August 15, 2014

"I had never expected to receive such a thing from a company with a caliber such as yours, and am saddened that I will no longer to be able to shop with you."

Lands' End was just trying to "reward our valued customers with magazine subscriptions highlighting fashion and lifestyle topics," but the parents who were buying school uniforms were shocked at the magazine that was selected for them: GQ.

17 comments:

George M. Spencer said...

If you read other articles about this, you find that in the past Conde Nast has instead sent out copies of Glamour, Self, and Vogue.

Glamour and Self may not have near nudes on the cover, but their articles are far raunchier than GQ's in terms of giving graphic sex advice, as well as advising girls to eat tree bark to stay thin.

And, of course, Vogue, is all about upholding the values of midwestern Moms who send their kids to Christian academies.

Fernandinande said...

shocked

Shocked, I tells ya!

Is CQ "The Authority on Amateur Radio' for more than 65 years" or is CQ the
"Congressional Quarterly"
?

I'm guessing the former because electricity.

The Godfather said...

I didn't know GQ had covers like that. I thought for mainstream porn you had to wait for the SI swimsuit issue or Vanity Fair just about any month.

HoodlumDoodlum said...

I am certain there's a homophobia angle here. Dig deep, people!

Julie C said...

A few days ago I got that email from Lands End and could not imagine what the cover of the magazine looked like to bring about that kind of response (from both customers and Lands End management).

Yesterday the magazine came in the mail. Wowza.

I'm no prude but I can see how somebody who did not expect a cover like that to show up in her mailbox would be shocked.

Clyde said...

I understand that Obamacare will cover the surgery for those people to get those sticks up their asses removed.

Anonymous said...

I'd be more offended that they made a unilateral decision to spam me at my home with an unauthorized dead tree packet of ads.

Magazines haven't been a "gift" in quite some time.

Ann Althouse said...

I've been getting Allure magazine, and I have not understood why. Some catalog order caused this to be selected for me? I've been offended by the covers: the photography is murky and the models look awful, with cheap, crappy makeup and shoddy, slovenly hair. Quite gross. I'd rather have the naked lady.

bearing said...

I'm guessing this is how I got InStyle magazine. Straight into the recycle bin it goes.

You don't have to have a stick up your ass to be concerned if you have kids who help you out by getting the mail The cover was of a female model, nude except for some strategically draped flowers.

Sam vfm #111 said...

What SOJO said.

The last thing I want is more junk in my mailbox and I consider all magazines as junk.

HoodlumDoodlum said...

Ann Althouse said...I'd rather have the naked lady.

You and me both, ma'am.

HoodlumDoodlum said...

For context, here is a link to the actual cover:

July 2014 GQ Cover picture

As you can plainly see, the model is not wearing "just a lei," since that's clearly a tiny black bikini bottom she's tugging at.

Now, in this picture from her series, yeah, there's just sand:

Wow.

Are magazine subscriptions available through an Amazon portal, I wonder?

Revenant said...

I pity that poor woman's husband, if she thinks that cover qualifies as "obscene".

Poor guy probably hasn't gotten laid -- at home, anyway -- in 14 years.

Anonymous said...

I am so old I remember when Lands End was a catalog of tackle and other supplies for sailboats.

Rusty said...

Where does one obtain this racy periodical so I can be offended too.

Paco Wové said...

"the model is not wearing "just a lei," ... a tiny black bikini bottom..."

And oil. Lots of oil.

Not what I'd normally expect from the Land's End catalog, in truth. Where's my chinos and oxford shirt?

DavidD said...

Land's End hasn't been a company with a caliber worth lamenting since it was acquired by Sears.