Balenciaga issues apology after furious reaction to ad campaigns – latest

Balenciaga is by no means the first fashion brand to find itself mired in controversy over a tasteless ad campaign, but journalist Lorraine King believes this is not their first offence.

She tweeted: “I wish they had been cancelled when they started trolling working class people. I’m glad they finally are now. Terrible company.”

The accompanying tweet included images of Balenciaga products based on shopping bags and safety gear.

Other examples from the luxury fashion house include a handbag modelled on a bag of potato chips:

And the “most expensive trash bag in the world”.

Meredith Clark unwraps everything we know so far about the controversial ad campaigns and the subsequent fallout.

Journalist and author Omid Scobie tweeted on Sunday night that he had given away all of the Balenciaga clothes he owns.

“Got rid of all my Balenciaga this weekend. I loved that brand but no apology can ever be enough for what they let happen. Cancelled for good,” he tweeted.

The Finding Freedom author later clarified when asked how he had disposed of the clothes: “Charity shop. It would be a waste to trash or destroy items of value that someone else may want (or want to buy and resell). Plus that’s what I’ve always done with unwanted clothes (unless it’s a major piece — then I’ll use Vestiaire).

On Monday, Balenciaga issued a second apology going into further detail about the two ad campaigns and attempting to explain where mistakes were made:

The Independent’s Chelsea Ritschel has the details:

The Spanish fashion label has not only apologised for the ads but has also filed a lawsuit against the production company responsible for a controversial ad campaign in which court documents from a Supreme Court opinion on child pornography were visible.

The suit, which was filed on 25 November in the New York State Supreme Court, accuses production company North Six Inc – and its agent, Nicholas Des Jardins – of engaging in “inexplicable acts and omissions” that were “malevolent or, at the very least, extraordinarily reckless.”

Balenciaga is seeking $25m in monetary damages.

Meredith Clark has the details.

Bella Hadid is not alone in distancing herself from Balenciaga in light of the fallout from the controversial ad campaign.

Kim Kardashian has revealed that she is “re-evaluating” her relationship with the luxury fashion house.

“As a mother of four, I have been shaken by the disturbing images,” she said in a social media statement.

Peony Hirwani reports on what else the Skims owner said.

Supermodel Bella Hadid appears to have deleted photos of her wearing clothes from Balenciaga’s spring 2023 campaign from her Instagram amid criticism directed at the fashion brand over two of its recent campaigns.

On Wednesday, National Geographic photographer Gabriele Galimberti addressed the criticism in an Instagram statement, which he said he felt “compelled to make” following the “hundreds of hate mails and messages I received as a result of the photos I took for the Balenciaga campaign”.

Chelsea Ritschel reports on what he said about the controversy.

Balenciaga has apologised after backlash over a recent ad campaign, which featured children holding teddy bears dressed in bondage gear and an image of a Supreme Court opinion on a child pornography case.

On Tuesday, the Spanish fashion label issued a statement to its Instagram story. “We sincerely apologise for any offense our holiday campaign may have caused,” the statement read. “Our plush bear bags should not have been featured with children in this campaign. We have immediately removed the campaign from all platforms.”