by making them feel bad about their bodies is downright shameful. I was bothered by the sign when I saw it, and even my husband remarked that it was extremely offensive. I had forgotten all about it until today, when a friend mentioned being offended by Buzz's signs, and saw that their current sign, which they shared with the caption "Happy Mother's Day!" says:


Because what every mother wants for Mother's day is a family who is thinking about how fat she is, rather than about all the love and energy she devotes to them.

But wait! Buzz's made sure the men got a healthy dose of body shaming too!



Buzz’s is so proud of their body-shaming slogans that they even offer them on t-shirts!

Bicycling is about much more than being less fat. Many cyclists are more motivated by cardiovascular benefits, building strength and endurance, engaging in camaraderie in the diverse local biking community, and using an economical and environmentally friendly mode of transportation than they are by who thinks they’re fat. Drawing attention to the many and varied benefits of cycling would be a far more effective and less offensive means of selling bicycles.

This is one fat bicycling mother who will happily take her business to Blue Heron Bicycle Works, where they are more concerned with helping people ride than they are making them feel bad about their bodies.




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19 comments:

  1. Great post, Joella. I love this.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you, and thanks for sharing it! :)

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  2. Does this place have plus size section? If I look poor will they keep me in the cheap bike section?

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  3. I guess people always have to find something to bitch about.

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    1. Indeed! If you're interested in a lecture about your use of misogynist language, hit me up! :)

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  4. Anonymous is right. Get a life..shop somewhere else and shut your mouth. Nobody cares what you think..

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    1. You must be new here. You're welcome to hang around not caring what I think, but you might be disappointed to know that shushing me is pretty ineffective. :)

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  5. Don't you know that offensiveness is the new thing? It's edgy! Clearly, since you're not cool enough to embrace misogyny and body-shaming, your money isn't good enough for these super edgy shop owners (or their anonymous cohorts who are so unconcerned with your thoughts that they've gone to all this trouble to comment).

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  6. You should see what they put on their billboard for canoes!

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  7. Great post! Thank you for sharing! :)

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  8. According to recent medical research, people who exercise regularly weigh, on average, about 5 pounds less than people who don't exercise at all. Exercise is good for health. It doesn't make everyone thin. As a fat activist, I celebrate weight diversity and enjoy a Health At Every Size® approach, which is about behaviors that support health for all of us, not about weight. (Linda Bacon wrote a good book about it, with the research I mention, and lots more good info.)

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  9. Sorry, my comment, above, is from me: Marilyn Wann. Didn't mean to be anonymous.

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  10. I don't understand who thought this would be clever.

    I also don't understand why people come to your blog to put mean anonymous comments. That makes sense, right?

    Really though, I can't believe anyone thought it would be a good idea to use those signs. I would be pissed if I saw them as well.

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  11. I wonder if the people who tell you to shut up and just go elsewhere are the same people who will willingly give up their civil liberties because they don't want to speak up.
    I am in no way a fat activist, but I do my best to stay healthy. I'm not thin but I hate that they insinuate that if you have some extra poundage you may be unhealthy.

    When businesses stop caring what customers think they'll stop doing business.

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  12. I am a horrible person for saying what I said before. Really, I'm ashamed that I didn't realize that making fun of others went out of style in the 3rd grade. I can't tell people my name because to do so means they might confront me in person and I'm a coward. Thank you for letting me post my earlier anonymous comments, the rude ones, the inaccurate ones, and even the anti-feminist ones. I'm sorry I'm a bad person, I just need help I'm unable to get. Sincerely ~Anonymous

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  13. That is pretty shameful. Wow.

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  14. You can basically call me dumb, stupid, ugly or whatever. The second someone calls me fat, I burst into tears. No amount of "I'm sorry's" can take that back.
    With the best and Affordable Women's Clothing in USA you can buy a wide range of women cloths.

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