Shooters

Swiss Watchmaker Swatch apologized and eliminated an ad with a model that pulls the corners of his eyes after the image caused accusations of racism and demands a boycott on Chinese social networks.

Internet users criticized the gesture of “inclined eye” made by the Asian male model as racist.

In a publication on the Instagram and China Weibo social networks on Saturday, Swatch recognized the “recent concerns regarding the representation of a model” in the announcement and said that he had eliminated the promotional material worldwide.

“We sincerely apologize for any anguish or misunderstanding that this may have caused,” the company wrote.

Many online were not happy with the company’s response and continued to call the brands of boycothing samples groups, which include Blancpain, Longines and Tissot.

A user with more than 1 million followers at the Chinese social media site Weiblo accused the sample of “Racism against Chinese” and suggested that the company should be punished by regulators.

Others accused the show of deliberate discrimination and urged consumers to boycott the company.

“The image of the brand has collapsed.

China is one of Swatch Group’s largest markets.

But together with many other western luxury brands, the watchmaker has struggled to maintain growth, since the second largest economy in the world has slowed down and consumers have changed to more affordable brands.

In July, the group reported a 11.2% drop in net sales during the first six months of the year.

He said the fall was “exclusively attributable” to slow demand in China.

Swatch is not the first foreign brand to face accusations of racist advertising in China.

The Italian luxury fashion brand Dolce & Gabbana was strongly criticized in 2018 after publishing promotional videos that show a Chinese model that awkwardly uses a stick to eat Italian food.

In 2023, the French brand Dior also caused an uproar with an advertisement that shows a model by throwing the corner of his eye.