Kay O’Lacey
Online retail owners Suzy and David Lee were surprised to receive a visit from two detectives investigating a complaint of a possible ‘hate crime’ related to their sale of dog toys.
“We’ve been importing pet accessories from China for many years and selling them online. We’ve even got a 100% rating on TradeMe on a total of 201,576 sales!
“We came up with the idea of launching the Jacinda Soft Fabric Dog Chew Toy made as a replica of the real thing (including an in-built squeaker) after watching the PM on TV day after day in the first 2020 lockdowns. She was our hero – saving us from COVID! And everybody else absolutely adored her – she was just so trustworthy, and we were in love!
“We thought that we couldn’t go wrong by placing an order with our factory for 50,000 ‘Jacinda Toys’ for delivery before Christmas 2020. However, with supply-chain issues, they didn’t turn up until October 2022! So disappointing, especially because Jacinda’s poll rating and popularity and trustworthiness had absolutely plummeted meantime.”
“It came as a complete surprise then that these toys literally flew off our shelves as soon as they arrived. They’ve been our best-seller ever, and we’ve none left already!”.
“However the detectives told us that most sales were not even to dog owners and that people were buying the toys for various ‘unintended uses’ after some Tik-Face videos went viral. These showed people backing their cars over the toys, using them as Voodoo dolls by sticking pins in them, throwing them from tall buildings, and even roasting them on the barbecue. We didn’t know, and have to say that none of these uses is covered by our warranty!”
“We think that we’re likely to be let off with a warning but the detectives advised us that ordering more of the toys ‘would definitely NOT be a good idea.’
