A Toronto woman tweeted a picture Monday of a t-shirt seen in a Hudson’s Bay department store showing a quote from British model Kate Moss — “Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels” — inside a mock nutrition label.
Below the photo, @KritsinEff’s tweet read: “Nope nope nope nope nope nope nope nope nope #nope #YoureFIRED.
Moss raised the ire of eating disorders groups after making the controversial statement in a magazine article in 2009. She was asked by Women’s Wear Daily what her personal motto was.
A British Liberal Democrat MP was so outraged at the time he even discussed her comments in Parliament.
The words have since been popping up as a rallying cry on some pro-anorexia websites.
Kristin Foster’s tweet sparked a wave of criticism against The Hudson’s Bay Company on social media.
The t-shirt’s designer, Canadian Christopher Lee Sauve, wrote on his blog that he had been bombarded by hate mail and messages protesting his design, when his intention was in fact contrary to what was perceived.
He explained, “Clearly the nutritional label that is on the t-shirt states that you are not consuming any calories or nutrition by not eating therefor (sic) Kate Moss statement from 2009 is ridiculous and therefor (sic) the t-shirt is a protest against her actions and the absurd remarks that occur in the fashion industry as all of my work portrays.”
Meanwhile, HBC responded to complaints yesterday, via Twitter, by saying it has pulled the clothing item. “Thanks for your feedback. It is very valuable to us. This t-shirt is being removed online and from stores immediately.”
The Bay, as it is commonly called, Canada’s oldest corporation and department store chain, is not the first retailer to do this.
American clothing giant JCPenney stopped selling a girl’s shirt that read “I’m too pretty to do homework so my brother has to do it for me” after it caused an uproar online, with critics calling the message sexist.
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