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Disfigured Marvel figurine giveaway a PR disaster for Taiwan's largest supermarket chain

PX Mart spends over NT$200 million on licensing and production of Marvel superhero figurines, which were badly executed

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(Screengrab image of FB page PX Mart Be Honest)

(Screengrab image of FB page PX Mart Be Honest)

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Giveaways by Taiwan's largest supermarket chain to entice shoppers have recently gained widespread media coverage, and not because of the whopping expense of licensing from Walt Disney's Marvel Studios, but due to its miniature superhero figurines.

PX Mart recently unveiled a licensing deal with Marvel Studios, which amounts to NT$200 million (US$7.2 million), to give away mini figurines based on the superhero lineup. Consumers can get one for each in-store purchase over NT$400 and people can pay an additional NT$10 to get one more figurine.

The company manager estimated that the promotional giveaways could boost sales by 20%, which would outpace the cost.

In less than a week, complaints surfaced on all major social media platforms in the country about how the giveaways were badly executed: many of them are either disfigured or barely recognizable. Discussions about the bizarre figurines and media coverage followed.

In response, the company issued a statement that "the flaws are inevitable as there are many details in the production of the miniatures, and consumers can file for replacement."

Meanwhile, boxes labeled "Figurine Recycle" were spotted at different PX Mart stores, according to pictures shared by netizens. Questions mounted after a lot of reports of subquality giveaways as to why the company did not bother to issue a recall.

There were also sarcastic comments observed on the internet, such as "Marvel Disfigure Alliance," "that wounds left from severe fights make them barely recognizable," "more scares than surprises."

The giveaway promotion is in fact part of the supermarket giant's ambition to create more possibilities for the store, apart from boosting sales. PX Mart is tapping into the metaverse mania by integrating mobile augmented reality into selected stores, and unlike with the figurines, the Marvel characters in the AR app appear as they are supposed to.