Luxury fashion brand Loewe has pulled an outfit from its shelves after the ensemble was lambasted for its resemblance to uniforms worn by prisoners at Nazi concentration camps during World War II.
The Spanish fashion house, which is owned by the LVMH luxury goods conglomerate, issued a statement Friday apologizing for the black-and-white striped outfit, which comprised a button-down shirt and matching pants.
The outfit was sold as part of Loewe’s William De Morgan capsule collection, inspired by the 19th century British ceramicist.
Diet Prada, a popular Instagram account that calls out big brands for copying designers and other eyebrow-raising behavior, flagged the questionable outfit on Friday.
“Unable to see anything but concentration camp uniforms in this $1,840 ensemble from [Loewe’s] William De Morgan capsule, a collection meant to ‘capture a freedom of imagination,’” Diet Prada wrote in a caption accompanying side-by-side comparisons of the luxury garments and concentration camp uniforms worn by prisoners during the Holocaust. “But with the particular stripe proportions and layout, uniform-style garments, and prominent chest patches, there’s not actually much left to the imagination when the resulting look is so uncannily disturbing.”
Loewe said it was “never our intention” to create an outfit that evoked memories of one of the darkest periods of human history, CNN reported.
“It was brought to our attention that one of our looks featured in a magazine and part of our Arts and Crafts ceramicist William De Morgan could be misconstrued as referring to one of the most odious moments in the history of mankind,” the brand said. “It was absolutely never our intention and we apologize to anyone who might feel we were insensitive to sacred memories.”
Loewe said it had removed the products “from our commercial offering.”
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