Kim Kardashian Faces Backlash After Being Named Balenciaga Ambassador

Kim Kardashian attends the Kering Caring For Women Dinner at The Pool in New York City, on Sept. 12, 2023. Joy Malone/Getty Images

Kim Kardashian is coming under fire for her latest partnership with Balenciaga.

On Jan. 22, the Paris-based fashion house revealed it had tapped the reality star as its newest brand ambassador.

Ms. Kardashian has long been associated with the brand. She has attended many of the brand’s runway shows, even walking the catwalk of Balenciaga’s show at Paris Haute Couture Week in 2022. A year prior, she donned Balenciaga from head to toe at the Met Gala, arriving at the event accompanied by Demna Gvasalia, the brand’s creative director.

Over the years, the TV personality has also co-starred in various Balenciaga campaigns. Most recently, as the brand’s official ambassador, she posed for the label’s new Closet Campaign, which launched on Jan. 23. From the comfort of her own closet, she took to social media to flaunt her collection of more than 120 Balenciaga bags.

The media mogul and mother of four immediately faced heavy criticism online from fans, not because of her exorbitant handbag collection, but because of the luxury brand’s contentious history.

“Did everyone just forget about the pedo thing?” one Instagram user commented on Ms. Kardashian’s post, with another adding, “We didn’t just ‘forget’ their last campaign.”

Ms. Kardashian’s ambassadorship comes over a year after Balenciaga was embroiled in controversy following the release of its 2022 holiday campaign. The Christmas ad in question featured young children holding handbags shaped like plush teddy bears that appeared to be dressed in adult bondage gear.

A second campaign, which promoted the brand’s “Hourglass” handbag for its Spring 2023 campaign photo shoot, featured a photo that showed a page from a U.S. Supreme Court decision on child pornography laws.

The company swiftly filed a $25 million lawsuit against North Six, Inc. and Nicholas Des Jardin, the production company and set designer, respectively, involved in the campaign, but it later dropped the lawsuit.

Following a significant backlash, the brand—which is owned by Kering, the French conglomerate behind Gucci, Saint Laurent, and Bottega Veneta, among others—ultimately issued multiple apologies and pulled the questionable ads from all of its platforms.

“We strongly condemn abuse of children in any form,” the fashion house wrote in a now-deleted Instagram story. “We stand for children’s safety and well-being.”

Celebrities Support Balenciaga Despite Its Controversial Past

Saying she was “shaken by the disturbing images,” Ms. Kardashian revealed at the time that she was “re-evaluating” her relationship with the brand, basing her future endeavors with the company “off their willingness to accept accountability for something that should have never happened to begin with.”

“I appreciate Balenciaga’s removal of the campaigns and apology,” she wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “In speaking with them, I believe they understand the seriousness of the issue and will take the necessary measures for this to never happen again.”

However, other celebrities were far less forgiving. In an Instagram post, Brittany Aldean, wife of country superstar Jason Aldean, appeared to throw out bags of her Balenciaga clothes and accessories, captioning a photo, “It’s trash day.”

And in a fiery sendoff, Dutch-American motorsports racing driver Arie Luyendyk Jr. and his wife, internet personality Lauren Burnham, burned their Balenciaga shoes. “Won’t miss ya,” the former wrote.

But, in light of her new role as the face of the brand, it appears as though “The Kardashians” star has decided to move forward with Balenciaga, joining a growing list of celebrity faces backing the brand, including Nicole Kidman, Michelle Yeoh, and Isabelle Huppert, who all joined the house as ambassadors in 2023.

The Epoch Times reached out to Ms. Kardashian for comment.

In a statement, she said: “For several years now, Balenciaga’s designs have been a part of my many looks —  and some of my most iconic fashion moments. [...] For me, this long-standing relationship is built on mutual trust and a commitment to doing what’s right.”

The socialite isn’t the only celebrity to pose for the fashion house’s new Closet Campaign, which celebrates the relaunch of the brand’s Le City leather bag, first released in 2000. The campaign also includes the La Cagole and Hourglass bags, which run upwards of $3,000 and more.

Stylist and costume designer Patricia Field and influencer Devon Lee Carlson were also seemingly overjoyed to take part in the campaign, with the former noting on Instagram that she was “honored” to become a fashion model “at this stage in [her] life.”

Model Paloma Elsesser and actors Roh Yoon Seo and Nicola Peltz also posed in similarly Balenciaga-laden closets.

After sharing her campaign photos online, Ms. Peltz—who is married to Brooklyn Beckham, English socialite and son of retired footballer David Beckham and fashion designer Victoria Beckham—was also slammed in the comment section for her endorsement of the company.

“Money over morals,” one Instagram user wrote.

“Why are we supporting this brand still,” another queried.