Good and Bad PR: Haart, vapes, In-N-Out and Lidl

The sun has appeared like the shining ball of positivity that we all needed after 56 months of winter. So what better time to have a goosey gander through the media hits and non-hits of the last 7 days and hand out some Good and Bad PR gongs?

Haart U-turn on car policy shows estate agents do have a soul after all

Nottingham-based estate agents, Haart, seemed to take a whopping two days before they finally believed its crisis communications consultant that changing an outdated policy could rid them of a PR headache.

Alanah Thomphson French applied for a job with the company but was declined because her Citroen was over 10 years old. The estate agents initially said that this was because old cars are more prone to breaking down, especially given the miles that their job entails. The BBC, HR specialists and Alanah were not having it.

By the end of the day of the story first breaking on the BBC, several other major outlets had picked up on it. Two days later the company did a U-turn and offered her an interview. There were so many potential PR wins for brands with this story. Citroen could have issued a statement or given the car a free service. A rival estate agent could have swept in and offered her an interview.

Instead though, Haart gave in to its comms advisors and fixed it. Unusually for a crisis comms moment, they issued quite a wordy statement. My favourite line from it was this: “We are so impressed by Alanah's tenacity in raising the issue…". If I reverse translate this from HR speak, it means, “the uppity f*cker has got an interview out of all of this”.

Bad PR by Haart for the initial response and taking so long to see sense.

The Kent meningitis outbreak puts the Vaping sector under the media microscope

The barometer for any story gaining mainstream traction is when my teens come home from school and ask me about it. Last week, after a school talk from a British Army recruiter, they were very concerned they were going to get drafted for WW3. That took some calming down.

This week, there has been a meningitis outbreak. All of them have asked me what the symptoms are. Interestingly, the element that has got through to them is the tabloid speculation that communal vape usage has helped spread the outbreak. Their angelic status was further evidenced by them declaring themselves “safe” as they have never vaped. I just smiled.

Anyway, as soon as the vape-involvement speculation started spreading in the media, the tobacco industry, who are largely behind some of the biggest vape brands in the UK, clearly (in my opinion) kicked their expensive lobbying agencies into action.

A flood of fact-checking stories appeared, even on the likes of Channel 4. Unfortunately for the brands, though, most of the scientists agreed that vapes could, in theory, contribute to the outbreak. It will be interesting to see vape sales figures for March, April 2026 when the stats come out. I expect to see a sharp decline.

A serious story, needless to say, and our condolences to the families of the victims of the meningitis outbreak in Kent.

In-N-Out win money-can’t buy publicity from Michael B Jordan Oscars party detour

The fast-food brand has steadily become the must-attend burger place for the stars after the big Oscars event. Michael B Jordan was the latest Oscar winner to be snapped eating at the restaurant after his win.

Since 2005, a long list of celebs have had a cheeky burger after the event at In-N-Out. These include Hilary Swank, Julia Roberts, Jamie Lee Curtis and even Steven Spielberg. Michael B Jordan was said to have signed autographs and gone along with all the fun. He is rumoured to have had a triple burger, and I am guessing he ate it in a slightly more convincing way than the McDonalds CEO did in his own latest social video that has become a fantastic meme.

Maybe Timothy Chalamet needs to get down there to try and restore his own brand reputation after his comments that “no one cares” about ballet and opera. Ouch.

Good PR for In-N-Out.

Lidl opens 19 new stores over 8 weeks in England

Regular readers will know that there is nothing I dislike more than brands announcing a swathe of new store or restaurant openings just to get the publicity and then not delivering.

I never needed to have any doubts about Lidl when it said in early 2026 that it was planning to open 19 new stores in 8 weeks. It has proudly and deservedly crowed very publicly about hitting that target and creating over 650 new jobs.

Comms people will doff their caps at the discount supermarket brand. As we all know, new store openings are fraught with risk, delays and headaches, so delivering on time and winning all the various regional media plaudits is award-winning-worthy.

Great PR for Lidl.

Bakery giveaway “Yum Yums for Single Mums” turns into viral sensation

Bakery79 in Marlow has created a viral sensation. To mark Mother’s Day, it announced it was going to give away a free cake to single mums. All mums had to do was march up to the counter and say the rather catchy “Yum Yums for Single Mums” and they would get a free, you guessed it, Yum Yum.

I am sure someone somewhere will take offence to the simplistic campaign, but the fact that now loads of people are saying this phrase shows it has landed very well.

Good PR for Bakery79