Fashion is meant to be an outlet for expression. But, from time to time, the most popular companies have come under fire for their designs — and sometimes even their words.
Affordable stores like Forever 21 and H&M, as well as high-end brands like Dolce & Gabbana, have both been slammed alike for fashion decisions deemed inappropriate by critics.
In 2011, for example, Forever 21 sold a shirt that read “Allergic to Algebra,” promoting a negative message to young girls about education. A year prior, American Apparel printed a women’s T-shirt that read “Eat Less,” which some considered harmful to those with body issues.
Other stores like Victoria’s Secret and American Apparel faced similar situations for ads that appeared insensitive or way too risqué. And, in other instances, industry moguls like Kenneth Cole himself and the CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch found themselves trying to defend their controversial statements.
Check out 12 memorable fashion world scandals below, and make sure to SHARE this story with all the fashion lovers you know!
1. Calvin Klein
I’m sure the Beliebers were happy to see their favorite pop star posing for Calvin Klein. Yet, others were angry, claiming Justin Bieber’s abs were heavily Photoshopped for the ad.
2. Nike
For years, the athletic footwear and apparel company was bashed for reported abuse and unfair wages in its international factories. In the early 2000s, the company began factory audits and then released a report that admitted to glitches. Nike has been sharing this information ever since.
3. Abercrombie & Fitch
Abercrombie & Fitch doesn't really accommodate people of all shapes and sizes. According to the company's CEO, Mike Jeffries, that decision is intentional. In 2006, he caused an uproar when he told Salon: "Candidly, we go after the cool kids. We go after the attractive, all-American kid with a great attitude and a lot of friends. A lot of people don’t belong [in our clothes], and they can’t belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely."
4. Victoria’s Secret
After angering many, the lingerie company quietly changed an ad campaign in 2014 from “The Perfect ‘Body' ” to “A Body for Every Body."
If you thought these were pretty bad, the ones on the next page will shock you a little more!
5. Topshop
Many weren't happy in 2011 when the company used a photo of model Codie Young, in which she looked incredibly thin. Topshop eventually replaced the photo with another.
6. H&M
The company received backlash in 2014 for a green jumpsuit, which some said resembled the uniforms of female Kurdish soldiers fighting ISIS. H&M apologized and said it had no "intention to offend."
7. Forever 21
In 2013, the company was bashed for creating a "Straight Outta Compton" collection that featured T-shirts of rapper Ice Cube and another with the words “City of Compton." Many were angry about the cultural insensitivity. Forever 21 quickly yanked the shirts off its website.
8. Zara
The store faced similar issues to those of H&M when it designed a children's T-shirt that looked similar to those worn by prisoners in concentration camps. Zara quickly removed it from its stores and website.
Go to the next page to see how Kim Kardashian was also mixed up in some controversy!
9. Dolce & Gabbana
The earrings on the model above (featured in Dolce & Gabbana's spring/summer 2013 collection) stirred major controversy among people who found their similarity to Blackamoor imagery offensive. Others deemed the earrings of a black woman with a basket of fruit on her head racially insensitivity. The fashion house responded on its website, Swide.com, and said that the earrings are based on "Moorish" figures, or "a term used to define many peoples throughout history."
10. American Apparel
The brand has been caught up in a messy situation several times because of its very risqué ads.
11. Skechers
Remember that steamy Super Bowl commercial in 2011 that showed Kim Kardashian kicking her trainer to the curb for her Skechers Shape-ups? Well, shortly after, the Federal Trade Commission found that the company's alleged health benefits of the shoe were fabricated. The government agency sued Skechers, which agreed to a settlement.
12. Kenneth Cole
In 2011, the designer himself tweeted: "Millions are in uproar in #Cairo. Rumor is they heard our new spring collection is now available online…" His tweet, which referenced the anti-government protests in Egypt that year, was deemed insensitive by many.
