Zara has expressed “regret” over a “misunderstanding” over an advertising campaign that was criticized for using photos that resembled images from the Israel-Gaza war. BBC reported.
After days of backlash on social media and complaints from the British advertising watchdog, the remaining photos have been withdrawn. Among the images was an image of a model holding a mannequin wrapped in white plastic.
Zara said customers saw “something far removed from what was intended when they were created”.
People left tens of thousands of complaints about the campaign on Zara's Instagram account, saying the images resembled photos of corpses in white robes in Gaza. “#BoycottZara” trending on messaging platform
Zara said the campaign, which promoted the Atelier line, was “conceived in July and photographed in September”.
“Unfortunately, some customers were offended by these images, which have now been removed, and saw something in them that was far from the intention when they were created,” Zara said in an Instagram post.
The images were used “for the sole purpose of presenting artisan-made garments in an artistic context,” it added.
“Zara regrets that misunderstanding and we confirm our deep respect for everyone,” Zara said.
On October 7, Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing 1,200 people. Israel launched retaliatory attacks on Gaza, killing 18,200 people, the BBC reported.
A crowd of protesters gathered outside a Zara store in the Tunisian capital Tunis on Monday, chanting and waving a Palestinian flag, Reuters reported.
One of the store's windows was splashed with red paint.
Britain's Advertising Standards Authority said it had received 110 complaints about the Zara campaign, claiming the images referred to the war in Gaza and were offensive. “As Zara has now removed the advert, we will be taking no further action,” the ASA said in a statement.
Six posts showing the 'Atelier' campaign were scrubbed from Zara's Instagram page, and parent company Inditex (ITX.MC) said the photos had been pulled from all platforms. Zara had already removed the photo shoot from the home pages of her website and app on Monday.
The “Atelier” collection, consisting of six coats, is one of Zara's most expensive, with prices ranging from $229 for a gray wool blazer with chunky knit sleeves to $799 for a studded leather jacket. The jackets were still for sale on Zara sites.