- May 30th, 2008, 1:45 pm
#178189
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/b ... diors.html
This reminded me a lot of what happend to Doc although I'm not sure the context of what she was saying is the same
Christian Dior's China Earthquake
Posted by: Carol Matlack on May 29
Using celebrities for advertising has always been a risky proposition. Remember when supermodel Kate Moss, then the “face” of Chanel, was caught on a 2005 videotape sniffing a white powder that was definitely not body talc? Or Michael Vick, the former NFL quarterback whose advertising contract with Nike went up in smoke after his arrest and conviction last year for running a dogfighting ring?
Now Sharon Stone has landed Christian Dior in the deepest pile yet of…well, judge for yourself. In an interview last week at the Cannes film festival, the actress who regularly appears in Dior cosmetics ads suggested that the recent Chinese earthquake was “karma,” punishment of China for its mistreatment of Tibet. To the horror of Dior’s parent company LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, a video of Stone’s remarks spread like wildfire through the Chinese blogosphere, prompting the official Xinhua news to declare her a “public enemy of all mankind.” On May 29, Dior announced it was dropping Stone from its Chinese advertising, while Stone issued a profuse apology and even promised to volunteer for earthquake relief work.
LVMH, the global No. 1 luxury group, which counts China as one of its most important markets, until now had largely managed to steer clear of the Tibet controversy. Last month, several Chinese stores owned by French retail chain Carrefour were hit by angry protests, in retaliation for pro-Tibet demonstrations that disrupted the Olympic torch relay in Paris.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who had stoked the controversy by suggesting he might boycott the Olympic opening ceremony over the Tibet issue, managed to calm things down by sending a delegation to mend fences with the Chinese. LVMH, for its part, quietly cancelled an antique car rally that it had planned to hold in China at the end of May. Now, though, Stone has thrust the company right into the spotlight it hoped to avoid.
How bad could the damage be? Most likely, the furor will blow over pretty quickly. That's what happened with the Carrefour protests, which died down after official news outlets made clear that the government wasn’t eager for a fight with the French retailer, whose Chinese stores employ about 40,000 people. With crowds of Olympic tourists arriving soon, the government probably isn't eager to have protesters swarming through the swank shopping districts of Shanghai and other cities where LVMH peddles its wares.
But if anyone doubted it before, it's now clear that Chinese consumers have become a potent economic force, and global companies can no longer afford to ignore their political and cultural sensitivities.
This reminded me a lot of what happend to Doc although I'm not sure the context of what she was saying is the same
Sly Fox wrote:In my experience with the Falwell family over the past 30+ years, they have never been shy about stating what they believe and standing by it. If anything it should be on their family crest.
- By Ill flame
- By Sly Fox
- By TH Spangler
- By LU Armchair coach