Grey Toronto’s Not Allowed is a stunt. But it’s a re-enactment of real life. A bloke rides his skateboard into a Kroger store. And is told he must not. A woman is told to remove her dog. A mum is told her child’s water pistol must be taken outside.
A man carries a semi-automatic rifle on his back. He is allowed to.
Grey created the film for Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense. It is accompanied by the World’s Longest Receipt, a website in which people add their shopping receipts (from stores with a no gun policy) to a growing tally of money, “not spent at a Kroger store,” until the chain amends its gun policy.
Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, noted, “Our new ad shows how Kroger policies are inconsistent and alarming – particularly given that the laws in a majority of states do not require a background check, permitting or even training to open carry a firearm. In all states, businesses have an obligation to protect their employees and patrons and until Kroger steps up, Moms will put our money where our mouths are and shop at stores that put our safety first like Safeway and Alberstons.”
Kroger’s competitors, Safeway and Albertsons now ban guns in more than 2,000 grocery stores in 34 states and the District of Columbia. Target, Costco and Whole Foods had already done so.
Moms Demand Action has also launched a petition calling on Kroger Family of Stores president and chief operating officer, Michael Ellis and W. Rodney McMullen, to prohibit open carry of guns in its supermarkets. The petition has more than 360,000 signatures.
Moms Demand Action’s Kroger campaign follows similar efforts aimed at Target, Starbucks, Chipotle, Sonic, Chili’s and Jack in the Box. These companies acted swiftly to enforce or adopt policies that prohibit open carry, to protect the safety of their employees and customers.
Creative Credits:
Agency: Grey Toronto
Chief creative officer: Patrick Scissons
Copywriter: Patrick Scissons
Agency producer: Erica Metcalfe
Production company: Spy Films
Director: Tamir Moscovici
Editing: Rooster Post
Post production: Fort York VFX
Audio: Apollo
