Fashion has been marked red with disappointment thanks to the insensitivity of luxury brands. First, Gucci creates a shirt with a mask that resembles black face, and now Burberry is under fire for a hoodie with a noose around the neck! Burberry has immediately released an official apology, stating:

“We are deeply sorry for the distress caused by one of the products that featured in our A/W 2019 runway collection,” Marco Gobbetti, Burberry chief executive officer, said in a statement provided to CNN.

“Though the design was inspired by the marine theme that ran throughout the collection, it was insensitive and we made a mistake,” he added.

Liz Kennedy

This apology came AFTER the design was still showcased on the runway despite model, Liz Kennedy’s concerns that it was inappropriate and promoted the idea of suicide being fashionable. Communities of color perceive the noose as a nod towards lynching, a common practice of terror and execution of thousands of African-Americans throughout slavery and well into The Civil Rights Movement.

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@burberry @riccardotisci17 Suicide is not fashion. It is not glamorous nor edgy and since this show is dedicated to the youth expressing their voice, here I go. Riccardo Tisci and everyone at Burberry it is beyond me how you could let a look resembling a noose hanging from a neck out on the runway. How could anyone overlook this and think it would be okay to do this especially in a line dedicated to young girls and youth. The impressionable youth. Not to mention the rising suicide rates world wide. Let’s not forget about the horrifying history of lynching either. There are hundreds of ways to tie a rope and they chose to tie it like a noose completely ignoring the fact that it was hanging around a neck. A massive brand like Burberry who is typically considered commercial and classy should not have overlooked such an obvious resemblance. I left my fitting extremely triggered after seeing this look (even though I did not wear it myself). Feeling as though I was right back where I was when I was going through an experience with suicide in my family. Also to add in they briefly hung one from the ceiling (trying to figure out the knot) and were laughing about it in the dressing room. I had asked to speak to someone about it but the only thing I was told to do was to write a letter. I had a brief conversation with someone but all that it entailed was “it’s fashion. Nobody cares about what’s going on in your personal life so just keep it to yourself” well I’m sorry but this is an issue bigger than myself. The issue is not about me being upset, there is a bigger picture here of what fashion turns a blind eye to or does to gain publicity. A look so ignorantly put together and a situation so poorly handled. I am ashamed to have been apart of the show. #burberry. I did not post this to disrespect the designer or the brand but to simply express an issue I feel very passionate about.

A post shared by 🦎 (@liz.kennedy_) on Feb 17, 2019 at 9:51am PST

Burberry should definitely shoot Liz an extra check for trying to be their conscience. We definitely feel these luxury brands needs to hire people with sensitivity awareness to ensure this does not continue to happen. There is NOTHING cool or cute about nooses. That’s a fashion accessory history and the dead would rather forget.

It truly is the end of an era! Payless shoe store chain has announced it is closing all 2100 of its locations in the United States.

via Complex

The company, which was founded in 1956, will be closing down all 2,100 of their stores in the U.S. and Puerto Rico beginning in March, a spokesperson said, per CNN Business. Payless has more than 3,600 locations worldwide and over 18,000 employees. The company’s online store will also be shut down. Liquidation sales will start this coming Sunday.

“We expect all stores to remain open until at least the end of March and the majority will remain open until May,” the company said via a statement, per USA Today. “This process does not affect the company’s franchise operations or its Latin American stores, which remain open for business as usual.”

The Wall Street Journal reports that the company is getting ready to file for bankruptcy. The discount shoe retailer previously filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April 2017 and subsequently closed about 400 of their locations. 

We are honestly kind of sad to see the shoe chain go. If you were a latchkey kid or need some cheap shoes quickly, then Payless was the place to be. First Toys R Us and now Payless. What’s the next big company from our millennial childhood to go bust?

For several years now smoking has always been leveraged in television media as the signal of desirability, edginess and fashion. You must have seen a movie where high-powered men have smoked a cigar or a good looking high standard woman has smoked a cigarette. This is not just the case on television but same is the case in magazines and advertisements. This was the time when smoking was seen to be as something positive. But times have changed and now people have realized the cons associated with smoking.

Now vaping has become the latest trend in the fashion industry as people are taking to vaping more than smoking. However, before you book your first vape pen or vaporizer from online resources like V2 Cigs UK, here are few things that you need to know.

How did this alternative come into existence?

While there have been several alternatives to smoking which had become popular in the past, including gum and nicotine patches, one of the most recent ones are e-cigarettes. Even though someone is never a smoker, they are taking to vaping just after seeing their friends and family members vaping. So, this has become a trend which is tough to ignore.

E-cigarettes – What kind of experience do they provide?

Unlike several other alternatives to nicotine like patches or gums, electronic cigarettes also replicate the entire act of smoking and this is the best thing which helps the smokers to not miss tobacco cigarettes when they choose to quit smoking. Moreover, the e-liquid or the e-juice which you find in the electronic cigarettes can be bought with different levels of nicotine and this also means that the users can eventually diminish their dependence on tobacco. The ability to quit smoking makes this habit of vaping extremely popular and this makes it a popular trend.

How are e-cigs becoming trendy?

Unlike other nicotine alternatives, vaping seems to have had a life of its own and this has become a style statement and a hobby. If you check out the array of designs and sizes that are available in the market, you will know how famous they’ve become. There are big shops which are totally dedicated to e-cigs and this clearly means that those who choose to vape have lots of options in front of them to choose.

Hence, if you’re someone who seems to be interested in vaping, you can get the best e-cig or vape pen from a trusted source so that you too can join the trend and bid goodbye to smoking.