Chanel, TikTok and the Beauty Advent Calendar Controversy
The New York Times
Some social media users are not feeling the Christmas spirit — or this box of mini lipsticks and branded stickers.
Hell hath no fury like a social media mob that thinks it has identified a luxury scam.
Or so it seemed this weekend, when a series of viral TikTok videos involving an $825 Chanel advent calendar and the disappointed customer who bought it went viral, inspiring a multitude of users to call foul on the brand. Or rather, all over its Instagram page.
In one way, this is merely the latest example of the vigilante justice meted out against powerful global brands by individuals willing to point out perceived injustice, including cultural appropriation, copying designs and other forms of misbehavior, and of the shifting balance of power between brands and audience.
