Swiss watchmaker Swatch is under fire in mainland China after a campaign image for its Swatch Essentials Collection sparked widespread condemnation on social media. The ad, featuring an Asian male model pulling his eyes into a “slanted” gesture, a racist stereotype offensive to East Asians, drew immediate ire from Chinese netizens who questioned how such an image cleared the company’s internal review. Many demanded a formal apology, decrying the lack of cultural sensitivity.
Swatch responded swiftly, removing the offending campaign from all global social channels over the weekend and issuing public apologies on Instagram and China's Sina Weibo. In its statement, the company acknowledged “recent concerns regarding the portrayal of the model” and confirmed the immediate worldwide removal of all related materials.
The statement read, "We treat this matter with the utmost importance and have immediately removed all related materials worldwide. We sincerely apologise for any distress or misunderstanding this may have caused."
This is not the first time a Western brand has faced backlash because of similar images. Dior and Gucci were criticised for racism after an ad featured an Asian model pulling her eyelids in a "slanted eyes" pose. Both, like Swatch’s, triggered calls for greater cultural sensitivity in global marketing.
The Swatch Group is one of the world’s largest watch conglomerates, home to luxury brands such as Omega, Longines, and Breguet. China is the largest market for the Swatch Group, generating CHF 2.63 billion (US$3.26 billion) in net sales in 2023, accounting for 33.3% of the group’s total revenue. However, in 2024, sales in China dropped by 30% year-over-year (YoY), although the market still accounted for 27% of its total revenue.
In the first half of 2025, the group reported an 11.2% YoY decline in sales and attributed it primarily to weak performance in China. According to Chinese media, wholesale revenue in the Chinese market plummeted over 30% YoY, partly due to the closure of third-party stores, while direct retail sales also fell by 15%.
In April last year, Swatch ended its two-decade-long partnership with WPP’s GroupM in China and appointed Publicis as its media agency of record (AOR).
