Swatch apologises for slanted eyes ad after China uproar

Swiss watchmaker Swatch has issued an apology and withdrawn an advertisement that featured a model pulling the corners of his eyes, after it drew criticism on Chinese social media.

The gesture, shown in the campaign for Swatch’s ESSENTIALS collection, has long been used as a racial slur to mock Asian eyes. Many users in China denounced the ad and called for a boycott.

"We sincerely apologize for any distress or misunderstanding this may have caused," the company said on its social media handles. "We treat this matter with the utmost importance and have immediately removed all related materials worldwide."

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Swatch, which also owns Omega, Longines and Tissot, depends heavily on the Chinese market. Last year, China, Hong Kong and Macau made up 27% of group sales, according to Reuters.

The incident adds to a growing list of clashes between global brands and Chinese consumers, as per the BBC. In 2021, H&M, Nike and Adidas faced backlash after expressing concerns about forced labour in Xinjiang. Last year, Uniqlo was criticised after saying it did not source cotton from the region.

Dolce & Gabbana also ran into trouble in 2018 after releasing videos showing a Chinese model struggling to eat Italian food with chopsticks. The campaign was slammed as racist, its products were pulled from major e-commerce sites, and the brand cancelled a Shanghai fashion show.