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Balenciaga's Bond Street store targeted in 'paedophile' protest

A store next to to the Balenciaga store in Beverly Hills was vandalized after the controversial ad campaign - AKGS
A store next to to the Balenciaga store in Beverly Hills was vandalized after the controversial ad campaign - AKGS

Balenciaga's Bond Street store has been targeted by an activist who placed a "paedophile" sticker on its windows.

The protest comes amid backlash against a recent advertising campaign by the fashion brand which featured children holding bondage-wearing teddy bears.

A man wearing a neon yellow vest and a bobble hat could be seen attaching a vinyl sticker with the word "paedophile" to the front window of the shop on Friday evening.

An eyewitness who filmed the incident said: "I'm not entirely sure what organisation the man sticking the vinyl to the glass was from and as far as I know there haven't been any repercussions.

"All I know is that Balenciaga has been somewhat empty since the incident."

A man in a hi-vis jacket was seen placing a paedophile sticker on the front window of the London store
A man in a hi-vis jacket was seen placing a paedophile sticker on the front window of the London store

Balenciaga has been embroiled in a row over sexualising children after the brand carried out a photoshoot where little girls were seen clutching a "BDSM teddy" bag.

The scandal escalated when it emerged that a previous campaign had featured copies of documents from the Supreme Court case United States v Williams, a ruling that increased federal protections against child porn.

The fashion house has since admitted the campaigns "reflect a series of grievous errors for which Balenciaga takes full responsibility".

Brand admits it made 'wrong choice'

It also admitted that using children to advertise the plush bear bags wearing leather and fishnet was the "wrong choice".

A spokesperson for Balenciaga said on social media following the scandal: "We take this matter very seriously and are taking legal action against the parties responsible for creating the set and including unapproved items for our spring 23 campaign photoshoot.

"We strongly condemn abuse of children in any form. We stand for children's safety and well-being."

The Met Police said the incident had not been reported to them.