Gordon Ramsay is axed as the face of Gordon's gin as sales fall
GORDON Ramsay has been dropped as the craggy face of Gordon’s gin after sales started to fall.
GORDON Ramsay has been dropped as the craggy face of Gordon’s gin after sales started to fall.
In a new blow to the foul-mouthed chef’s ailing empire, he has been replaced in the ads by Ashes to Ashes star Philip Glenister and actress Emilia Fox.
Ramsay, 44, has promoted the drink since 2007 with his TV shows, including Ramsay’s Cookalong and Kitchen Nightmares, also being sponsored by the brand.
Billboards showed him smiling in his chef’s whites as he is soaked by gin, with lime wedges falling on his head.
But a source said: “Gordon just doesn’t cut the mustard anymore. He is not what the brand needs and they are looking for a new, more positive direction.
Glenister, 48, who played Quattro-driving DCI Gene Hunt in Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes, is said to be a more likeable character. And Emilia, 37 – Dr Nikki Alexander in Silent Witness – has been brought in as his on-screen girlfriend to add a touch of glamour and a “classier image”.
In November 2009, Ramsay was blamed by industry insiders for a 3% slump in sales of Gordon’s. Trade magazine The Grocer quoted brand expert Alan Morrison, consultant at the Value Engineers, saying: “I’m not sure a foul-mouthed, top-flight chef with a bad reputation is what they are looking for.”
Kate Waddell, head of consumer brands at Dragon Rouge, added: “Ramsay has been over-hyped and commercialised. When a category is in the ascendant, this would seem the wrong tack to be pursuing.”
But, at the time, the company stuck by him and continued with their deal before quietly dropping him earlier this year.
Ramsay has been dogged by problems with his restaurant and TV career in recent years, as well as being hit by claims of an extra-marital affair. In 2010, he revealed he had poured £5million into his business at the end of 2008 to prevent it collapsing into administration.
He recently signed a new deal with Channel 4 but was forced to take a big pay cut as shows like Kitchen Nightmares and The F Word slumped in ratings.
Ramsay is also embroiled in a bitter feud with his former business partner and father-in-law Chris Hutcheson, who was sacked as chief executive of his restaurant company in October.
Legal documents lodged at the High Court allege Hutcheson masterminded a spy operation on his own daughter with help from computer expert Kevin Fung. Hutcheson denies the claims.
A spokesman for Diageo GB, who make Gordon’s gin, confirmed they were no longer working with Ramsay.
A source close to the chef said he had a “fixed term deal” with the brand that ended earlier this year.
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