Every Bad Thing Dolce & Gabbana Has Done
By: Emily Kirkpatrick
Tags: Brands, Fashion Week, Fashion, Luxury, Fashion Designer

Every Bad Thing Dolce & Gabbana Has Done

The #DGTheGreatShow ad that sparked the most recent boycott of the brand.

Accountability has never been the fashion industry’s strong suit.

It decries photographers like Mario Testino and Bruce Webber as sexual predators one day, and hires them to shoot celebrity portraits and magazine spreads the next. The Council of Fashion Designers of America sets the age limit for models at 16, and next season NYFW’s biggest designers cast 15-year-old Hailey Clauson.

Bad behavior just doesn’t seem to stick in this business. And why would it when there have never been any real repercussions for designers who are overtly racist, anti-semitic, homophobic, transphobic, fatphobic, and misogynistic. In fact, it’s often the industry’s biggest bullies that end up becoming the most successful.

Perhaps one of the greatest examples of this dynamic is Dolce & Gabbana. A brand that‘s been “canceled” as often as it appeared on the Grammys red carpet last weekend — a truly shocking amount.

So in the hopes of providing some moral clarity to those continuing to work with, buy, and celebrate the brand, I’ve compiled a list of all of the bad things Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana have done over the years.

#DGTheGreatShow

In November 2018, Dolce & Gabbana posted a video to Weibo and Instagram to promote their 500-look #DGTheGreatShow runway spectacular taking place in Shanghai. In the short film, a Chinese model attempts to eat various Italian foods with chopsticks while a Chinese voiceover narration makes sexual innuendos about the food being too big for her. The video was taken down less than 24 hours later after commenters accused the label of racism.

Industry watchdog Diet Prada then posted a series of screenshots of direct messages between Stefano Gabbana and another user in which the designer defended the video as “a tribute,” branding the accusations of racism “fake news,” and calling the people of China an “Ignorant Dirty Smelling Mafia” who eat dogs.

Gabbana then claimed his account had been hacked, subsequently deleting it altogether. The brand’s official account seconded Gabbana’s story, writing “Our Instagram account has been hacked. So has the account of Stefano Gabbana. Our legal office is urgently investigating. We are very sorry for any distress caused by these unauthorized posts, comments, and direct messages. We have nothing but respect for China and the people of China.”

Regardless, the Cultural Affairs Bureau of Shanghai canceled the show and many of the influencers and models slated to walk in it spoke out against the brand.

Following this event, consumers posted videos of themselves burning and destroying their Dolce products on social media and multiple storefronts were defaced with “Not me” posters mocking Gabbana’s initial response to the scandal.

They’ve also been removed from numerous Chinese shopping websites, including Alibaba’s TMall, jd.com, secoo.com, and department store Lane Crawford, which told the New York Times that customers had been returning the brand’s products.

The two designers eventually responded by sharing a formal apology video on their YouTube channel.

The IVF Comments

“I am not convinced by those I call children of chemicals, synthetic children: Rented uterus, semen chosen from a catalog,” Domenico Dolce told Italian magazine Panorama in March 2015. “The family is not a fad. In it, there is a supernatural sense of belonging. You are born to a mother and a father — or at least that’s how it should be.”

Elton John called for a boycott of the brand in response to these statements and many celebrities followed suit, throwing their support behind the musician. In response, Gabbana accused the boycotters of being “racist dictators” who were attacking him because his opinion is “different,” calling John a “fascist” and urging his followers to boycott the singer in turn.

The following week, Gabbana posted on Instagram, “We firmly believe in democracy and the fundamental principle of freedom of expression that upholds it. We talked about our way of seeing reality, but it was never our intention to judge other people’s choices.”

Dolce wrote in a separate statement: “I’m Sicilian and I grew up in a traditional family, made up of a mother, a father, and children. I am very well aware of the fact that there are other types of families and they are as legitimate as the one I’ve known. But in my personal experience, family had a different configuration.”

In August of that year, Dolce walked back all of the above, telling Vogue, “I’ve done some soul-searching. I’ve talked to Stefano a lot about this. I’ve realized that my words were inappropriate, and I apologize. They are just kids. You don’t need labels, baby labels. I think everybody chooses for themselves. I don’t know everything about IVF, but I love it when people are happy. It’s like medicine. Science has been put on the table to help people.”

Tax Evasion

In 2010, Dolce & Gabbana were indicted for alleged tax fraud and convicted by two separate Italian courts of using the Luxembourg holding company Gado to avoid paying almost $540 million worth of taxes to authorities.

The pair were sentenced to 20 months in prison but ultimately did not have to serve any time. In a separate proceeding in April 2013, they were also fined 343.4 million euros plus interest by Italy’s Tax Commission.

However, in 2014 Italy’s high court overturned the two lower courts’ rulings, and, in January 2016, the duo was cleared of all charges by Milan’s Court of Appeals. Dolce and Gabbana have always maintained their innocence.

Selena Gomez

In June 2018, Gabbana left a comment on an Instagram photo collage of Selena Gomez posted by The Catwalk Italia, writing, “è proprio brutta” — which roughly translates to “she’s so ugly.”

Gomez’s “13 Reasons Why” co-star Tommy Dorfman came to the pop star’s defense, responding, “You’re tired and over. Your homophobic, misogynistic, body-shaming existence will not thrive in 2018. It is no longer tolerable or chic. Please take many seats.”

Miley Cyrus also commented on the photo, “Well what that dick head said (if it’s true) is fucking false and total bullshit. She’s fine as fuck.”

In response, Gabbana wrote on his own Instagram account, “MY NAME IS SELENA!!! #saysorrytome” and “Omfg #pleasesaysorrytoselena.”

Miley Cyrus

A screenshot of Miley Cyrus’s Instagram post

Cyrus previously had her own run-in with Gabbana in 2017. The singer shared a photo of her brother Braison on Instagram walking in the brand’s show, writing that while she was proud of him, “D&G, I STRONGLY disagree with your politics….but I do support your company’s effort to celebrate young artists & give them the platform to shine their light for all to see!”

Gabbana responded by reposting the pop star’s photo and writing, “We are Italian and we don’t care about politics and mostly neither about the American one! We make dresses and if you think about doing politics with a post it’s simply ignorant. We don’t need your posts or comments so next time please ignore us!! #boycottdolcegabbana”

He also commented “Ignorant!!!” on Cyrus’s original post and left a string of thumbs-down emojis on her screenshot of Paper Magazine’s tweet about Braison, commenting, “For your stupid comment never more work with him.”

Chiara Ferragni

Following her wedding ceremony in September 2018, the Italian fashion blogger posted a photo of her gown designed by Dior’s Maria Grazia Chiuri. The image was re-shared by Harper’s Bazaar UK’s Instagram account where Gabbana felt compelled to comment, “cheap.”

The Kardashians

A screenshot of Diet Prada’s Instagram Story.

The Kardashians may be some of Dolce & Gabbana’s biggest fans, but Gabbana made it clear that the feeling isn’t mutual. In July 2018, the designer once again slid into the comment section of a fan account calling the reality star siblings, “the most cheap people in the world.”

Victoria Beckham

Beckham and Gabbana may have been close friends in the early aughts, but the designer’s three thumbs-down emojis on a Vogue Brazil post wishing the Spice Girl a happy 44th birthday effectively conveyed that’s no longer the case.

Perhaps the two had a falling out because of the statement Gabbana made to The Telegraph in 2014 where he said, “She’s a friend. She make a good job but…for us, she don’t make the same way like a fashion designer. She’s a fashion designer but it’s another… it’s different. John Galliano is a designer… Alexander McQueen.”

Dolce also compared her brand to the likes of Zara and H&M.

Kate Moss

A screenshot of TheCatWalkItalia’s Instagram post.

But Gabbana’s ire isn’t strictly reserved for reality stars, pop idols, and fashion bloggers. Even a bonafide supermodel can find themselves on the receiving end of one of the designer’s catty comments. In June 2018, Instagram account TheCatWalkItalia shared two photos of Moss wearing a plunging Saint Laurent romper, asking fans if the look was a hit or a miss. The designer simply responded, “no.”

#BoycottDolceGabbana

In June 2017, the brand debuted a $245 “#BoycottDolceGabbana” T-shirt after being criticized for dressing First Lady Melania Trump. Gabbana shared several photos of the FLOTUS on his Instagram thanking her for wearing his designs, branding her a #DGWoman, and writing, “Haters!!!! Remember #boycottdolcegabbana please.”

“Thin and Gorgeous” Sneakers

A screenshot of Stefano Gabbana’s Instagram account

In April 2017, the brand advertised their new sneakers on Instagram with the words “I’m Thin & Gorgeous” written across the side. Many on social media were outraged by the message, including Claire Mysko, CEO of the National Eating Disorders Association, who told Yahoo Style, “Though there may be an element of cheeky humor at play in the design of these sneakers, equating thinness and beauty with success and status is a message that hurts everyone. When the prevailing message is thin is good, gorgeous is good, that becomes our priority, often at the expense of our health and well-being.”

Gabbana eventually caught wind of the controversy, responding on his favorite platform, “When idiocy distorts reality!!! incredibile!!!! [sic] Next time we’ll write LOVE TO BE FAT AND FULL OF CHOLESTEROL. The most stupid post ever.”

Spring/Summer 2016 “Slave” Sandals

A screenshot of the brand’s website

In March 2016, the label began selling a $2,395 pair of shoes on their website listed as “slave sandals.” After an enormous social media backlash, D&G eventually changed the shoe’s name to the more innocuous “decorative flat sandal.”

Spring/Summer 2012 Blackamoor earrings

A white version of the earrings sold on 1stDibs

For the brand’s Spring 2012 collection, the designers said they drew inspiration from their homeland of Sicily. They also appear to have drawn inspiration from colonialism, sending Blackamoor earrings down the runway. As The Guardian so aptly put it at the time, “There’s nothing cute about two white men selling minstrel earrings to a majority non-black audience. There wasn’t a single black model in Dolce & Gabbana’s show, and it’s hard not to be appalled by the transparent exoticism in sending the only black faces down the runway in the form of earrings.”

Banning Press

If you needed any further proof that Dolce & Gabbana can dish it out but can’t take it, the New York Times has not been invited to a Dolce show for over a decade, and Women’s Wear Daily, W magazine, Italian Vogue and Vanity Fair have all been denied access at various times.

How many chances is Dolce & Gabbana going to get?