A gay ad campaign lost a suit company 12,000 followers. The internet has no chill.
The Dutch fashion retailer Suitsupply recently lost 12,000 Instagram followers following the launch of their ad campaign that features a series of gay couples.
"The attraction between people is an important part of fashion advertising. A campaign featuring the attraction between men was long overdue and particularly relevant for our brand," the founder of SuitSupply, Fokke de Jong, told Indy100.
The campaign launched on February 21st, and since that time, SuitSupply has received a barrage of troll comments on Youtube, Facebook, and Twitter and over 12,000 unfollows on Instagram.
However, this backlash doesn't suprise De Jong, he told Indy100 he anticipated a debate around the images.
"The fact that there is a debate about it makes it relevant. Our sales will not go up for the time being, if I see it so in the reactions. We do not aim to and cannot control the reactions, however, the new followers and positive messages that have been prominent in our social media is a good indicator that this campaign has been well received and has impacted many people positively."
Plus, for every disapproving comment or social media unfollow, there were others who supported and celebrated the brand's choice to highlight LGBTQ attraction.
As De Jong and several supporters of the campaign pointed out, straight couples show PDA in ad campaigns all the time, so why can't gay couples do the same?
Representation matters, even if it's in the form of a suit advertisement. Good on SuitSupply for not shirking under the pressure of bigots.
What do you think of the campaign? I love it.