Business

ASA bans Jaded London ad for glamorising smoking

Published

2 hours ago

5 August 2026

ASA bans Jaded London ad for glamorising smoking

The Advertising Standards Authority has banned a marketing email sent by fashion brand Jaded London, ruling on 5 August that an image of a model holding a lit cigarette irresponsibly glamorised smoking.

The regulator upheld a single complaint about the email, which was sent on 27 May and showed a model standing by a scooter next to a body of water, wearing a pink backless mini dress with her back to the camera.

In its ruling, the ASA said the ad depicted “a young woman in fashionable clothing and accessories standing in front of a scooter next to a body of water, which the ASA considered evoked an aspirational holiday lifestyle”.

“She was holding a slim cigarette with visible ash at the tip, and we considered that suggested it was lit,” the watchdog said.

It added that the image was “heavily stylised and presented the model in a fashionable and attractive manner”. By associating that image with smoking, the ASA said, the ad “had the effect of portraying smoking as appealing and therefore irresponsibly glamorised it”.

The ad breached rule 1.3 of the CAP Code, which requires marketing communications to be prepared with a sense of responsibility to consumers and to society.

The ASA told Jaded London the ad must not appear again in the form complained about, and told the company to ensure future marketing communications were socially responsible and did not glamorise smoking.

Responding to the watchdog, Jaded London said it was not clear whether the model was holding a cigarette because it appeared slimmer than a typical cigarette and no smoke was visible in the image. It said that if viewers understood the object to be a cigarette, it did not appear to be lit.

The company also said the cigarette was not the focus of the ad because it was “less prominent than other elements of the image, such as the model’s clothing and accessories”.

Jaded London told the ASA it understood why it was best to avoid images of models holding cigarettes, and confirmed it would not use smoking content in future ads. The ASA said it welcomed that assurance but concluded the ad was irresponsible and breached the code.

Jaded London was founded in 2013 by siblings Jade Camber and Grant Goulden. Its clothes have been worn by Beyoncé and Kylie Jenner and are stocked in shops including Selfridges and Urban Outfitters. The brand has 1.5 million Instagram followers and recorded £51m of sales in the year to June 2025.

It is the second complaint the ASA has upheld against the company. In December 2024, the regulator banned an Instagram post promoting a footwear collaboration, ruling that images of women positioned between motorbike wheels objectified and sexualised them and were likely to cause serious offence.

The watchdog has taken a similar line with other clothing retailers over image-led marketing. In February 2022 it ruled that a Boohoo promotion featuring a model in a T-shirt and bikini bottoms was staged in a “sexually suggestive” way and told the retailer to prepare future ads with a sense of responsibility to consumers and society. In May this year the regulator banned two adverts for British beef and milk after concluding the carbon footprint claims they carried could not be substantiated.

At the time of writing, Jaded London’s Instagram feed contained several other images of people smoking while wearing its clothes.

A spokesperson for the ASA told Business Matters it was unable to comment on whether the other posts broke the rules without them going through its formal process.

“We’d always encourage anyone who has a concern about an ad they’ve seen to report it to us,” they added.

Jaded London was approached for comment.

Business

Capricorn Metals Shares Jump Over 8% as Gold Miner Lifts Reserves 33% to Fuel Blistering Rally This Year

Published

5 minutes ago

5 August 2026

NewsAdmin

Capricorn Metals Shares Jump Over 8% as Gold Miner Lifts

PERTH — Shares of Capricorn Metals Ltd surged 8.16% on Wednesday to close at $14.115, extending one of the standout rallies among Australian gold producers this year, as the Western Australian miner continues to benefit from a combination of strong operational execution, rising bullion prices and a substantial upgrade to its mineral reserve base.

The gain builds on a remarkable run for Capricorn shares in 2026, with the stock climbing more than 100% over the trailing 12 months, according to recent trading data, comfortably outpacing both the broader S&P/ASX 200 index and the wider Australian metals and mining sector. Over the past six months alone, the stock has outperformed the ASX All Ordinaries Index by more than 50 percentage points, reflecting sustained investor demand for exposure to the company’s growing gold production base.

A Major Reserve Upgrade

A key catalyst behind the company’s recent strength was an announcement of a 33% increase in group ore reserves to 5.24 million ounces, alongside a 29% lift in group mineral resources to 8.66 million ounces. The upgrade spans both the company’s flagship Karlawinda Gold Project and the emerging Mt Gibson Gold Project, materially extending mine life and production potential across its portfolio.

At Karlawinda, reserves now stand at approximately 1.57 million ounces, underpinning a planned expansion of production capacity to 150,000 ounces per year and supporting a mine life of around ten years at that elevated production rate. The reserve growth has given investors greater confidence in the durability of Capricorn’s production profile at a time when gold miners across the sector have faced questions about the sustainability of near-term output given rising development and operating costs.

Riding a Broader Gold Sector Rally

Capricorn’s gains this week have also come against the backdrop of a broader rally across Australian gold equities, with elevated bullion prices continuing to support margins for unhedged producers such as Capricorn. As a pure-play gold producer with limited exposure to other commodities, unlike more diversified miners, Capricorn’s share price performance tends to track closely with both broader gold sector fundamentals and the company’s own ability to convert those favorable conditions into operational execution and production growth.

Wednesday’s move outpaced the broader materials sector, which also finished the session higher, with the S&P/ASX 200 index climbing 1.40% to close at a fresh record. The S&P/ASX 200 Materials index added a further 1.08%, providing a supportive backdrop for mining stocks more broadly, though Capricorn’s gains notably exceeded the sector average, reflecting company-specific enthusiasm on top of the broader tailwind.

Analysts Point to More Than Just Commodity Prices

Market analysts have cautioned that commodity price appreciation alone is insufficient to fully explain the scale of Capricorn’s outperformance relative to peers, noting that equity valuations tend to expand more significantly when producers demonstrate operational resilience combined with favorable macro conditions. Capricorn’s consistent delivery against production guidance, disciplined portfolio management and its recent reserve upgrades have all been cited as factors that have helped the company command a premium among investors relative to some of its Australian gold sector peers.

A Strong Balance Sheet

The company’s financial position has continued to strengthen alongside its operational growth, with rising free cash flow generation supporting further investment in exploration and development activity across its project portfolio. That financial flexibility has been viewed by analysts as an important factor in the company’s ability to fund the kind of reserve growth demonstrated in its most recent update without requiring significant additional external capital.

With gold prices remaining elevated and Capricorn continuing to deliver on both production targets and resource growth, the company’s shares are likely to remain closely watched by investors seeking exposure to the Australian gold sector. The durability of the current rally will likely depend on the company’s ability to continue translating its expanded reserve base into sustained production growth, as well as the broader trajectory of gold prices in the months ahead.