Balenciaga controversies
Controversies tied to this brand in public sources. A listing is not a finding of fault.
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2022
Children’s advertising campaign controversy
An online campaign showed children holding teddy-bear props dressed in bondage-inspired accessories alongside adult-party imagery. The campaign prompted widespread condemnation, an apology, removal of the content, and stated changes to internal approval processes.
2021
Balenciaga faces criticism over sagging-style trousers
Public backlash
Balenciaga faced criticism and accusations of cultural appropriation for selling trousers designed to create a sagging look. According to the source, this style was popularized by Black youth in the 1990s. The criticism centered on the brand's sale of trousers intended to produce that sagging effect, a look the article associates with that earlier youth-driven style.
Source excerpt
French luxury brand Balenciaga is being accused of cultural appropriation –– again. This time, the fashion house is coming under fire for selling trousers that give the illusion of sagging, a fashion style popularized by Black youth in the 90s that was deemed inappropriate and unacceptable.
Among the U.K. fashion brand’s latest looks for the Fall/Winter 2021 season are sweatpants designed with an exposed boxer short built-in above the waistband, which some have deemed to be an appropriation of the “sagging” pant style popularized in the 90s by Black people.
Now, critics are accusing an item from its recent collection of being cultural appropriation, while some have even called it “racist.”
2020
Balenciaga faces backlash over Qixi campaign
Public backlash
Balenciaga faced online backlash in China over promotional material for its Qixi handbag campaign. Social media users criticized the designs, and hashtags including #BalenciagaChineseValentinesCampaignisTacky and #BalenciagaInsultsChina trended.
Source excerpt
The dated image has received backlash online with netizens calling the brand out for its gaudy – and even insulting – designs.
Another hashtag trending on social media was #BalenciagaInsultsChina.
“They’ve really just gentrified sagging,” one person wrote on Twitter.
2018
Paris store incident
The brand faced backlash in China after personnel at a Paris store were reported to have assaulted a Chinese tourist.
Allegations of artistic appropriation
Artist Tra My Nguyen accused Balenciaga of using material from a portfolio requested during recruitment without permission. The allegation added to broader criticism concerning the use of artists’ work by fashion companies.