Designer & Fashion Insiders Behavior (PLEASE READ POST #1 BEFORE POSTING)

[Deleted member 119799]

It’s a very touchy subject but I don’t think Versace should have apologized for this. Basically the apology diminishes the protests and struggles of the people in Hong Kong and will surely lose their support.

no exactly, i wish these businesses actually had the guts to take a stand when it comes to china, but ofcourse after the stefano gabbana scandal everyone's scared they'll be next.

 

[Benn98]

My two cents? This will turn out as nasty for Versace as it did for D&G. Many of the top luxury brands have a native spokesperson in China to help legitimise the brand in the market. Yang Mi is basically Fan Bingbing's replacement in terms of reach and public profile and she knows which side her bread is buttered on. She's been the spokesperson for Kors before moving to Lancome, Stuart Weitzman and Versace. Her publically turning on Versace like this makes it impossible for Donatella to hire any other spokesperson in that region because that would naturally seem as if that person cosign to the mistake. The statement was also released by her studio which means that, at the core, the decision to end her ambassador role wasn't exactly hers, must've come from way above.

Even though I think this was an innocent oversight just like the Gucci blackface one where probably Donatella nor Alessandro wasn't even aware of it, I don't expect to see Versace ads in Chinese magazines anymore. And they will probably no longer be editorialised either. To my knowledge, the informal D&G ban in fashion media is running to this day because the Chinese don't forget a bad turn. If Maria with her SJW slogan tees isn't worried yet, she should be.

Versace loses Chinese brand ambassador Yang Mi amid T-shirt controversy

• CHINA
• Sunday, 11 Aug 2019
  
  3:19 PM MYT

BEIJING (Bloomberg Versace has just lost its brand ambassador in China.

Chinese actress Yang Mi said she'll end her cooperation with the luxury fashion label after a controversy erupted online over claims that its T-shirt design defied the "One China" policy.

Yang, Versace's first Chinese brand ambassador, issued a notice to the company to end her contract and stop all work with the brand after its T-shirt listed Hong Kong as a country rather than a city. It did the same for Macau. Both are special administrative regions of China.

Yang said Versace has harmed China's sovereign and territorial integrity, according to a statement posted Sunday (Aug 11) on the official Weibo account of Jiaxing Xingguang, the actress's studio.

Versace has apologised and removed the T-shirt. Hong Kong, a former British colony, became a special administrative region of China in 1997.

Versace's T-shirt is the latest in a string of faux pas by foreign companies when it comes to dealing with China. Last year, Dolce & Gabbana's video ad that showed a Chinese model struggling to eat spaghetti and pizza with chopsticks sparked outrage and a boycott of its products.

Earlier this year, Leica Camera AG quickly distanced itself from a promotional video that prompted a backlash against the company in China for partially focusing on the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests.

The controversy around the T-shirt also comes as sensitivities around China and Hong Kong have intensified in the past two months with anti-Beijing protests in the city in their 10th week.

This weekend, the demonstrations spilled over from city streets to a sit-in at the airport, the world's third-busiest in terms of international passengers.

China also clamped down on Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd after employees of Hong Kong's dominant airline joined the protests, one of the strongest signs that Chinese authorities are losing patience with the months-long demonstrations sweeping the former British colony.

Versace apologised in its own official Weibo account post for the "wrong design" that incorrectly attached country names to cities. The T-shirts were taken off its shelves on July 24 and have been "destroyed," it said.

"This is our negligence and we are deeply sorry about the impact we caused," Versace said in the post, adding that it "resolutely respects China's sovereignty." - Bloomberg

The Star/Business of Fashion

 

[MulletProof]

and Barcelona-Spain? I’m disappointed.

 

[Benn98]

It’s a very touchy subject but I don’t think Versace should have apologized for this. Basically the apology diminishes the protests and struggles of the people in Hong Kong and will surely lose their support.

See, I don't think she gets to do that. You don't profit from a knowingly totalitarian system then turn around to criticize them. Besides, I really doubt whether she herself designed the shirt and whether it was with the above sentiments in mind.

China accounts for such a huge sales percentage of almost all the top luxury brands. And faux pas like these proves that Versace and their ilk went into that country very blindly. It seems they are only concerned with how much money they can make, not the terms and conditions attached to dealing with Chinese. It's like China is Isabella Rosellini's character in Death Becomes Her, and Donatella is Meryl's. Well, actually, in more ways than one!

 

[Mody]

For the Versace situation, I just feel sorry for them. I personally don't think they are to be blamed specially Donatella herself. Rather the long run, now outdated Internet segregation.
It basically created another species on a social culture perspective.
People live inside of China has little to no knowledge and awareness to the current state of social culture political discussion and how they are being perceived internationally even though they are always being put to the spot light regardless their views and also they have no way to defend themselves.
After a long time being portrait as this big bad on western media and the modern enemy against democracy for a prolong period of time, it is also somewhat understandable brands nowadays has limited ways of knowing what Chinese consumers are really like.
What interests me more is how re-occurring conflicts between east and west is going to impact culturally. I mean I never understand how brands can put only black and whilte models in their campaign and championed it as diversity.

 

[Benn98]

Round two: Liu Wen turns on Coach

After Versace, Now Coach Faces China Backlash Over T-Shirts

Bloomberg News
August 12, 2019, 5:55 AM GMT+2

• 
  Brand ambassador Liu Wen quits, calls for boycott grow
• 
  T-shirt, like Versace one, identifies Hong Kong as a country

Another day, another luxury brand runs afoul of political sensitivities in China.

Less than 24 hours after Versace apologized for T-shirts that defied China’s “One China policy,” American fashion label Coach is now facing backlash from Chinese consumers for a strikingly similar faux pas.

After pictures circulated online of a T-shirt allegedly sold by Coach that suggests Hong Kong and Taiwan are countries, rather than cities, calls grew over social media for a boycott of the Tapestry Inc.-owned label. Coach’s brand ambassador, Chinese supermodel Liu Wen, said Monday on Weibo that she would terminate her relationship with the brand for “seriously hurting the Chinese people’s feelings”.

Coach did not immediately respond to a request for comment. On Sunday, Versace apologized in an official Weibo post for a “wrong design”. Its T-shirts listed Hong Kong and Macau as countries, although both are special administrative regions of China. The T-shirts were taken off shelves on July 24 and have been destroyed, Versace said.

Dolce & Gabbana that showed a Chinese model struggling to eat spaghetti and pizza with chopsticks sparked outrage and a boycott of its products. Earlier this year, Leica Camera AG quickly distanced itself from a promotional video that prompted a backlash against the company in China for partially focusing on the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests.

The T-shirt controversy comes as sensitivities around China and Hong Kong have intensified in the past two months with anti-Beijing protests in the city in their 10th week. This weekend, demonstrations spilled over from city streets to a sit-in at the airport, the world’s third-busiest in terms of international passengers.

Versace’s Chinese brand ambassador Yang Mi, an actress known for films like Eternal Love and the Tiny Times series, said Sunday that she has ended her relationship with the Italian fashion house because it has harmed China’s sovereign and territorial integrity. Versace designer Donatella Versace apologized in a post on Instagram on Sunday for an “unfortunate error.“

Bloomberg/Popsugar/Huanqui.com

 

[Lola701]

I don’t get why the press try to mix this situation with D&G....
I mean, D&G made racist remarks. It’s totally removed from the conversation.

Companies acknowledging HK and Taiwan is just a common mishap in western culture. This is a cultural and diplomatic subject.

I feel sad for Versace because they didn’t need that, particularly at this very special time for the company. The same for Coach.

And we all know that neither Stuart or Donatella had anything to do with the design of a T-Shirt.

I would like to know what happens to the stores when something like that create such a backlash.

 

[Pricciao]

They won't get any of that from what I've learned. The sales on the other hand probably surfer a little. It's only a small distract really.

 

[Marc10]

In a perfect world I wish these brands would take a stand in support of Hong Kong, but of course the Chinese money is too vital for them to be that brave...

 

[MON]

I dont get the brouhaha over a shirt that lists where one could find a Versace branch. Goodness.

Its a different matter if Versace released a One With HK shirt. But this?? Its too trivial to even be talked about.

Also, this should not be equated with D&G’s blunder. False equivalence tbh. D&G was downright offensive. These cases show honest to goodness errors.... come on

So is Conde Nast/Hearst offensive now since they list HONG KONG websites independently on their global websites? Check vogue.com and you can see Hong Kong listed independently from China and Taiwan

 

[Marc10]

 

[Lax89]

So all these brands suddenly had geography t-shirts ? Since when ?
Also, Liu Wen saying that she should be more careful with brands endorsement is a bit of a hypocrite. Coach design was from 2018 and she didn't see the problem until protests happened ? Come on ...

 

[Lola701]

This got me thinking...
How do Chinese people feel about Vogue Taiwan or Vogue HK.
It seems like all of that wasn’t an issue before the current events but now, i’m confused.

Brands have always made special products for those particular places because they have a very exclusive clientele. Taiwan, HK or Macau are very special places in the luxury market.

 

[dodencebt]

OH, COME ON!

 

[billiejbob]

Givenchy now??? Gees, this is getting out of hand!

 

[MON]

This got me thinking...
How do Chinese people feel about Vogue Taiwan or Vogue HK.
It seems like all of that wasn’t an issue before the current events but now, i’m confused.

Brands have always made special products for those particular places because they have a very exclusive clientele. Taiwan, HK or Macau are very special places in the luxury market.

Same thoughts. However, it seems like these all blew up due to the current political climate. I have no issue with the political views of either country. Stand for what you believe in. I get and respect that. What I don't get is, how the use of these names as indication of where to find these brands suddenly became so offensive. It was never done intentionally, nor in bad faith.

Seriously, I cannot with today's prevalent "CANCEL CULTURE". Trust me, there will come a time that each and every person in this earth, both living, dead, and yet to be born, are all cancelled.

EDIT: Ha! Givenchy followed suit! What's next Google Maps? Apple? Nokia?????

 

[MON]

PS: I currently have Bazaar China and Vogue China's (with their respective EICs) official websites and Instagram on my tabs. Curious if they'll release a statement.

 

[dior_couture1245]

Yikes. All this groveling going on is so cringey. I couldn’t read past the first several words in either apology.

 

[Salvatore]

Not even sure why a brand would have a tshirt on where you can find their shops, but that's just me. I find this ridiculous.

 

[Benn98]

OH, COME ON!

No, I actually want this to continue because it's high time that these brands get a proper look at who exactly they're dealing with. I don't even blame the Mainlanders because they've always held these views, always. It may just be slightly magnified due to the political climate because they know if they let one brand get away with inadvertently insulting their 'sovereignty', what stops another from doing the same, and soon it may be a head of state and before you know it you have a full-scale revolution on hand. After all, this is the country which invented the concept of Mianzi...which means saving face. Versace, Coach and Givenchy just never bothered to take a good look at their system, and question the source of their sales.

It's not the same as cancel culture, I think. Cancel culture imo is a small pocket of SJWs or trolls banging on about either a something, a few celebs may chime in as well, and the brand turns around with a committee or charitable initiative. Case closed. In this instance, the trolls lord their proven spending potential and authorities over everyone.

The editors won't make a peep, Mon. You forget their magazines are censored, so they must kowtow to orders? If possible, any trace of these brands will be removed in the upcoming issues. I don't know about September. Maybe this time it will be more awkward because the magnitude is greater than just banning D&G. There's strength in numbers.

I just want to clarify that I am not inherently anti-Chinese at all. I actually think most people are slightly hypocritical because France also owns territories as far as Africa where they do the utmost best to squash any talk of independence. Crikey, we still own Gibaltrar, Scotland, and half of Ireland!