Company apologises for 50 goldfish accidentally killed in publicity stunt

The head of an Australian media company involved in the deaths of more than 50 goldfish in a publicity stunt gone wrong has apologised for the incident. Advantage SA and its co-brand Advantage Adelaide delivered 55 goldfish in a bowl with the text: “Be the big fish in a small pond and come test the water,” as a promo gift to encourage media agencies to promote South Australia.

The company says the fish were hand-delivered alive to the offices of media reps and left with six months worth of food. Unfortunately, many didn’t survive the wait for their intended recipients, leaving many unimpressed media workers at their next shift. Advantage SA chief Karen Raffen has since apologised for the debacle.



“We offer our sincere apologies. There was absolutely no intention to cause distress or harm to the fish,” Ms Raffen said. She said the company had already received several complaints and urged all media agencies with unwanted fish to return them. “We are willing to collect any fish not being looked after and provide them with a good and healthy home,” Ms Raffen said.

In a later statement, Ms Raffen tried to explain the logic behind the stunt. “Advantage SA included goldfish as part of an invitation to come to Adelaide… because SA is a small market it often gets bypassed when national brands are planning their media spend. However, she later said: “In hindsight we would probably not do this again.” The company says it will be making contributions to both the Animal Welfare League and the RSPCA.