Highsnobiety

Balenciaga just said "thanks, but no thanks" to Elon Musk's Twitter. The label has left the social media platform, becoming the first major fashion brand to eschew the site following Musk's controversial takeover.

Balenciaga declined to elaborate on its reason for leaving Twitter — but given growing concerns over Musk's plans for the platform, it seems the brand's exit has to do with a certain billionaire troll.

On November 9, the platform launched Twitter Blue, a $7.99/month service allowing anyone and everyone to pay for a verification check mark.

Your Highsnobiety privacy settings have blocked this Twitter post.
Your Highsnobiety privacy settings have blocked this Twitter post.

Netizens quickly began using the service to impersonate companies and brands, resulting in mostly funny but occasionally disastrous consequences.

Your Highsnobiety privacy settings have blocked this Twitter post.

For example: pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly's stock plummeted after an impersonator tweeted, "we are excited to announce insulin is free now," forcing the company to issue an official refutation.

Your Highsnobiety privacy settings have blocked this Twitter post.

Just two days after launching Twitter Blue, Musk paused the service, despite his assertion that brand impersonators wouldn't pose a problem.

Your Highsnobiety privacy settings have blocked this Twitter post.

Between mass layoffs, the threat of bankruptcy, a sharp drop in advertising revenue, and the resignation of several top executives, Musk's Twitter hasn't exactly gotten off to a smooth start.

Your Highsnobiety privacy settings have blocked this Twitter post.

There's good reason for brands such as Balenciaga to be concerned.

With Musk's emphasis on "free speech" and lax approach to content moderation and misinformation, companies may feel it's in their best interest to distance themselves from Twitter before it devolves into Parler 2.0. (In fact, Musk himself recently tweeted and deleted a link promoting a right-wing conspiracy theory regarding the recent attack on Paul Pelosi.)

Your Highsnobiety privacy settings have blocked this Twitter post.

A sampling of companies that have pulled ads from Twitter in the wake of Musk's acquisition: Chipotle, United Airlines, Pfizer, Audi, and General Motors.

With Balenciaga's former ties to disgraced YEEZY founder Ye, formerly Kanye West, still fresh in everyone's mind, the luxury house's decision to quit Twitter may be an attempt to preemptively quash another PR debacle.

Either that, or Demna really doesn't like Elon.

We Recommend
  • At Balenciaga's Winter 2024, Anything for Demna's Aesthetic
    • Style
  • Balenciaga Winter 2024 Just Dropped. Well, Some of It (EXCLUSIVE)
    • Style
  • Balenciaga's Wicked New Sneaker Is a Dress Shoe for Runners
    • Sneakers
  • Next Up for Erewhon? A Balenciaga Collab
    • Culture
  • YEEZY & Playboi Carti Muse Betsy Johnson Makes PRODUCTS, Not Clothes
    • Style
What To Read Next
  • Kendall Jenner in Business Bottega Is Basically Best-Dressed
    • Style
  • A Love Letter to Ferrari's IYKYK Super Car
    • Culture
  • Forget Rap Beef — Who Wears the Style Crown, Drake or Kendrick Lamar?
    • Style
  • Moshpit and Crowdsurf in Style: A Festival Fit's Essentials
    • Style
    • sponsored
  • Tough as Shell: the Making of an Outerwear Icon
    • Style
    • sponsored
  • Supreme’s Stellar Margiela Collab Isn’t What It Seems
    • Style
*If you submitted your e-mail address and placed an order, we may use your e-mail address to inform you regularly about similar products without prior explicit consent. You can object to the use of your e-mail address for this purpose at any time without incurring any costs other than the transmission costs according to the basic tariffs. Each newsletter contains an unsubscribe link. Alternatively, you can object to receiving the newsletter at any time by sending an e-mail to info@highsnobiety.com

Web Accessibility Statement

Titel Media GmbH (Highsnobiety), is committed to facilitating and improving the accessibility and usability of its Website, www.highsnobiety.com. Titel Media GmbH strives to ensure that its Website services and content are accessible to persons with disabilities including users of screen reader technology. To accomplish this, Titel Media GmbH tests, remediates and maintains the Website in-line with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), which also bring the Website into conformance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

Disclaimer

Please be aware that our efforts to maintain accessibility and usability are ongoing. While we strive to make the Website as accessible as possible some issues can be encountered by different assistive technology as the range of assistive technology is wide and varied.

Contact Us

If, at any time, you have specific questions or concerns about the accessibility of any particular webpage on this Website, please contact us at accessibility@highsnobiety.com, +49 (0)30 235 908 500. If you do encounter an accessibility issue, please be sure to specify the web page and nature of the issue in your email and/or phone call, and we will make all reasonable efforts to make that page or the information contained therein accessible for you.