Chinese food delivery startup plants tongue in cheek after prostitution pun catches criticism

China’s startup market is competitive. Intensely competitive. To succeed, you need to stand out, and sometimes that means courting a little controversy.

That’s exactly what Chengdu-based startup Call a Chicken, which recently raised US$1.6 million in funding, did with a recent advertisement. The advertisement read:

Hey, did you know? If you want your husband home early, you should help him call a chicken!

On its face, the message seems innocuous. But there’s a naughty play-on-words at work: the word chicken is also widely-understood slang for “prostitute.”

Apparently, not everyone was amused by the prostitution pun. In a message on its WeChat account, Call a Chicken says that an older lady has complained in the local press about the ad, calling it “vulgar.” But the company’s response cheekily refuses to admit the play-on-words, even though they were certainly aware of it. In it, Call a Chicken writes:

Please tell us, in your eyes, if “chicken” is not chicken, then what is it? We had guys look through the entire dictionary, but couldn’t find the crime you’re accusing us of. Perhaps your family doesn’t eat chicken, or perhaps you don’t want to spend the money to call a fragrant chicken for your husband. But you cannot kill the entrepreneurial passion of the post-80s generation!

The company has also started running a new ad that it hopes will be more in line with the morals of its lone critic. It reads:

If you want to be good to your parents, order them a chicken.”

Say what you will about the original ad, but I’m feeling a little peckish now.

(Source: Call a Chicken’s WeChat account)