The Swatch Group has issued an apology after receiving significant backlash over a marketing campaign deemed racially insensitive by consumers.
The Swiss watchmaker released an advertising campaign for its Essentials collection, which featured an Asian model making a ‘slanted eye’ gesture. The promotion triggered severe backlash on social media, with calls for widespread boycotts of Swatch brands. The company has since issued an apology over social media.
“We have taken note of the recent concerns regarding the portrayal of a model in images for the Swatch Essentials collection,” the statement reads.
“We treat this matter with the utmost importance and have immediately removed all related materials worldwide. We sincerely apologise for any distress or misunderstanding this may have caused.”
Swatch reportedly generates approximately one-quarter of group sales from China, Hong Kong, and Macau markets. Despite the apology, many social media users criticised the response as insufficient, characterising it as a deflection of responsibility by branding the offence as a ‘misunderstanding.’
“In 2021, there was a widespread Chinese boycott against global fashion brands like H&M, Nike and Adidas after they expressed concern over alleged human rights abuses in Xinjiang province,” explains Koh Ewe of BBC News.
“Last year, some tried to boycott Japanese clothing store Uniqlo after the company said it did not source cotton from Xinjiang.
“Italian fashion house Dolce & Gabbana was also the target of such a boycott in 2018, after it posted videos showing a Chinese model using chopsticks clumsily to eat Italian food. Its products were pulled from Chinese e-commerce sites, and the brand cancelled its Shanghai fashion show as critics said the ad depicted Chinese women in a stereotypical and racist way.”
Swatch, which oversees brands such as Blancpain, Harry Winston, Longines, Omega, and Tissot, reported a 10 per cent decline in revenue for the first half of the financial year.
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