"Superstore mum after man seriously injured while returning grocery cart"

I was in B.C. when this story broke. It was everywhere and Superstore looked really bad. Their approach turned an unfortunate incident into a crisis for their brand. Millions of potential shoppers have been left with a rather unpleasant perception of Superstore and their parent, Loblaw Companies.

Textbook case on how not to handle communications. I think someone at Loblaw Companies should have taken two steps back from their legal department and consulted with a public relations professional. There are ways of handling situations like these without accepting responsibility (financial liability), with or without the Apology Act.

You sometimes hear people say that "All publicity is good publicity"; not so in this case. Their approach can end up costing them through not only a potential claim by a now irritated Yau family but also through reduced customer loyalty due to a damaged image.

Handled well, two things would have happened:

1. The story would have virtually vanished on day one.
2. The company would have actually walked away with an enhanced image.

Moral of this story: If your communications consultant tells you that this is the textbook method of handling an incident, throw away their textbook and call a professional.