“Your brand is already tarnished”: Internet slams Balenciaga CEO Cedric Charbit's statement as brand drops $25 million lawsuit

Balenciaga has decided to drop the $25 million lawsuit it filed against production company North Six Inc. and set designer Nicholas Des Jardins earlier this week for its work in the brand’s controversial child ad campaign.

The luxury fashion brand claimed that the company, alongside Jardins, displayed legal documents from the 2008 “United States vs. Williams” ruling about child p*rnography without the brand’s knowledge.

In an official statement, the brand claimed that all the items included in the shooting process were provided by third parties, who confirmed in writing that the props were “fake office documents.” However, it later turned out to be “real legal papers most likely coming from the filming of a television drama.”

However, Balenciaga CEO Cedric Charbit issued a new statement on Friday, saying that the brand has decided “not to pursue litigation” but launch a series of actions in response to the situation with the objective of learning from its mistakes.

The statement explained that the company would nominate an internal “image board” with immediate effect, which will be responsible for evaluating the nature of its contents from “concepts to final assets, including legal, sustainability and diversity expertise.”

The company said it has also appointed an external “best-in-class agency” to assess and evaluate its content. The brand has further reorganized its image department to ensure “full alignment with corporate guidelines.”

Meanwhile, the fashion house has also decided to organize a separate fund to grant donations to organizations that can “help make a difference in protecting children.”

CEO Cedric Charbit also added a personal note at the end of the statement and said:

“I want to personally reiterate my sincere apologies for the offense caused and take my responsibility.”

He also mentioned that Balenciaga is standing together for “children safety” and would not tolerate “any kind of violence and hatred message.”

However, the statement failed to convince social media users, who said that the new promises "does not matter" as the brand has already been “tarnished”:

Balenciaga came under fire for launching a controversial ad campaign for its Gift Shop collection featuring photos of children holding the brand’s plush bear purses while wearing outfits or posing around props, seemingly hinting towards themes of bondage and BDSM.

It was also criticized for a second ad for its Spring 2023 campaign that consisted of images displaying printouts of documents from the 2008 Supreme Court ruling on child p*rnography.

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Twitter reacts to Balenciaga CEO Cedric Charbit's decision to drop lawsuit

Netizens continues to call out Balenciaga as brand drops lawsuit (Image via Getty Images)

Balenciaga and its officials have continued to face consistent criticism for their controversial child ad campaign over the past few weeks.

Amid the ongoing outrage, the brand also dropped the $25 million lawsuit it launched against the production house and set designer who worked on the campaign while deciding to take accountability and launch a series of actions in response to the situation.

As the brand’s CEO, Cedric Charbit, announced the decision in a statement, several social media users took to Twitter to condemn the company once again amid continued calls for a boycott:

While criticisms continue to pour in online, Balenciaga has said that it wishes to “learn, help and contribute” to child protection. The brand has also decided to start “trainings on responsible communications” across its teams.

The CEO also said that his team will go on a “listening tour” to interact and engage with child protection advocacy groups.