Gucci has apologized and removed a wool turtleneck sweater from its catalog after it came under fire on social media for resembling blackface.
The $900 black "balaclava jumper" features an abnormally long collar that covers the lower half of the face with a red mouth slit.
Gucci on Wednesday said it meant no offense by its garment.
"Gucci deeply apologizes for the offense it caused by the wool balaclava jumper," it said in a statement published to Twitter.
"We consider diversity to be a fundamental value to be fully upheld, respected, and at the forefront of every decision we make. We are fully committed to increasing diversity throughout our organization and turning this incident into a powerful learning moment for the Gucci team and beyond," Gucci said.
Gucci isn't the only luxury brand to be called out in recent months as Prada found itself in controversy over the holiday season by selling merchandise of monkeys that resembled racist stereotypes.
Prada then issued an apology saying it "abhors racist imagery."
And less than a month before that, Dolce & Gabbana caused a backlash in China with a series of videos largely considered offensive that were broadcasted on social media of an Asian woman failing to eat Italian food with chopsticks.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
