It's 2020, yet brands are still committing faux pas' of such magnitude one struggles to understand how they got through a screening process.
The latest is from Hong Kong-based makeup brand Woke Up Like This (WULT), which has been forced to apologise for naming a shade of liquid blush after Jewish diarist and Holocaust victim Anne Frank.
As part of it's new 'Face Dab' collection of products, the cosmetics company released several liquid blushes named after "inspiring, famous women" to inspire "WULT customers to live their dreams and break through gender barriers".
According to Business Insider Austria, products included 'In Woolf's Words' after 20th-century writer Virginia Woolf, 'Lift Like Melinda' after philanthropist Melinda Gates, and 'Viva La Frida' after Mexican painter Frida Kahlo.
But it was the shade 'Dream Like Anne' after Holocaust victim Anne Frank that caused outrage, with Jewish author Ben M Freeman tweeting it was "revolting".
"Naming a shade of blush after Anne Frank, who was a victim of genocide is revolting," he wrote. "Dead Jews are not a marketing opportunity."
Fellow author Claire Coleman also weighed in.
"I am just STAGGERED that at no point in the creative process did anyone on the Woke Up Like This team, or ANY of the other hundreds of people involved say 'ummm guys, this might not be appropriate'," she replied.
Another person pointed out the terrible description of the blush, which referred to Frank as a 'Holocaust diarist'.
"SO many things wrong with this. Like she was doing it for a job during that time?" they wrote.
Freeman also pointed to a rave review of the product from Time Out magazine.
"[Time Out Hong Kong], shame on you for not noticing and for promoting this disrespect," he wrote alongside a screenshot of the article.
In a statement to Metro, WULT revealed it had removed the product and issued an apology.
"We are extremely sorry that paying tribute to [Frank] in this way appears to have caused offence and is considered disrespectful," the statement read.
"Our intention was quite the reverse, to bring positive energy and shite a little light through unprecedented testing times during the global pandemic.
"We sincerely apologise for any miscommunication and 'Dream Like Anne' is therefore officially withdrawn from our online store with immediate effect."
Time Out Hong Kong also removed its article and issued an apology.
