‘Welcome to Hell’: JNBY Withdraws ‘Inappropriate’ Clothing for Kids
Chinese clothing label JNBY said on Thursday that it has withdrawn its collection of children’s apparel with “inappropriate designs” after consumers called out the company for its “violent, problematic, and racist content” on some outfits.
The brand landed in hot water over the weekend when a user posted photos of clothes featuring questionable prints on microblogging platform Weibo. One T-shirt showed a demon-like creature trying to cut a person’s leg, accompanied by the caption “I just need a foot,” as well as other text such as “Welcome to hell” and “Let me touch you.”
The post has driven many other JNBY consumers to re-examine the print on their children’s clothes. A user on social platform Little Red Book said that she found her child’s vest was inscribed with racist words, while others questioned the use of photos sexualizing kids.
“The whole place is full of Indians. I will take this gun and blow them to pieces,” read the print.
A customer service representative at JNBY told Sixth Tone on Friday that “the related products have been pulled completely,” though the brand didn’t mention the specifics.
JNBY Group was founded in the eastern city of Hangzhou in 1994 and is one of the most popular Chinese brands with hundreds of shops across the country. The company launched the kids line jnby by JNBY in 2011.
Editor: Bibek Bhandari.
(Header image: Part of the JNBY clothing with questionable phrases, Sept. 19, 2021. From @Hi早安Hi晚安 on Weibo)