Digiday Publishing Summit: Prices rise Aug. 5

Hear from execs at The New York Times, Thomson Reuters, Trusted Media Brands and many others

SECURE YOUR SEAT

Zara pulls ‘gluten free’ graphic shirt amid outrage it trivializes disease

zaraZara is discovering that gluten-free community isn’t full of laughs.

The fashion brand has pulled a T-shirt from shelves that read “Are you gluten free?,” a misfired joke intended to mock the diet fad. Yet, some people felt the shirt was offensive because cutting out the ingredient is a life-saving necessity for those with celiac disease.

The shirt sparked an outrage online, prompting a Change.org petition that collected 53,000 signatures.

“The message of this shirt trivializes an important health problem,” it says, asking Zara to not only stop selling the shirt, but to apologize and commit to “not trivializing” the disease.

To Zara’s credit, it listened.

“We sincerely regret that this case can be interpreted as a trivialization of coeliac problem completely opposite intention of Inditex,” its parent company said in a statement, adding that it has pulled the shirt from stores.

It’s the latest t-shirt faux pas that’s struck a fast fashion chain. Last week, Forever 21 apologized for selling a shirt that made light of rape.

https://digiday.com/?p=168151

More in Marketing

Inside the C-Suite: Anthropologie launches Maeve as a new brand using influencers, TikTok and (of course) Substack

Brands have previously tipped their toes into editorial by launching whole media publications — think MEL Magazine from Dollar Shave Club or Here Magazine from Away.

In graphic detail: Inside the creator economy’s M&A boom

The creator economy is entering a new era of legitimacy and scale — signaling that investors see creators as full-fledged media worth betting on.

How tariffs have upended the back-to-school season

Consumers are more concerned about finding the best deal than they were a year ago, according to recent consumer surveys.