Irish influencer Rebekah O’Leary has returned her Zara purchases after the latest campaign was slammed.
Fashion retailer Zara recently apologised and pulled an advert, as claims were made that the ad had similarities to recent events in Gaza.
The global fashion brand pulled its campaign for their, The Jacket product, after it faced criticism from pro-Palestinian activists, urging to boycott the brand.
How insensitive you can be @ZARA
Shame on you. #Boycott_zara #Zara pic.twitter.com/DSUxk0NAqE— Shirin Khan (@Shirinkhan0) December 12, 2023
Rebekah O’Leary, best known by her social media handle, Rebekah With Love has now revealed that she has returned her recent purchases over the recent controversy.
Taking to her Instagram stories, she wrote: “& off to give Zara back their purchases especially after yesterday’s ‘apology’.”
“I’d rather give my money for Christmas outfits to literally any other brand right now.”
In another snap, Rebekah explained: “The viral sequin dress I searched high and low for is going back too, I wanted this so badly for Christmas, but literally no now.”
“I’ll find something equally if not nicer in Mango or the 1000s of other shops.”
Rebekah then asked her followers: “I’d love to see more people doing this. I know there’s a big discussion as to whether this makes any difference – but believe me – as someone who has worked for the company years ago (I know) refunds matter so much…it chops into the daily target and you’ve to explain and justify to head office why you aren’t store targets so they will be forced to acknowledge it.”
The controversial campaign displayed its black leather jacket with a backdrop of mannequins who had limbs missing and were covered in white sheets and bubble wrap.
The hashtag #BoycottZara trended on X, as activists rallied online to boycott the fashion brand and denounced the ad campaign, which they claimed had similarities to the real images emerging from inside the Gaza Strip.
Zara has since responded and removed the images and has apologised for the “misunderstanding.”
In a statement released to their Instagram, the global brand said: “After listening to comment regarding the latest Zara atelier campaign, The Jacket, we would like to share the following with our customers:”
View this post on Instagram
The campaign that was conceived in July and photographed in September, presents a series of images of unfinished sculptures in a sculptor’s studio and was created with the sole purpose of showcasing craftmade garments in an artistic context.”
“Unfortunately, some customers felt offended by these images, which have now been removed, and saw in them something far from what was intended when they were created.”
A Zara store in Canada had been vandalised overnight with graffiti reading “Free Gaza” on the storefront window, where a similar display to the campaign had been set up.
Citizen Activism: Boycott Zara: pic.twitter.com/i1YhjOqi5G
— PalMedia (@PalBint) December 12, 2023
Britain’s Advertising Standards Authority said it received 110 complaints about the Zara campaign saying the imagery referenced the war in Gaza and was offensive.
Six posts showcasing the campaign were removed from Zara’s Instagram page, and parent company Inditex, said the photos had been pulled from all platforms.
Zara had already pulled the photoshoot from its website and app home pages yesterday.
