Swatch says sorry for ‘slant eye’ ad after social media backlash in China
Users condemn ad as ‘racist’, say it is terrible to ‘disgust Asians and degrade Chinese’ when ‘watch industry is going downhill’
In statements posted to Instagram and China’s Weibo on Saturday, the Swatch Group sought to “sincerely apologise for any distress or misunderstanding this may have caused”.
The company said it had taken note of the “recent concerns” regarding the portrayal of a model in images for a men’s watch collection.
“We treat this matter with the utmost importance and have immediately removed all related materials worldwide,” it added.
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Swatch says sorry for ‘slanted eyes’ ad after social media backlash in China
China remains a lucrative market for international luxury brands, but global retailers are increasingly grappling with challenges in the world’s second-largest economy, including rising nationalism, an economic slowdown and shifting consumer preferences.