Swatch has scrapped an advert featuring an Asian model pulling his eyes upwards and backwards following an outcry on social media.
The Swiss watchmaker apologised for the campaign after Swatch advert.
In social media posts over the weekend, the company said it had “taken note of the recent concerns regarding the portrayal of a model” in the advert.
It added: “We sincerely apologise for any distress or misunderstanding this may have caused. We treat this matter with the utmost importance and have immediately removed all related materials worldwide.”
However, the apology failed to stem criticism, with users on Chinese social media site Weibo lining up to condemn the campaign and calling for a boycott.
One influencer branded the advert “racism towards Asians” while another accused Swatch of trying to “disgust Asians and degrade Chinese” at a time “when the watch industry is going downhill”.
Swatch, which also owns the Omega and Tissot brands, makes more than a quarter of its revenue from China, Hong Kong and Macau, though its sales in the region have recently slowed amid wider economic malaise.
It is not the first time a Western brand has drawn accusations of racism over one of its adverts.
In 2023, French luxury brand Dior removed a similar image that showed an Asian model pulling up the corner of her eye.
In 2018, the founders of Dolce & Gabbana were forced to apologise for an advert depicting a Chinese woman struggling to eat spaghetti and pizza with chopsticks.
In recent years, Chinese consumers have increasingly turned away from Western brands that have voiced criticisms of the country’s policies, including alleged human rights abuses against Muslim Uighurs in Xinjiang.
H&M, Nike, Burberry and Adidas are among the major retailers who have been targeted by campaigns that have resulted in their online stores being blocked and their locations disappearing from digital maps.
It also comes amid shifting sentiment in advertising as Donald Trump leads a move away from purpose-driven campaigns that have sparked accusations of virtue signalling.
Earlier this month the US president praised an American Eagle campaign starring Sydney Sweeney, describing it as the “HOTTEST ad out there”.
The advert, which featured the actor dressed all in denim accompanied by the slogan: “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans”, had triggered discussions about beauty standards and even accusations that the company was promoting eugenics.
