Pity poor Urban Outfitters: If the company wants any hope of expanding its flagship brand internationally, they’ve got to be sensitive to populations besides affluent white American teenagers. Which is apparently so, so hard.
Quartz puts the latest Urban Outfitters tussle in context. As the Daily Mail reports, the company just pulled a bedspread featuring the Hindu deity Ganesh, after protests led by the Universal Society of Hinduism. No, you do not have deja vu — this is the second such incident, after the company featured Ganesh on a pair of socks. Apparently they still haven’t gotten the idea that you probably shouldn’t splash someone’s holy figures all over your stupid, overpriced products.
What’s notable, though, is just how quickly the company moved. And Quartz argues it’s likely got something to do with Urban Outfitters’ global aspirations:
If the company wants to realize its dreams of global expansion, it will have to mind its image abroad, particularly in Asia, where the retail sector is exploding and consumers who can afford its wares may be slightly older and less comfortable with mocking religions in public.
Good luck with that, pals. Sounds like you’re off to a great start.