In a recent article I wrote for NZ Entrepreneur magazine ( It's not cricket), I talked about the risks of breaching the Major Events Management Act 2007 (MEMA) by engaging in ambush marketing during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 competition.
It appears that Calendar Girls strip club hadn't read my article. It arranged for a plane to tow a banner over Eden Park advertising its 'Gentlemen's Club' during the recent game between the New Zealand Black Caps and Australia.
A Calendar Girls spokesman refused to say whether its business had benefited from the advertising. Apparently a number of male patrons spoken to after the game refused to say whether they would be visiting Calendar Girls as a result of the banner advertising.
The advertising banner clearly breached MEMA (Cricket World Cup 2015) and Calendar Girls was issued with a formal warning letter by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE). Not quite 'being out for a duck' as I suggested in my earlier article, but still exposing the Calendar Girls' business to a potential prosecution and fine up to $150,000 if it breaches the Act again in the future.
There is a risk that MBIE's response by only issuing a warning will result in other businesses contemplating some form of ambush marketing during the rest of the tournament. We will just have to wait and see.
