Anthropologie criticized for male model use, disables Instagram comments.

Anthropologie Faces Backlash Over Male Model in Women’s Clothing Campaign

Anthropologie, a popular women’s fashion brand, recently faced major backlash from fans after featuring a male model wearing women’s clothing in a campaign. The brand posted a reel on Instagram featuring a man with a shaved head dancing around while trying on various women’s clothing, including a skirt that exposed his underwear.

The backlash was so extreme that the social media team turned off comments on the reel, but angry fans simply started commenting on a different post. One commenter wrote, “Pathetic to turn off comments. Way to silence the voices of the actual women who shop and wear your clothes. Hope that dude and his friends will come shop because I have a feeling you just lost more customers than you gained with this one.”

Another commenter wrote, “Seriously? I don’t want to see a man’s bulge as he’s twirling in a dress. This is not the way to go Anthropologie. Looks like my recent purchases are going back to the store.”

Male Models in Women’s Clothing Campaigns

Anthropologie is not the only brand to use male models, including trans-identifying individuals, to market women’s apparel. Nike recently partnered with transgender TikTok influencer Dylan Mulvaney for a campaign to sell sports bras and women’s activewear.

However, not all fans are happy with this trend. Instagram star Bri Teresi publicly disavowed lingerie brand Honey Birdette after the company posted photos on its social media of “non-binary” male model Jake DuPree wearing a three-piece ruby red lingerie set. “Sad to see you guys jumping on the woke bandwagon! Once again, another thing taken over by men. Know your audience!” Teresi wrote of the campaign.

“As a model I can tell you that an actual woman has been robbed of a place because of a deluded diversity handout,” the Instagram star said. “That’s pure misogyny. Now more than ever, we must support businesses that support our values. Go woke, go broke.”

What Fans Want to See

Many fans are calling for brands to highlight real women in their campaigns, such as abuse survivors, veterans, women who’ve started non-profits or given back to their communities, cancer survivors, teachers, mothers, sisters, and friends. They believe that featuring real women would be a better representation of the brand and would resonate more with their target audience.

• Real women should be featured in campaigns
• Male models in women’s clothing campaigns are not resonating with fans
• Brands should support values that align with their audience