Life

Pink Truck To Solve All Lady Problems

by Alanna Greco

When’s the last time you saw something at a store and thought "Gee, I would really like that (insert name of item here), too bad it’s for boys!" but then you saw the same thing, let’s call it a leaf blower, in pink and were like "Score! Now I can buy a leaf blower because it’s for girls too!" Does this ever actually happen? Do advertisers really think that a) women won’t buy something because its target audience is male or b) making some pink will make it appealing? I’m sad to say that the answer to both of these questions is yes, they are stupid enough to think that.

In an effort to draw women to the truck driving profession, one of the least integrated around, the trained professionals at Mitsubishi Fuso Truck & Bus Corporation hatched a brilliant plan. It took all of their free time, blood, sweat, and tears, but they finally thought of a solution: paint the trucks pink. And sure enough, a pink and polka-dotted truck debuted to the world this past weekend. The team, which included nine "women core members" didn’t stop with the color. Oh, no. Slate reported that "the interior incorporates more 'cute' and 'comfort' elements in its inner panel and seat covers targeted at women drivers."

Cute and pink? Is there no end to modern innovation? More importantly, is there no end to sexist advertising? This type of blatantly sexist marketing probably won’t change the number of female truck drivers because, big surprise, it seldom works. Remember Bic for Her pens?

So, people of Mitsubishi Fuso, your plan stinks. Really, when’s the last time you saw a woman driving a pink car? Hint: never.

Image: Mitsubishi