Flux Babes' days may be numbered

The days may be numbered for Adrian Flux’s Flux Babes “promotional girls”.

The scantily-clad attendants who adorn the motor broker’s marketing events have published their last glamour calendar, and their future is “constantly under review” according to Adrian Flux general manager Paul Twite.

“The decision was taken six months ago that 2018 would be the Flux Babes’ last calendar,” he said.

As to the future, he added: “The subject of the Flux Babes is on the agenda for our next strategy meeting in March.”

The calendars are given out at motor and motorcycle events. The photos feature Flux Babes in their underwear, and some of the pictures include cars and motorcycles.

The focus on the Flux Babes comes after months of protest and revelations over harassment of women in the workplace following the Weinstein scandal. More recently, “walk on girls” have been dropped from televised darts tournaments and yesterday it was announced that Formula 1 Grand Prix will no longer have “grid girls” at races.

“There have been objections over the years, but there have been people for it too,” Twite said of the Flux Babes. “We do appreciate the arguments on both sides.”

However, he added, “We have to ask, is it time to call it a day.”

The women who comprise the Flux Babes are not hired from modelling agencies, but are Adrian Flux employees, working for the broker in various roles including sales, claims, customer service and underwriting.

“When we’re not modelling or working at Flux HQ, we’re busy touring the country promoting Adrian Flux Insurance Services at car and motorbike shows,” the Flux Babes website says.

The Flux Babes started in 2005, when, the company says, “Instead of hiring standard promotional girls, we wanted to provide knowledgeable and friendly insurance experts who were not only stunning but could answer any insurance questions you might have.”

Since then, the personnel may have changed, “but we still remain the hottest insurance experts around!” the website boasts.

Sian Fisher, chief executive of the CII, who is an advocate for diversity and inclusion and a strong role for women in insurance, questioned whether the Flux Babes campaign gave out the right message to insurance customers.

“In any marketing or communications material, be it in the insurance sector or beyond, it is imperative for professionals to treat all consumers with equal respect. If this campaign creates a negative impression of our sector this will not help us build trust with our consumers,” she said.

“Targeting messages to a particular audience is clearly an important business objective but it is imperative not to do this in a way that causes offense. This is one of the core duties listed in the CII’s Code of Ethics for professionals to treat people fairly with equal respect and opportunity.”