The marketing department of a German company that sells drivetrain technologies, Vitesco Technologies, managed to upset a lot of people. On one of its billboards placed in the city center of Temesvár/Timișoara, it wrote:
“Diversity means that we work with the most exotic people. With Moldovans, for example.”
Moldova is the relatively poor and urbanely less developed northeastern region of Romania, with many people from there traditionally seaking employment – or resettlement – to the country’s more affluent urban centers.
Many have expressed their indignation on social media platforms like Facebook and Reddit, saying that the attribute “exotic” is offensive to Moldovans. Dorin Dobrincu, a historian from Iași, called the advertisement “blunt.” According to others, the ad is good exactly because it made waves on social media. “It is the third time I’ve seen this ad. A street billboard gets into social media and goes viral there. This means that the marketing is brilliant,” wrote one commenter.
According to the company, they only wanted to emphasize that “diversity is important” and said: “We did not mean to insult any nation or culture.” Alina Bratu, the communications director of Vitesco Technologies, said on Reddit that they got the inspiration for the ad from a German campaign where originally Bavarians were called exotic.
She said that for Romania, they created seven texts for the ad: For ads in Timișoara, the Moldovans are called exotic; in Iași, the Oltenians and Transylvanians are called exotic; while in Sibiu, people from Banat are exotic.
“Humor is the privilege of the intelligent people we work with and with whom we will continue to work. I am also from Moldova, and I am proud of my origin,” the director wrote.
Featured photo: ziare.com
