The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
A statement the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) has had on its website since October 2020, announcing it was enacting a policy of “responsible disengagement” and would cease sourcing from China’s Xinjiang region amid reports of forced labour, has disappeared from its site.
The statement, and others related to it published by international fashion brands, has been the source of fierce backlash in China since late March, with widespread calls on Chinese social media to boycott brands, including H&M, Nike and Burberry, that have taken a stance against sourcing cotton from Xinjiang.
When reached for comment by BoF, a spokesperson for BCI said: “We will be communicating on this topic as soon as we are in a position to do so.”
To date, H&M remains unavailable on China’s largest e-commerce platforms, including Tmall, where it had a long-time flagship store.
In recent weeks Chinese television programmes, including popular reality shows “Youth With You” and “Sisters Who Make Waves” have also blurred the logos of foreign brands, such as Nike and Adidas, worn by contestants.
Doubts about the country’s post-pandemic recovery is making investors, and perhaps shoppers, nervous.
The brand known for its traditional and ornate Chinese aesthetic will be one of the first major C-beauty players to go global when it touches down in the US and Japan later this year.
To unleash the full potential of ‘China’s Silicon Valley’ luxury brands must invest more in the vibrant city at its core and better understand the local mindset.
Western brands shifting supply chains away from China hope to reduce disruptions caused by geopolitical tensions but ‘friendlier’ sourcing hubs aren’t always feasible.