Anthropologie, a company that sells women’s clothing and home décor, is under attack for posting a video of professional male ballet dancer Harper Watters dancing while wearing the brand’s dresses.
Anthropologie disabled comments on the video after angry users expressed their frustration. However, Anthropologie did not disable comments on all its social-media posts, prompting annoyed customers to simply leave responses on other images. A theme emerges across the complaints: Women are being “replaced” and “erased.” Some users wrote that they were going to stop shopping at Anthropologie and return any recent purchases. One user called for a boycott of Anthropologie and its sister brands, such as Urban Outfitters and Free People.
Conservative commentator Allie Beth Stuckey said to her nearly half-million followers, “He cannot even zip up the dress in the back. Here’s my question to you, Anthropologie: Would you put a woman on display who was wearing a dress that they could not zip up?” She continues, “No. . . . You only make that kind of exception for a man.” (Watters responded with a video in which he wears the dress fully zipped, saying that he previously had a neck injury that prevented him from zipping up the dress.)
Some context: Watters is an extremely talented dancer, who must have a guardian angel carrying him effortlessly across the stage. He is a first-soloist at the reputable Houston Ballet. (For the ballet-illiterate, a first-soloist is the second-highest rank in the company, just after principal.) He also has a captivated audience when he is offstage: His Instagram has nearly 250,000 followers. Aside from his impressive dance videos, he shares entertaining interview-style videos with fellow Houston Ballet dancers, allowing us to see the personalities of performers who never speak onstage. Watters and I apparently have two things in common: We both shop at Anthropologie, and we both trained at the Walnut Hill School for the Performing Arts.
Watters’s post mentions in the caption that he is an “AnthroPartner,” and it is unclear to me whether that entails a paid sponsorship given by Anthropologie’s invitation. (Watters’s manager did not respond to my request for interview, nor did Watters respond to my Instagram direct message.)
Yet angry shoppers apparently do not care whether Anthropologie asked Watters to make the video and paid him for it. Is Anthropologie the next Bud Light, doomed to plummeting sales and stocks? That seems to be what some shoppers desire. One user wrote on an Anthropologie post, “It’s honestly bizarre to see the reaction to Bud Light and the impact it had on their business and be like ‘that’s what WE need to do!’” Another user commented, “Must have the same advertising team as Budweiser.” And yet another said, “We do live in a consequence culture . . . and the consequences for hating women as much as you do . . . enjoy Bud Light status.”
I’m skeptical that Anthropologie will experience Bud Light’s fate. Quite frankly, it’s easy to ask someone to switch from one preferred gross, cheap beer to another. It’s more complicated to switch from a preferred clothing store to another that has a similar style, sizing, and price range. (I shop at Anthropologie because it is one of few brands that offers relatively affordable formal dresses in petite sizes.) Moreover, purchased beer is consumed, whereas people tend to wear clothing for years. I’m doubtful that the newly anti-Anthropologie women will discard their garments that are not returnable. I’m certainly not donating my favorite dresses because of one easily forgotten social-media post.
Maybe I’m wrong, and perhaps Anthropologie will suffer. But one thing is clear: Brands promoting “inclusivity” of consumers who don’t represent the customer base will face hostility, even if the company doesn’t experience financial ruin.
Is Anthropologie the Next Bud Light?
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11.05.2023
Anthropologie, a company that sells women’s clothing and home décor, is under attack for posting a video of professional male ballet dancer Harper Watters dancing while wearing the brand’s dresses.
Anthropologie disabled comments on the video after angry users expressed their frustration. However, Anthropologie did not disable comments on all its social-media posts, prompting annoyed customers to simply leave responses on other images. A theme emerges across the complaints: Women are being “replaced” and “erased.” Some users wrote that they were going to stop shopping at Anthropologie and return any recent purchases. One user called for a boycott of Anthropologie and its sister brands, such as Urban Outfitters and Free People.
Conservative commentator Allie Beth Stuckey said to her nearly half-million followers, “He cannot even zip up the dress in the back. Here’s my question to you, Anthropologie: Would you put a woman on display who was........
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