A social fallacy on Antisemitism

CBB01| SF2
Michaela Mohamed | 22101945
Randburg
 BACKGROUND ON & THE ISSUE
• ZARA is a Spanish fast-fashion empire founded in 1975 by Amancio Ortega,
ZARA falls under the parent company Inditex that was founded in 1985 (Roll,
2021)

• ZARA is a multibillion-dollar company that prides themselves in being

politically aware such as all their stores are eco-efficient (Djordjevic, 2022).
• In 2014 ZARA had a PR scandal caused by a children's T-shirt (Welle, 2014)
• The T-shirt was supposed to be inspired by “The Wild West” but the
depiction however did not land, as this presents as antisemitic instead (Welle,
2014)

• ZARA was called out on twitter after releasing this t-shirt on their online
store to several countries, shortly after the backlash they removed it and
clarified the situation apologetically; saying it was not their intention and
that the t-shirt has not reached brick & mortar stores (Welle, 2014).
 ‘s Problem Idenitfied
• Antisemitism is the prejudice or discrimination held against Jewish individuals (Merriam Webster, 2022).
• The reason this toddler-wear t-shirt is specifically antisemitic is because it resembles the uniforms
given to those in concentration camps during WWII (Welle, 2014).
• The WWII was not the first showcase of antisemitism but is indubitably the most notorious; as it was
a fascist genocide of 6 million Jews (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, 2021).
• On top of the “striped pajamas”, the star embellishment was intended to be a sheriff badge but
rather presents as the yellow Star of David, the Star of David is an emblem for Judaism however the
yellow Star of David was enforced by Nazis upon to Jews to wear as a means of identification (United
States Holocaust Memorial Museum, 2021).

• ZARA’s problem was its ignorance towards such a gruesome event and thus offending their
consumers.
 ..….…‘s Project
• ZARA will sell a T-Shirt that has prosemite rhetoric, but has a general,
macrocosmic message. All the proceeds of this T-Shirt will go towards a Jewish
First, we make choices
charity based in the country of purchase.
• The t-shirt will read “first we make choices” on the front and “then choices make
us” on the back. This quote comes from Anne Frank, the full quote being “Our
lives are fashioned by our choices. First, we make our choices. Then our choices
make us”.

Then, our choices make us • After purchase, the customer will receive an SMS or email thanking them for
their purchase and including a link to ZARA’s website where there is an apology
to the Jewish community and as well as links to Jewish charities. This will serve as
reparation for the damaged caused by ZARA, through monetary compensation
and spreading awareness.
..….…‘s Target Audience
ZARA will target this campaign towards those in-between the ages of 14-50,
despite catering the t-shirt for all age groups; childrenswear, menswear and
womenswear.

ZARA will target all genders for this campaign as well as targeting all countries
and races but will emphasize on the Jewish community. The LSM level will be
between 8-10.

Psychographic factors to include would be individuals that are concerned with

being politically sensitive and involved as well as those who use social media to
boost the campaign through a #fashionedbyourchoices.
References
Deusche Welle. 2014. Highstreet giant ZARA pulls 'Holocaust' shirt. [Online] Available at: https://www.dw.com/en/highstreet-
giant-ZARA-pulls-holocaust-shirt/a-17885275 [Accessed: 15 August 2022]

Djordjevic, M. 2022. 20 Astonishing Zara Statistics That Show the Brand’s Value. [Online] Available at:
https://fashiondiscounts.uk/zara-statistics/ [Accessed: 15 August 2022]

Merriam Webster. 2022. Definition of Antisemitism. [Online]. Available at: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/anti-

Semitism [Accessed: 15 August 2022]

Roll, M. 2018. The Secret of ZARA’s Success: A Culture of Customer Co-creation. Martin Roll. [Online]. Available at:
https://martinroll.com/resources/articles/strategy/the-secret-of-ZARAs-success-a-culture-
of-customer-co-creation/ [Accessed: 15 August 2022]

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. 2021. INTRODUCTION TO THE HOLOCAUST. Holocaust Encyclopedia. [Online].
https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/introduction-to-the-holocaust [Accessed: 15 August 2022]
References
ZARA Facebook. 2022. ZARA logo. [Online Image] Available at: https://m.facebook.com/Zara/ [Accessed
13 August 2022]

ZARA Twitter. 2014. Kids Sheriff T-shirt. [Online Image] Available at: https://www.dw.com/en/highstreet-
giant-zara-pulls-holocaust-shirt/a-17885275 [Accessed 13 August 2022]

iStock. 2022. Plain White T-shirt. [Online Image] Available at:

https://www.istockphoto.com/search/2/image?phrase=white+t+shirt [Accessed 13 August 2022]