Lad’s mag Zoo Weekly taken off shelves at Coles

A YOUNG woman has succeeded in having popular men’s magazine Zoo Weekly pulled from the shelves of Coles, and is calling for Woolworths to do the same.

The cover of the latest edition of Zeeo Weekly Australia. Picture: Supplied

A YOUNG woman has succeeded in having popular men’s magazine Zoo Weekly pulled from the shelves of Coles, and is calling for Woolworths to do the same.

Laura Pintur, 23, from activist group Collective Shout, accumulated 40,000 signatures calling on the supermarket heavyweights to remove the lad’s magazine, which is littered with photos of busty bikini-clad women, from stands.

“I have seen and experienced first-hand the detrimental costs of what this magazine endorses, not only in my life but the lives of other young people,” Pintur said.

“Magazines like Zoo promote attitudes that lead to violence against women.” Coles bowed to pressure, telling AAP on Thursday it “made the commercial decision to delete Zoo Magazine following a regular range review”.

Pintur says it “promotes rape culture” and “teaches boys that girls exist purely for their sexual use”.

“By discontinuing Zoo, Coles has finally done the right thing for women and girls,” she told AAP.

“We’re now calling on Woolworths to do the same.” Collective Shout says the campaign targeted the two supermarket giants due to their “responsibility to community” and ensuring a “supportive environment to work in”.

“We wanted to target the supermarkets because of their supposed corporate social responsibility,” co-founder Melinda Tankard Reist told AAP.

“We’re hoping that if they do the right thing, other corporates will jump on board.” Coles employee Shannen, 20, submitted an official complaint to her employer two months ago and is relieved to “no longer have to put up with selling [the] magazine”.

A spokesman from Woolworths said they position the Zoo Weekly away from the front of the store and the check-outs “in recognition that some customers could be offended by the magazine’s content”. The retailer refused to comment on whether it would follow Coles’ lead.

Zoo Weekly’s publisher Bauer Media has been sought for comment.