Lessons from Balenciaga: Sexualization of children and brand crisis
Can you believe that Balenciaga, as a top luxury brand, will also encounter a social media crisis? Balenciaga is known for its bold designs and often pushes the boundaries of style. But on November 16, 2022, Balenciaga shared the 2022 “Gift Collection” holiday campaign on social media and immediately received strong opposition from the public.
In the poster, children hold teddy bears. Balenciaga dressed the stuffed bear in punk gear that looked like bondage, including a leather harness and a spiked collar. In some shots, wine glasses were also near the children.
Although the photography series was called “Toy Stories,” it was absolutely wrong to associate children with BDSM paraphernalia. The original purpose of this campaign was to promote the Spring 2023 fashion. As Balenciaga is a well-known fashion luxury brand rather than a children’s clothing brand, I think this crisis was completely avoidable.
Fault of the brand
Demna, the creative director of Balenciaga, invited Gabriele Galimberti to participate in the shooting because of his love for the “Toy Stories” of photography. But the punk-style shooting supplies were completely provided by the brand. Galimberti was limited in style and could not create content. Also working as a documentary photographer, this shoot was his first time designing in the fashion industry. This means that the quality of the shoot cannot be guaranteed as he was new to the field. If Balenciaga was serious enough, I don’t think he should be involved in this shoot.
Are teddy bears just for children? Of course not. This campaign was trying to falsely reveal to the public that they were a stereotyped, biased brand. If the punk-style teddy bear design was not originally intended for children, why was Balenciaga associated with it in the campaign? The public can tolerate a brand’s design being unpopular, but no one likes child pornography. Congratulations to Balenciaga for sparking fierce social media condemnation.
Respond to the crisis
The ad was pulled on November 22, along with the brand issuing an apology for the campaign. I think it was very ineffective for Balenciaga to issue an apology six days after the crisis. At the same time, this failed marketing that crossed the line had angered conservative groups, and just apologizing on Instagram was far from enough to quell public anger.
Clearly, the brand doesn’t want to be responsible. Balenciaga’s passive approach to handling the controversy has had a long-term negative impact on itself. For example, after the controversy, Kim Kardashian stated on social media that she was re-evaluating her years-long partnership with Balenciaga and turned down the campaign offer in 2023. Also, while she posed for Balenciaga’s Summer 2024 lookbook Paris Fashion Week, she didn’t attend the show. I hope Balenciaga can take practical actions to reflect one day and prevent any similar crisis in the future.
