Wendy’s goes grey in support of LaFlamme

by Chris Powell

Another prominent brand has “gone grey” in support of Lisa LaFlamme, the CTV National News anchor who was unceremoniously dumped by Bell Media last week, with reports saying that her decision to let her hair go grey was a factor.

On Thursday, Wendy’s Canada tweeted a picture of its iconic red-haired brand mascot sporting grey hair. “Because a ⭐️ is a ⭐️ regardless of hair colour,” read the accompanying text, followed by the hashtags “#LisaLaFlamme” and “#NewProfilePic.”

The tweet has garnered more than 12,000 likes and been retweeted more than 2,100 times.

Reports that the 58-year-old LaFlamme’s grey hair could have been a factor in the decision to fire her have dominated the cultural conversation over the past 10 days, with newspaper columnists and the general public accusing CTV parent Bell Media of being both ageist and sexist.

On Monday, Dove Canada—which has made “real beauty” a core pillar of its brand for years—announced that it was turning its iconic gold dove logo grey and urged consumers to change their social media profile pictures to grey as part of a campaign called “#KeepTheGrey.”

While it doesn’t have the same reputation for championing healthy beauty standards for women as Dove, Wendy’s has long been regarded as one of the best brands on Twitter for its chatty, playful personality, and a willingness to join in on cultural conversations.

Though brand iconography is often considered sacrosanct, this is not the first time that Wendy’s has changed the hair on its popular mascot. Earlier this year, it announced its arrival in London’s Camden neighbourhood by giving Wendy an emo makeover, which included what the brand described as a “flowing emo fringe.” The Wendy’s logo is famously based on founder Dave Thomas’s daughter Wendy, who today is 60 years old (though not obviously grey).

Chris Powell